The Telefunken ELA M 250/251 was made for Telefunken by AKG after Neumann discontinued its OEM production of the Telefunken U-47. The Golden Age Premier GA-251 MKII is inspired by this truly classic microphone. The GA-251 MKII shares the same design goal that was set for the GA-47: to offer the classic qualities and advantages that a vintage unit in perfect condition would provide and doing so at a low price point. Mic Body and Grille: The mic body is made of brass, the grille is made of iron. The grille, which is a critical component affecting the sound character, is similar to the one in the ELA M 251. Capsule: The GA-251 MKII uses a 34 mm K251 style capsule. Being a dual-sided one, it provides both cardioid and omni polar patterns. In order to get a good consistency between units, for each production run of 50 pcs GA-251 MKII units, approximately 200 capsules is evaluated in order to find 50 capsules with specifications that lie within the tight tolerances. The sensitivity of the front and back side of the capsule do not differ more than 0,3 dB. The sensitivity between different capsules do not differ more than 0,5 dB. The tight manufacturing tolerance will lead to a very good consistency between different GA-251 MKII units. The capsule is specially designed to complement the electronic circuit of the GA-251 MKII to achieve a frequency response curve with a nice balance between the high, middle and low frequencies. The result is a very smooth sound with a warm bottom and airy top end just like ELA M 251. Output Transformer: The GA-251 MKII transformer is specially designed with a 10:1 AMI style dual bobbin transformer. It is made from Permalloy steel sheet from USA and enameled wire from Germany. It offers a wonderful sound character with a high resolution and great balance between the low, middle and high frequency bands.