A Great Inexpensive Platform For Mic Upgrades
The MXL 990 is a super popular, inexpensive platform for modifications.
Even if you pay full price for one of these, you’re probably looking at only around $100 to get one. Musician’s Friend puts them on sale pretty regularly; you can often pick one up for around $50 when they run specials
Changing the Capsule Is Supposedly the Biggest, Best Mod for the 990
There are a load of mods that one can do to this mic, but I’ve read that 90% of the sound is determined by the capsule, so I decided to switch out the capsule with an RK-47 from Microphone-Parts.com. Apparently, the RK-47 is a take on the capsule from the U47 capsule, and is supposed to be extremely defined and clear, without being harsh.
What Was it Like to Do This Mod?
Installing it was a breeze. The only part of the entire mod that I found challenging was the soldering of the wires to the board. If you’re even remotely skilled with a soldering iron, you’ll probably have an easier time with it than me.