In this article we have combined many of our reviews of large diaphragm condenser microphones that you can buy today. Some of these mics represent great value for money, others are undoubtedly on the other side of what consider to be expensive though don’t forget top quality sometimes costs top draw. Over the years we at Production Expert have either reviewed or used all of the mics in this list in some way, shape or form which has helped inform our choice for this list:
Austrian Audio were born out of AKG but how much of that classic studio microphone DNA has found its way into their OC series microphones? In this extended on test article we try the Austrian Audio OC 818 and 18 condenser microphones on a variety of sources. We find a lot of Austrian-built microphone for surprisingly little money.
As you can imagine we at Production Expert get a chance to test a vast amount of the latest software and hardware but once in a while a brand approaches us that we have no experience of. This was the case with JZ Microphones (pronounced Jay Zed, not Jay Zee). This is how I got on using the JZ Microphones Black Hole BH-1S and the BH2 in a tracking session.
You get to keep just one microphone, which one would you choose? Julian Rodgers makes his choice.
You get to keep just one microphone, which one would you choose? James Ivey makes his choice.
You get to keep just one microphone, which one would you choose? Russ Hughes makes his choice.
Warm Audio is a gear manufacturer that strives to emulate the sound quality of vintage high-end gear, but with a much smaller price tag. I wanted to see how some of their microphones compared to their vintage counterparts.
I’ve said it before and I’ll happily say it again, “I love microphones”. I have done ever since I was a kid and realised you get what you pay for. But what happens when a manufacturer of super high end microphones comes up with a product that is gunning for some of the biggest and most well respected names in the business at a price point that is one of the most hotly contested in the industry? Can the team at Soyuz Microphones create one of their hand-built masterpieces and still sell it for between £1000 and £1500 UK Pounds? Let’s find out by testing the new Soyuz SU-023 or Bomblet microphone.
I'm not sure exactly when it was that vintage became cool, or maybe it has always been cool and I'm just late to the party, but as soon as it did, people started to copy it. In the fashion world stressed jeans started to appear. These are just a brand new pair that have been battered and teased to look like old warn in jeans for the sake of style. In our world of music and all things high tech the goal is that vintage sound or tone but without the vintage headaches of poor reliability and instability and often massive investment.
This post does not go into technical differences between ribbon and condenser microphones as that would be a boring article to write... and read. instead, we've produced a shootout between both ribbon and condenser microphones that on the face of it look the same, are both from the same microphone brand and are similarly priced: The SE Electronics SE X1 R ribbon and SE X1 S condenser.
In this video review for Production Expert, Pro Tools Expert Technical Editor James Ivey takes a look at the new LCT540 Subzero (540S in the UK and Europe) 1-inch condenser capsule microphone by Lewitt. In this review James shows you some of the key features of the 540S then lets you hear how it sounds on drum overheads and nylon and steel string acoustic guitars in a short demo track.
In this video review for Production Expert, Technical Editor James Ivey takes a look and listen to the Series Black range of condenser microphones by Lauten Audio.
In this video review for Production Expert, Pro Tools Expert Technical Editor, James Ivey takes a look at the new Hammer Audio HA-872 condenser microphone.
In this video review for Pro Tools Expert, Technical Editor James Ivey looks at the final microphone in the Audio Technica 50 series the 5040. The AT504 is once again a quad rectangular diaphragm microphone but this has no transformer in its output stage thus giving it a very very high output.
In this video review for Pro Tools Expert, Technical Editor James Ivey takes a look at the new Vanguard Audio Labs V44S Stereo Condenser Microphone.