Universal Audio Bock 187, 167 & 251

High‑end analogue kit is still an important part of Universal Audio’s product range, and the latest additions are a trio of highly desirable studio mics.

In recent years, industry giants Universal Audio have acquired not one but two microphone manufacturers. Both were high‑end companies, but with very different specialisms and skill sets. Townsend Labs majored on digital wizardry, first seen back in 2017 in their Sphere L22 modelling microphone, whilst Bock Audio were a boutique analogue manufacturer, producing meticulously crafted studio mics in the classic German and Austrian traditions.

Townsend Labs’ groundbreaking technology has been put to work in UA’s affordable Standard series, a range of six task‑oriented mics with simple yet effective modelling features. And although Bock Audio founder David Bock has since parted ways with UA, a series of three high‑end studio mics that he developed has now reached the market under the UA Bock sub‑brand. All three are refinements of mics previously sold under the Bock Audio and/or Soundelux names, and all three draw inspiration from historic classics without being slavish recreations.

The flagship UA Bock 251 is the latest revision of a model that was previously sold both as the Soundelux 251 and Bock Audio 251. As the name suggests, it is a large‑diaphragm valve mic somewhat based on the Telefunken ELA M 251, which was itself an adaptation of the AKG C12. The UA Bock 167 likewise derives from a Soundelux model, in this case the U99. Another valve mic, it is broadly patterned after the Neumann U67. Finally, the solid‑state UA Bock 187 represents the next generation of the Soundelux U195, and is perhaps more loosely inspired by the U67’s successor, the Neumann U87. UA sent all three mics for this review.

UA Got The Look

The UA Bock mics are manufactured in Universal Audio’s in‑house Custom Shop facility in Santa Cruz, California, alongside classic hardware such as the LA‑2A and 1176, and the build quality and finish are uniformly exceptional. The enamelled shells and matte grey metalwork are effortlessly classy — much more so to my eyes than other, blingier mics. There is also an obvious and pleasing visual continuity in the design of the three mics, with sympathetic colour schemes and common elements such as the badges and engraved lettering. All of them occupy a cylindrical form factor reminiscent of the ELA M 251 and the Neumann U47, with the capsule mounted surprisingly high up in the headbasket, almost to the point where it begins to be obscured by the band that forms the top of its frame.

Dig deeper, though, and you’ll find a surprising number of differences of detail. For example, the 251 ships with a gorgeous attaché case bound in grey and tan leather, with cutouts for the PSU, the shockmount and the wooden box that houses the mic itself, and a nifty secret compartment to store the cable. The heavy card‑based packaging for the 167 is completely different in literally every respect, with a much more modern aesthetic.

These differences in detail go well beyond the cosmetic, too. Both the 251 and the 167 connect to their power supplies using six‑pin cables, but the 251’s uses locking screw‑on connectors whilst the 167 has a six‑pin XLR. The 251’s pattern control is on the mic itself, while that of the 167 resides on the PSU. And although all three mics are similar in size and shape, they come with different mounts; the 167’s spider mount screws onto the base of the mic, whilst the 251’s is attached using clasps that grip the shell, and the 187 comes with a swivel mount.

Spirit Of ’67

In terms of features, the UA Bock 251 is probably the closest of the three to its inspiration. It has a German‑made, large‑diaphragm, edge‑terminated capsule patterned after the ‘brass ring’ CK12 that was used in both the C12 and the ELA M251, and apart from the on/off switch on the power supply, the only control is an authentically T‑shaped pattern selector that switches between cardioid, omni and figure‑8. There are no pads or filters. One area where the UA Bock 251 differs from the Telefunken original is in the choice of valve: UA use an ECC85 dual triode, whereas the ELA M251 was sold with a 6072 (aka 12AY7) in the USA, or an AC701 miniature valve in Europe. UA have also chosen to use a larger transformer than the Haufe T14/1 found in the ELA M251, which may have contributed something to that mic’s distinctive character but also restricted its low‑frequency response.

The UA Bock 167, by contrast, has quite a few features that were never present on the Neumann U67. It is, naturally, based around...