AKG C 12

The AKG C 12 mic is one of the best tube condenser mics in history, flat out! It is a ide address, large diaphragm design. The AKG c 12 is a top of the line mic and is the reason a lot of other mic exist such as the 414 series and the Telefunken’s Ela M 250. A lot of modern manufacturers have come out with products that are trying to emulate the AKG c 12. But none of them can compare to this high quality mic.


OVERALL OPINION

We have used these mics in several different studio’s and are looking to purchase one of our own soon. We have used this mic for a lot of RnB recordings because of the range that it can pick up. Its truly amazing. Not too mention how it sounds with live instrument recordings especially the grand piano. It picks it up perfectly that if you hear it played back you will think the piano is being played live right in front of you . That is the whole purpose of recording live instruments is to give the listen the feeling of sitting in front of the actual instrument and hearing it played live.

Overall there are a ton of mics on the market and a lot of them have the same specs, but this one is the originator for a lot of these mics that are coming out now. It was way ahead of its time, this mic will be very expensive if you can come across one. They are very hard to find, believe me I am currently looking to buy one. It will cost a pretty penny but its worth it, the quality is outstanding not to mention the look and feel of it. It has a lot of weight too it, it feels like a mic should feel. This mic was used through the mid 60’s and 70’s and has recorded a ton of hits. This is the one!

These studio mics are tube condenser mics that work really well. They need a power supply to operate. They are great for picking up a wide range of frequencies, which makes them pretty useful in many contexts. Every studio I've been in that impressed me had at least a pair of these mics. I've never heard of anyone using them live, which makes sense because they are very delicate mics that probably wouldn't be very effective live.

OVERALL OPINION

I've been using these mics for over six months. I work in a studio that mostly records jazz and world music artists, so we have many people coming in to use our Steinway B piano. I've used them mostly on this acoustic piano with great results. I tend to use the in pairs because of this. They really pick up all the frequencies of the piano with great detail, and get all the dynamics without having to be cranked (thus preventing clipping pretty well.) The tone is also very rich and detailed without being shrill. It makes the piano arguably sound better than it does acoustically. In other instances, I've used it on vocals, which usually works well enough for me. It's especially good for singers who have a large range because it sounds good on almost anything. I used it to record a harp once and thought it was the best mic we had at the studio to do this. It's really pricey, so only studio owners who want to get the best sounds should use it. Home studio users would be advised to avoid it unless they have a large amount of money to throw around, although even then you'd probably pick up too much noise at home anyway. It's certainly a great mic, but because it's so expensive I can't say it's got a great value for the price. I haven't purchased one of my own, but if i was a studio owner and looking to buy good mics, I would certainly pick these guys up.

The AKG C 12 is a tube condenser microphone that is designed for use in the recording studio. Since it is a tube condenser mic, it has its own power supply that is needed to power the microphone. The C 12 has become a classic microphone and used in professional studios worldwide. I definitely would not recommend using this microphone in a live setting, it is just too expensive and too fragile for that type of use.

OVERALL OPINION

I've been using the AKG C 12 tube condenser microphone for about four years and it is one of the best overall tube microphones that I've used. This is AKG's best microphone and is renown for its full range frequency response and thick, rich, and warm tone color. I have used the AKG C 12 on lead and back up vocals, for room microphones, on acoustic and electric guitars, and pretty much anything else I think might work well for it. It is a great all purpose microphone that will work on just about anything due to the fact that it covers the full frequency spectrum and everything comes in warm and clean. The price of this microphone is pretty absurd if you can get one used, and the newer model, the C 12 VR, is quite expensive as well. These microphones are designed for professional engineers and professional studios and is probably too lofty a price for the home studio owner. This is a high quality microphone that is probably priced right due to the extreme care and high quality parts this is made with. The is really one of the best microphones ever made and if you have ever heard it used, you know what I'm talking about. If you can find a studio that has one, or can afford one, these microphones will give you a great sound when recording just about anything.