Behringer Large diaphragm condenser microphones

The Behringer c 1 is a strange looking mic in my opinion. Its not very appealing at first glance, but that has nothing to do with the sound that it produces. This great unit has a well built Stainless Steel Body and Design. Very clean and precise product design with a cost effective purpose.It's made to go against more expensive mics for less. It does not require phantom power and comes with it's own power supply, cable and case. Just recently recorded with my new Focusrite ISA100 PreAmp and what you have is incredible warm vocals dialed into what you wish to achieve. It has three various switches for a wide choice of vocal recording applications. I tested this new Mic against others and it finished first having a real distinct and unique quality. Fred B the audio pro upon hearing the recording said, it was one of the best his ears ever heard!! I fully agree after many mic/song comparisons. Again, another superb investment of quality OVERALL OPINION After hearing all the ravs about this mic, and then hearing it in A-B comparison's with some of the most famous mics in the business I heard quickly why everyone likes it so much. After hearing the A-B tests I purchased mine and it's been a favorite ever since. Very versatile, and has a nice warm vintage sound. Very happy with it and the whole Sterling line. great products and great customer service. I put this mic right up there with some of the top quality shure mics. The bad thing about the Behringer c 1 is that it distorts considerably when faced with high SPL vocals or if you're recoding Rhythm Acoustic guitar. The Figure of Eight position gave the best sound on Vocals, but it just wasn't smooth enough for my taste. I sent it back and am still looking for my next Mic.

*Microphones are very subjective. Some microphones that work for some brilliantly may be disastrous on others. It is therefore important to understand the context in which this review is written and take it with a grain of salt, like all reviews on microphones should be treated.* The Behringer C-3 is a dual diaphragm multi pattern condenser microphone that is aimed at the extreme budget market. Being a multi pattern microphone, it is a bit less sensitive than its sibling, the Behringer C-1; it even, according to Behringer, loses 2,000 Hz of response off of the top end! The frequency response of the C-1 is 40-20,000 Hz, while the response of the C-3 is 40-18,000 Hz. It has a rather disgusting noise level of 23 dB; this puts it at a higher level than most tube microphones! Of course, the hook of the C-3 is that it is supposed to be multi pattern. It features the three standard patterns that one would expect on a multi pattern microphone (cardioid, figure 8, omnidirectional), but sometimes, I feel as if the cost of becoming multi pattern has crippled the already wounded Behringer C-1 into the C-3. Heck, I could actually use the C-1 if I absolutely had to, but the sound of the C-3 is dismal. It sounds narrow, and somehow harsh and yet muffled all at once. OVERALL OPINION I reviewed the Behringer C-1 as well and said that it would be find if it was all you wanted, but of course, I didn't recommend the microphone at all. That's because these extremely cheap C-series microphones have this uncanny ability to sound harsh and yet muffled at the same time. I said that they seem to pick up less detail that dynamic microphones? Well, that's because they do! I'm a lover of dynamic microphones myself, but when they capture transients better than certain condensers, that's the cue to leave certain condensers alone. That said, however, considering the features that Behringer packs into the C-3 for so little, you can't really go wrong if you're not aiming terribly high with sound quality. However, if you're so desperate for a microphone in this price range, get a C-1 or go to the Behringer dynamic, the XM8500. You simply are not going to get a good multi pattern microphone in this price range.

*Microphones are very subjective. Some microphones that work for some brilliantly may be disastrous on others. It is therefore important to understand the context in which this review is written and take it with a grain of salt, like all reviews on microphones should be treated.* The Behringer B-2 Pro is a large diaphragm multi pattern studio condenser, and where Behringer's budget model of selling their microphones screeches to a resounding halt. It is not that the B-2 Pro is a terrible microphone; it's quite usable, and has very acceptable specs. First off, it is multi pattern, with the pickups switchable between cardioid, figure 8, and omnidirectional. It has a standard frequency response of 20-20,000 Hz, a self noise that varies minimally (based on the pickup pattern you're using at the time) around 17 dB and a signal to noise ratio that again, varies a bit around 77 dB. This makes the Behringer B-2 Pro absolutely acceptable spec wise. It also includes the 10 dB pad and the low frequency roll off. On a less essential note, Behringer generously includes a shockmount, a windscreen, and a nice flight case to put the entire package in for transport and storage. Not to mention, the Behringer B-2 Pro actually looks quite nice. The problem lies in the sound of the microphone: It suffers from that high frequency exaggeration that plagues most budget microphones, and while I may forgive Behringer for doing this to their very cheap microphones, the B-2 Pro has crossed the line into the territory of microphones that do not do this to the sound. OVERALL OPINION There, quite simply, is no reason to buy the Behringer B-2 Pro, unless you love the sound of the low end microphones. Anyone can criticize me by saying that it's the person, not the gear, that counts, but when it comes to the Behringer B-2 Pro, I can completely agree with them (I do, anyway) and still drive them away from the B-2 Pro. You can find a bunch of microphones at this price, but if you're about to "settle" on the B-2 Pro, stop. Take a look around. There are a few magical microphones hovering around the B-2's price that outshine it in sound quality, and yes, even features.

The Behringer B-1 is a large diaphragm condenser microphone designed as a budget microphone for low end home studio owners. I've only used the mic one time in the recording studio, and this is the sort of application that I would recommend using it for and this is what it is designed for. With standard features across the board, the mic has a cardioid pick up pattern and picks up all the frequencies of human hearing, ranging from 20 Hz to 20 kHz. It has transformer-less FET based circuitry, and also has a switch for both a -10 db pad and a high pass filter. OVERALL OPINION In general, I'm really not a big fan of the Behringer B-1. While it is true that I might have somewhat of a bias against gear made by Behringer, it is also true that this is a low end microphone that isn't capable of very much. Especially in a world where there are so many different microphones to choose from in this price range, I don't think that one should settle for this mic. Just from picking it up and feeling it you can tell right off the bat that it isn't well made. It has the look to match as well, but the second that I held it in my hand to set it up I could feel that it wasn't sturdy. I used it to record vocals in a home studio, and the results were less than stellar. While I guess it would be fine for recording a demo or something like that, it sounds really bright and lacks depth. The price will certainly make a lot of users check it out, and if you're looking for a microphone in this price range I would encourage you to check it out for yourself. There is only so much that you can get from reading a review, so definitely check out this microphone and others in the price range like those made by MXL, Rode, and others to see what will work best for what you need.