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mooseherman « Really solid Cheap Tube Mic »
Published on 10/13/10 at 09:33This is a tube condenser microphone which comes with its own power supply. The microphone is made by MXL, a lesser known company. It is definitely only really useful in a studio environment. If there is ambient noise in a recording space, this mic will pick it up, so really you should only use it if it's going to work well for you. Live shows are a no-no. This mic is definitely really versatile, but it's also incredibly fragile. It's not as fragile as a ribbon microphone but It's definitely no SM57 so be careful.
OVERALL OPINION
I think that for the price, this microphone is a really solid choice. It certainly is not going to hold up to an AKG N-1 or a Neumann U67, but it's also a fraction of the price of one of those mics. I recently did a "shootout", or comparison of this mic with the AKG N-1, and I found it to be relatively comparable to it. It was certainly brighter and had a harder high end, which is not always the best thing in a tube mic. This mic tends not to be as "warm" as the N-1 but it has a brighter high end, so it has its own advantages as well. However, certain vocalists actually sounded better with this than the N-1, mainly because they were not belting it out as much. I find that this mic is good on acoustic guitars, vocals, and even as a room mic for drums. I like it on lower stringed instruments like cello and viola, and to a SLIGHTLY lesser extent, violin. It's actually great on most instruments. While I am spoiled in the sense that I regularly get to use awesome mics like the previously mentioned tube mics, I feel like I would recommend this one because it's so much cheaper. If you can't afford one of those other ones, I would definitely get this one.
OVERALL OPINION
I think that for the price, this microphone is a really solid choice. It certainly is not going to hold up to an AKG N-1 or a Neumann U67, but it's also a fraction of the price of one of those mics. I recently did a "shootout", or comparison of this mic with the AKG N-1, and I found it to be relatively comparable to it. It was certainly brighter and had a harder high end, which is not always the best thing in a tube mic. This mic tends not to be as "warm" as the N-1 but it has a brighter high end, so it has its own advantages as well. However, certain vocalists actually sounded better with this than the N-1, mainly because they were not belting it out as much. I find that this mic is good on acoustic guitars, vocals, and even as a room mic for drums. I like it on lower stringed instruments like cello and viola, and to a SLIGHTLY lesser extent, violin. It's actually great on most instruments. While I am spoiled in the sense that I regularly get to use awesome mics like the previously mentioned tube mics, I feel like I would recommend this one because it's so much cheaper. If you can't afford one of those other ones, I would definitely get this one.