REF: TONALITY -
Musical Instruments and Microphones both exhibit sonic elements one might refer to as Timbre or Tone.
Two Steinway B's will All sound decidedly different. A Brazilian Rosewood D-28 with
scalloped-bracing will have a different "timbre" than an East Indian Rosewood D-28
without the "pre-war" bracing system. (Of course, the type of Spruce matters, too!)
So - if we employ the rough-hewn concept of "Tone-Color" to contrast microphones,
it's the inexactitude of language that requires references to other sensory receptors
(hence, the less-than-perfect references to flavor or color in the audio realm).
SYNESTHESIA - (excerpt from Wikepedia)
A neurologically based phenomenon in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway
leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway.
In fact, Some Musicians DO see different musical notes as Primary Colors:
Blue is a different frequency than Red, Middle C is different from G#, etc.
If that's too abstact or too simplistic for some people, I can totally dig it!!
A More Useful Approach to Mic Selection might along these lines:
Does it make my anemic Ramirez sound full ?
Does it make my boomy D-41 sound less boomy ?
Does it faithfully capture the upper register of my piano ? The lower?
Does it love the sound of my voice ? Or my wife's Voice ??
Does it enhance the sound of my Saxophone, Hammond B-3, or Harp (either kind)?
Does it take the edge (the splat and blat) out of my trumpet?
Does it add presence or tame sibilance; round-out or focus
the sound? (I.E.,what psycho-acoustic elements does it lend?)
A good mic should make the playback sound to the subjective
listener As Good - OR Better - as it did in the tracking room!
A Simple Mantra is the "Analog Gear should Flatter the Source"!!
And also - that "One Size Does NOT Fit ALL" when it comes to audio!
In the Hypothetical ADK Color-Wheel -
A Hamburg Edition is Mellow, A Vienna is Brilliant.
A6 and S-7 are in between, with the S-7 being somewhat closer
to a Hamburg, and the A6 being somewhat closer to a Vienna.
We submit "blending" is the key to playing or reproducing music!~
It's an "ENSEMBLE EFFORT" (on so many levels) !!!
Cheers!!!