Studio Projects

The Studio Projects B3 is a low budget condenser mic. It's good for recording the following: Vocals Instruments Foley Audio Seriously, it's a mic and it records sound, that's what it's good for. It has good quality, features and comes with a mic clip and foam windscreen. Make sure you upgrade that windscreen, get a pop filter as well, especially if you plan on recording vocals. I got this mic back in 2002 (seems like a while ago) and I've had it in my collection ever since. It's not burnt out, came apart etc. I mention that because people tend to look at low budget mics as cheap recording tools that will fall apart. You just have to take care of your gear. OVERALL OPINION What I like most about this mic is that it sounds good and has a lot of features. A lot of microphones in the price range are decent and only have pad cuts (if anything). The fact that there are different mic patterns to choose from gives this mic a hand or 2 over most. I'm not saying this is the best mic around, I'm saying it's the best for the money spent. You won't find another mic (in the price range) which versatility. I've worked with many different budget microphones such as: AT2020, Behringer B2, Behringer B1, Blue Spark, Nady SCM90, MXL's. These are all pretty good mics (if used correct), but again the B3 takes the cake I think the sound on it is pretty amazing. I wouldn't put it up against anything like U87. That seems to be the standard for quality comparison “does it sound like the U87” or “sucks compared to the U87” You have to keep in mind, not everyone likes or wants that U87 sound. The only thing I didn't like about this mic was the stock mic stand/mount or clip it comes with it. It was lame and made the mic susceptible to lots of ground rumbles. So, make sure you get a replacement shock mount for best results

I have had a lot of experience with Studio Projects microphones (many models), but the TB1 is a valve microphone that uses some of the highest quality materials and parts to create its sound. When using the TB1 you will notice right away the natural sound, and warm tone that you will get with your vocals. The TB1 by Studio Projects is one of the best in the “B” line of microphones that they have come out with, and it is also probably the most expensive. You wont need to purchase this microphone for your home set up. It is just to costly to invest in getting this to record demo’s in your spare bedroom. The TB1 wasn’t created for the home musician, it was manufacture using the best quality parts to give the best quality sound possible. I have heard microphones that cost almost 4 thousand dollars not sound as good as this though, so the value of a microphone that you are going to get for the money is excellent. OVERALL OPINION The TB1 is very precise when recording and does very well not picking up any background noises or unwanted noises. You can use the microphone as is, and not have no clicking or popping problems. The tone you will get is very natural with almost a 0 background noise interference. I have very happy that I had the chance to use the TB1 several times, I do no own the TB1 but I do get a chance to use it a lot, probably around 2 or 3 times a month and each time I get a great sound. If I every open my own studio, this will be an easy decision to purchase for me. The best part about the TB1 is the fact that you will get a crystal clear sound when recording, and the downfall of that is that you can afford to purchase it for your home set up. But you have to take the good with the bad. It is a great microphone!

Studio Projects C4 will provide you with the audio quality that all your at home or personal projects will need. I have used these for years, at an at home set up in the basement of my town house with no acoustic treatment on the walls and still got an amazing sound quality. For both of these microphones I paid less than 400 dollars and used them on all of my horn instruments and some percussion instruments. I say some percussion instruments because I did not use them on drums. They didn’t prove a good sound when used with a kick or snare. The C4 is a small diaphragm condenser microphone and it has very low noise. It can also be used as a live microphone if you need it to be. I don’t recommend using it in live settings though. OVERALL OPINION The best thing that I liked is that I was able to have a pair of these microphones for under 400 dollars. I was not able to find a good pair of microphones for under 400 dollars. At least not ones that where good enough to actually use and could be used on instruments. However, the least thing about this microphone that I liked is the switch able -10db high pass filter. I don’t feel like it was as good as some of the other filters that have come on other models of Studio Projects microphones in the past. I feel like they short cut the engineering of that feature on the C4. None the less, these microphones will do the trick for all of your instrumental needs. It is perfect for horn players or woodwind players, you sound will be very natural when recorded. If you use this microphone in a live setting you could experience some noise problems from external sounds that aren’t meant to be heard. I wont use this microphone live again.

The Studio Projects B1 is a super cheap condenser microphone designed with the home studio owner in mind. The mic has a cardioid pick up pattern and a frequency response ranging from 20 Hz to 20 kHz. It has a built in -10 or -20 db pad. It comes with it’s own hard shell carrying case, a shock mount and a wind screen. OVERALL OPINION The Studio Projects B1 is one of the cheapest condenser microphones on the market and because of this has become a popular mic for home studio owners. I hadn’t used the mic until recently when a friend of mine bought it for his home studio. He has a very small set up with really only an mBox and Pro Tools, but a mic like this was all that he needed to make his set up a decent little recording rig for demos or home projects. The B1 is cool because you’re going to be able to record a lot of different things with it. It’s not the ideal microphone for any one application and definitely isn’t a professional microphone, but within a home recording environment it will definitely do the job. It’s a nice vocal microphone (again considering the absurd price), which is probably the application that most will be using it for. It’s helpful that it comes with it’s own shock mount and all the extras too. Having said all of this, I wouldn’t recommend the Studio Projects B1 unless you’re looking for your first microphone for a small home set up. It’s not an amazing mic but any stretch but the price makes it accessible to anyone. If you’ve already got a few mics at home this isn’t going to really do you any good but it’s a cool option to have if you’re looking to spend just about $100 US dollars on a condenser mic.

This is a large diaphragm condenser mic with a cardioid pattern. From the way I understand it, it is an American designed, Chinese copy of a Neumann large diaphragm condensor, like the U87 at less than 10% of the cost. This mic has a roll offs at 75 and 150 hz, as well as a -10 or -20 pad. Of course, it can use the standard flat response or no pad. It also came with a shockmount. I give it a perfect rating for characteristics, because although it is lacking the ability to change the mic pattern, the C3 has this ability, meaning that the C1 is available for cheaper. The pads and the roll off frequencies are very handy to have, for those who are lacking mixers with these options. OVERALL OPINION I've never been fortunate enough to have worked with a U87, but I can tell you this is the best microphone in my arsenal. It is very quiet, extremely accurate, and has a very smooth, full quality to it. I first purchased the Studio Projects B3, which is also a very versatile mic, but this one blows the B3 (or the B1 for that matter) out of the water. It's my #1 lead vocal mic, but I have also used it to mic a 15 inch bass guitar cab, which captured all of the lows and gave a nice punch. It also sounds wonderful on acoustic guitar. For the money, I've thought about purchasing a second one to use as drum overheads, but it's not in the budget right now. I give it a 9 for a rating because I have heard (and once experienced) a quality control issue on a Studio Project microphone. Fortunately, SP was very good about exchanging that mic for a replacement, even though it was out of warranty.