Manley Reference Cardioid Microphone

The world’s most popular modern tube vocal mic.
The Manley Reference Cardioid Tube Microphone has that “finished” sound right out of the box, making it the favorite vocal mic of top producers and voiceover artists alike.

This is modern pop music’s go-to mic: flattering, present, and larger-than-life. Some refer to the Manley RefC as the “Just Add Talent” microphone.

The Reference Cardioid Microphone shares the same electronic attributes as the Gold Reference Series, but has a center-fixed cardioid-only capsule with a thicker gauge (6 micron) gold sputtered diaphragm. With the similar film thickness and construction, similar high frequency resonance (a little edge), similar proximity effect and pretty good immunity from pops and sibilance problems, our Reference Cardioid more closely recalls how many of the vintage European tube mics such as the beloved U47 sounded like when they were new. Its rich tonal balance and liquid character is consistently admired for instruments such as guitars, drum overheads, saxophone, and especially vocals. With your present mic, if you find yourself leaning on your compressors and boosting 5 or 10K to score a bit more testosterone, then the Reference Cardioid just might be the mic you’re looking for to cure what ails ya. If you seem to be constantly boosting 12-18K and trying to get a clean, intimate sound, then probably the Reference Gold would be the safest bet.

All-Tube triode design 12AX7 (Previous versions used 12AT7 and 6072.)

-10 dB switchable pad

Frequency response: 10Hz-30KHz

Sensitivity: 17mV/Pa

Noise typically -120dB EIN

Max SPL: 150dB

Output Impedance: 250 Ohms

Weight: 2.25 lbs (mic)

Weight: 2.5 lbs (PSU)

Size: 4.5" x 9.7" x 4.5" (mic)

Size: 5" x 8.2" x 3.4" (PSU)

Shipping weight: 15 lbs

Selected matched pairs available

Outboard Power Supply is factory set for 100V, 120V or 220-240VAC operation for original destination country's mains voltage.

Operating Mains Voltage changeable with power transformer re-wiring via internal jumpers and fuse value change.

Mains Voltage Frequency: 50~60Hz

Mains Fuse: 250mA @ 100~120V; 125mA @ 220~240V operation

Power Consumption: 70mA @ 120V = 8.4 Watts

US and EU parcels ship via UPS, ETA 1-7 working days from pickup day zero. That also applies to most locations worldwide.

All shipments are fully insured.

Bigger shipments requiring pallets or custom made crates ship to US, CA, JP, CN, AU and other outside of EU locations via DHL Air Freight, ETA is normally approx. 7-14 working days from pickup day zero.

Big shipments inside EU ship via different freight companies, recently mostly via ACE Logistics. Freight forwarders can use different courier companies for deliveries to final destinations.

Palletising and crating time can vary depending on the size of the shipment and packaging queue. We pack all our shipments with great care.

You are most welcome to pick your order up yourself from our Retrosonic Pro Audio showroom, studio and warehouse in Tallinn, Estonia.

We ship worldwide – contact us for a personal shipping quote or any other questions.

VAT (Value Added Tax) can be deducted if you have a company with a valid EU VAT number or if you're based outside of the EU. Non-EU buyers pay all and any import tax and duty as regulated by their local customs.