Presenting the IRPA MD53, a truly rare and incredible sounding dual-diaphragm multi-pattern moving coil dynamic microphone from the Soviet Union, produced in very small quantities in the late 60s and early 70s. You might say that it’s the Russian equivalent of an AKG D36, both in form (when it’s windscreen is on) and in function. We were incredibly lucky to have stumbled across this mic, especially with it’s original polar pattern switch box. The microphone connects to the switch box with a multipin cable which sends the signals from both the front and rear capsule capsules (each labeled “FRONT” to incidate which side has the capsule in which compartment) into the box which sums (or subtracts) them from each other depending on the switch position to generate a mono output with the selected polar pattern (cardioid, figure 8 or omni). The switch box also includes a three-position high pass switch, indicating that this mic is capable of reproducing low frequencies below 50 Hz, which it most ceratinly does. The MD53 is a fantastic sounding dynamic microphone and is currently our go-to microphone for bass amps with excellent low frequency response and a meaty midrange that sits perfectly in a mix. We are looking forward to trying it on our next vocal session, I presume it was designed for this task. You can see one of Soviet Russia’s most beloved vocalists, Edyta Pinkha, singing into an MD53 without the windscreen on in the last photo.
