I thought my AT3031s were okay in an X-Y stereo arrangement. But a few nights ago I tried ORTF with them and I'm blown away. With the orchestra on the stage, the Color Guard was performing in front of the stage at the distance I would have placed my mic stand. So I was forced to move my stand right up to the edge of the stage. This resulted in each mic pointing directly at the last chair at each end of the orchestral semicircle. The boom was extended straight up so the mics were about 4-5 feet above the stage floor.

The result was not what the audience heard, but what they might have wished they heard. Pretty close to what the conductor heard. I wish I had a place to post a sample.

I think the AT3031s are a terrific value offering a lot of sonic bang for the buck, a mic suitable for serious professional recording and broadcasting applications yet they dont break the bank.