Sound & quality

Just as one would expect from a large diaphragm studio mic, it provides a deep low-end response with a great richness of sound. It is relatively accurate for not only voice but also kick drums and bass cabs. The strength of proximity effect is moderate but it doesn’t change its quality whether the source is directly on axis or off axis. That being said, it likes to have some space, if you bring it too close it may actually sound too loud and distorted. You definitely don’t want to eat this mic, but when the proper distance is maintained, it sounds smooth without any issue. Just keep in mind that this is a sensitive mic.

Having covered the low end, it is crucial to note about the RE320’s bright character. Although for the most part it is flat, the highs are actually shelved to +4.5 dB, which is quite noticeable. Then again, higher transient response makes it hotter, which some podcasters have little tolerance to. Shure SM7B definitely sounds mellower. Yet this only seems to be relevant if you are in a noisy or an untreated room. In the right environment, the Electro-Voice RE320 actually gives more advantage when it comes to recording. On the other hand, it is also fairly easy to reduce the EQ to complete flat in the mixer.

In my personal experience, the RE320 sounds great without any external EQ. It just sounds a bit different from a traditional flat broadcaster mic and may need some getting used to. Then again, it is also a common practice to brighten up the flat mics for the same purpose, so which one is ultimately better in this case might be arguable. Generally, the flat response is the way to go for podcasting and voiceovers while a brighter response is more suitable for music and recording. Just to summarize my point, RE320 is suitable for both, although the SM7B is more suited when it comes to broadcasting.

Instrument recording

RE320 is also marketed for instrument miking, which it does justice too. If you’re still heavily relying on the SM57 as a general instrument mic, perhaps it’s time to reconsider your recording arsenal and add some heavyweight toys such as RE320. This mic excels at recording wind and brass instruments like sax, trombone / trumpet and especially their bass counterparts. It is capable of producing a clean sound with remarkable clarity white also retaining the lows. Works great for kick drum and toms as well, for which it has a special EQ mode that scoops out the boxy sound and keeps the unhyped oomph plus the attack.

Design and build

The mic is literally big and heavy – it is a solid build with lots of metal. However, because it is also longer, it actually looks better on camera than the fatter SM7B; it does not obstruct the face as much, especially when used without mount. RE320 does not have an internal shock mount, so unless you can avoid touching both the mic and the table this is a must. Pop filter on the other hand is optional. Another thing that is worth noting is that the mic has a very high degree protection from RFI, including high-pitched interference from cellphones. But there is no surprise because its main use is for the radio stations.

- Reviewed at $295.00

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Sound & quality

If I were asked to review this mic in one word, I would say “bright” – like hell. There is about 10 dB difference between highs and lows, which is a bit bizarre but the overall transition is so smooth and gradual, and without any noticeable dips or bumps along the way that it actually makes sense. The idea here is we don’t really need any lows on overheads – their purpose is to brighten the sound, highlighting the cymbals. But if cut too abruptly they would sound artificial and wouldn’t mix well. Despite the brightness, those aren’t too harsh on the ears but technically every mic has some amount of distortion.

I would say it’s a decent tradeoff for the price, especially for something that ‘sounds’ right. On paper, we could find a number of high-end mics with much better specs, but once plugged you realize they don’t really work the way you expected. Talking about specs Audix does not provide complete information on ADX51, which is a bummer. For instance, I couldn’t find signal to noise ratio in their spreadsheet but once again it’s not all about specs. Are there are better mics? Yes of course, but some are outright expensive, some would only work for particular setups and others… the majority are actually both.

I still find Audix ADX51 fits in more as a universal overhead solution, and it does a good job handling that treble. There is no lack of clarity, a good amount of brilliance (even though the highs roll off a bit prematurely at 15 kHz), and of course, those SDCs are expectedly crispy. The amount of treble does seem a bit overwhelming at first, but it works in the mix, so why complain about something that works? Having covered the brightness aspect, the miniscule amount of bass that keeps continuously rolling off is quite disappointing. The good thing, this is absolutely not needed for overhead miking.

Other uses?

The bad thing, it is hard to think of any other application. ATM450 for example I could use for a whole lot of different things, it wouldn’t necessarily always provide perfect results but it could easily handle an acoustic guitar at least. With ADX51, it is not even worth trying, everything just sounds too thin: an acoustic guitar becomes ukulele, a double bass becomes violin – well you get the idea. Maybe in certain cases when you don’t really need the bass portion of the sound below 100 hZ and actually require a bright mic, for example in order to cut through a dense mix, only then it could be worth using.

- Reviewed at $219.79

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Sound & quality

Audio-Technica ATM450 has a brightened response that emphasizes presence, slightly adding to upper midrange and brilliance. Interestingly the peak is at 6.5 kHz, which cannot but remind of SM57 albeit with less aggression and more smoothness to it, and of course a far superior clarity of a condenser. The midrange is expectedly flat and uncolored. The lows present another surprise: at first glance on frequency response, they may seem like rolling off, but that’s not true. The lows are only brought down a few dB lower (which is hardly noticeable) yet remain flat all the way to the bottom, claimed @ 40 Hz.

Possible applications

Talking about lows, ATM450 indeed sounds very rich without noticeable distortions or color. This is why, it can well be used on bass cabs and it’s not a gimmick, because the lowest note on 4-string bass guitar is 41 Hz, so it perfectly fits the specs. To match the claimed response, the mic should be placed on-axis 12” from the source, though I suppose you should place it a few inches closer because the diaphragm is actually recessed into the cab but that’s the theory. Another application that comes to mind is miking a double bass since they have a similar response, though you’d still need to keep some distance.

This one also works for miking all kinds of fiddles, acoustic guitars and stringed instruments, which is a standard stuff that can be done with many different mics. In this regard, it should work pretty fine but I don’t think it would give you any significant advantage aside from having an accurate low-end. Nevertheless if you like the form factor, and think you can afford it… might as well use it, at least the quality of recording would not be a problem! Sometimes though finding your ideal instrument mic for this usage can be a pain in the ass. Almost every decent mic here is pricey and anything sub $100 is usually garbage, but oh well…

Audio-Technica ATM450, thanks to its side address pickup has another interesting usage, which is miking a closed lid grand piano. For this setup you would need two mics, one for higher and one for lower register. You would then mount them inside the piano, pointing to the strings. This can produce some very good results: since the lid is closed, the air pressure stays inside, which allows capturing the richness of the lower register in its entirety. On the other hand, a closed lid provides isolation and helps greatly reducing the bleed from other sound sources.

Overheads & snare

One of the great usage for this mic is overheads; if you can grab a pair, they will make your life happier. If you have too many cymbals, you would also need spot mics, otherwise you will not be able to hear all the nuances, effectively making the drummer sound weird. ATM450 does work for spot miking, especially on hi-hat but it could turn out expensive if you have to buy many of them. For other cymbals, I personally prefer the SM81 but it’s actually even more expensive so this doesn’t help. However, for a light drum kit a pair of ATM450 overheads will do great, making it easier to build a stereo image as well.

ATM450 sounds good on toms too, but there are many specialized mics than can get the job done much cheaper, so this would be a waste. I did leave the snare drum for the dessert… but I think this could be the best usage for the mic, especially when miking a snare top in a double mic setup. Oh boy, not only it fits the snare perfectly – the sound just blows you out of the water! Even in a single mic setup, it can make a tremendous improvement. I already compared it to SM57 and not without a reason, as it has been an industry standard for snare. ATM450 offers a similar tone only the sound is far superior.

Should you buy it?

One may find it difficult to envisage how this mic works and sounds because the specs don’t show much of significance, the model itself is relatively unknown, and so it’s easy to overlook. However, make no mistake; this is a solid quality mic, which if used correctly can rival more expensive units. The only caveat, it can be a hit or miss if you aren’t sure what to expect. Therefore, I would not recommend it if you are looking to buy your very first mic. But if you know what you’re doing and looking to expand your collection, then it’s definitely worth buying – it will find its use and prove to be an amazing addition.

- Reviewed at $249.00

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Sound & quality

Ok, once again let’s start with the frequency diagram. What you’ll see on SM81 is that it’s incredibly flat. All the way until 15 kHz, there is almost zero color. From 15 kHz and above it starts rolling off but it’s quite insignificant. Different manufacturers have been in pursuit for a perfect linear response for decades and many have somewhat succeeded. However, most of those mics would only look cool on the charts but when put in real life recording situation they would sound real crappy. There is a lot more to it for achieving a good sound and the SM81 is one of the few mics that didn’t neglect other factors.

Aside from its non-hyped response, this mic is capable of capturing all the details and subtleties without introducing harshness or graininess, and this is a very important point. Sadly but true, many SDCs nowadays sound blatantly awful: harmonic distortions, intermodulation, phase distortions and sharp resonances are all over the place! And instead of addressing those issues directly, they simply add more brightness so that in A/B comparison they would seem have more clarity. However, recording sound engineers aren’t easily fooled, and the SM81 is what they use most of the time.

Talking about distortions, I’ve not yet finished. Unlike large diaphragm mics, SDCs aren’t that well suited for reproducing the low-end, and this often results to so-called low-end distortions. This is a huge problem and it affect almost every second SDC, to a degree. This is where another quirk comes into play – manufacturers simply introduce low cut filters meant to deaden the low end altogether, instead of fixing it. There are of course many valid reasons to use the low cut filters, but using it primarily to mask the distortions of a poorly designed mic is a bit unethical.

If you think that Shure SM81 doesn’t suffer from a distorted low end, then… you are right! Or at least it is unnoticeable. There is a different issue, it sounds much richer than other SDCs, which is great but it can be overwhelming in the mix. However, it is much easier to roll it off, than to reconstruct what is missing, and the two switchable low cut filters are there for you to help. But let’s note that despite having a beautiful low end, it still won’t replace a good LDC, because we don’t want the reader to form an impression that it can handle everything, and then use it for something it wasn’t meant to do.

Now let’s get to the technical part, particularly I would like to talk about noise. Shure SM81 is rated for 6 mV/Pa sensitivity and 16 dB-A self-noise. While the self-noise is excellent for an SDC, the sensitivity is a bit lacking behind. This doesn’t mean it’s not sensitive! It just means it will require more amplification to match the level of other mics, and this will introduce more noise. With levels matched, it would still produce less noise than let’s say CAD e70 but not by a great margin. In a nutshell, it’s quite decent and more than enough for miking instruments… just don’t expect it to be nearly as silent as shotguns.

Performance

Acoustic guitar

Shure SM81 is a brilliant choice for miking guitars although a bit costly. It gives you amazing definition with a rich, realistic low end and mind-blowing crispiness. Positioning of the mic is crucial, so take your time to try, and adjust if necessary. By pointing towards the hole or away from the hole, you can control how much low end gets through to find your ideal balance. I think it’s highly debatable that using bright mics will have any advantage in guitar miking. For instance, CAD e70 is brighter and it works beautifully for acoustics. SM81 is neutral and it sounds… even better! Perhaps it is quality that matters.

Pianos

Similar to acoustic guitars, it will also excel with pianos and grand pianos, as long as you know how and where to place it – and this is a crucial point. Obviously, even the SM57 in the right place will sound better than the SM81 in the wrong place. But of course there are amazing perks of using the SM81. It allows a much more natural and transparent sound representation and goes deeper than other SDCs, to the listener’s surprise. To tame the lower fundamentals, you need to create an area of pressure, so they don’t just disperse in the room. For this, open the piano only slightly by using a short stick.

Overheads

For overheads, those mics aren’t just great – they are almost irreplaceable. SM81 has uncolored highs, very insignificant distortion and it’s comfortable with high SPL sitting next to a cymbal. This is where I like using them most, by the way. And you don’t even need the matched pair for them to work, just buy two pieces and you are set. The only problem is that a pair will cost you around $700, which is a bit frustrating. Anything cheaper will likely sound harsher or colored. But there are also better mics! For example, LCT-340 from Lewitt for $499 apiece. If you want a pair for free, you just buy their drum mics kit for $939, then sell the other mics from the kit, one by one, and you’ll get your money back, duh.

Percussions

There are many different percussion instruments and all of them have different fundamental frequencies. Some will probably sound good, while others not so. As long as fundamental frequencies aren’t very deep, it should give you an excellent performance. Small tambourines, bells and triangles for instance, will sound fine, although they don’t really require that premium quality of a somewhat costly Shure SM81. For drums or snares and larger tambourines, I don’t recommend it. If you want to accomplish it with an SDC, I would suggest looking into KSM 137 instead, which is also used live.

Features & build

How many times shall we repeat that Shure is capable of making durable things? SM81 is another one of them, and it will work for a decade if you don’t abuse it. The build is rock solid and there isn’t much more to add. The features are as follows, it has a -10 dB pad and two roll off options for low end: gentle 6 dB/octave and aggressive 18 dB/octave. The mic comes with a plastic case, stand clip and wind foam. With the foam on, you can do some outdoor recordings however, it will pick up a lot of environment. Finally, don’t forget that this mic has no internal shock mount and should not be hand-held.

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Instruments

CAD e70 is best at handling instruments: acoustic guitar, banjo, piano and violin are just a few of the examples that come to mind. I have stumbled on a YouTube video from GarageBand & Beyond that actually demonstrates how it sounds on acoustic guitar without any EQ or compression. It is self-explanatory so just listen and judge for yourself! And if you like this sound, you will probably like it for other instruments as well.

Percussion

CAD e70 also works for percussion, particularly small frame drums and tambourines. It gives you a precise attack without leaving out any details. There is enough brightness if you want, and no it doesn’t sound hyped. The low end is not deep enough for large drums but it is accurate and won’t make your tambourine sound like kick drum. Being a condenser mic, at times it can run hot. But this is not an issue, since all you need to do is to move it closer to the source. CAD e70 has no problems with close miking, especially with pad on, and if needed it is ready to handle a substantial amount of sound pressure.

Overheads

Cymbals and hi-hat performance is just slightly above average. Even though the mic is relatively cheap, it has an excellent transient performance while the frequency response fully extends to 20 kHz. Thus, it is capable of capturing the entire range, with all the subtleties. However, in practice it sounds a bit too bright, and may require a good deal of EQ to balance it out. For cymbals and hi-hat, it is preferable to use higher quality mics with flatter response. A pair of Shure SM81 would accomplish this task much better… But if you cannot afford more expensive overheads, this mic can cut it as a budget option.

Omni capsule

So far, I’ve been referring to the cardioid capsule but it also comes with a separate omnidirectional capsule. This capsule offers a similar amount of brightness though in a slightly different range. There is a bit more raw presence but it is not as airy as the cardioid. It’s not at all gimmicky, as you may think – the quality is just about decent. It will prove quite useful if you want to capture room reverb or ambience. In addition, this can be a great budget solution for recording choirs and orchestra. A pair of e70 in omnidirectional mode will give you a nice sense of depth and spaciousness – for a laughable price.

Noise figures

CAD e70 is rated for 23 dB-A self-noise and 10 mV/Pa sensitivity. There are plenty of both noisier and quieter mics in sub $200 range, so in this regard it can be considered as average. Keep in mind though, quieter mics are not necessarily better sounding and I’d rather use a noisier than a harsher-sounding mic. Comparing to our recently reviewed AKG C1000s, it is actually 2.4 dB quieter when the gain is matched. Comparing to the SM81 mentioned above, it is 2 dB noisier, but it’s actually a bummer for Shure, as it should be even quieter, considering the price.

For home studios and live venues, those figures will be more than enough. When miking instruments at reasonable distance and volume, in other words using it as intended, you won’t hear any hiss or noise whatsoever. The omni capsule is also significantly quieter, so once again it won’t be a problem if you intend recording the ambience of a typical hall. The noise would only reach the threshold of hearing if you were trying to use the directional capsule to capture low volume conversations. Especially from afar while applying lots of gain, but obviously, it is not designed for that.

Features and build

CAD e70 has a nice and solid look, it is lightweight but it feels quite durable. As already mentioned, it comes with two separate capsules. I say this again because in contrast, AKG C1000s uses only single capsule and relies on a cheap looking plastic cap that acts as a polar pattern converter. This really makes me wonder why C1000s is about twice more expensive than e70 – maybe it should be the other way around? Both mics come with wind foams and thread mounts. But behold, e70 also comes with a shock mount, which of course, is only basic… but hell it’s free and it works!

This mic has three-position low cut and pad switches. Low cut can be set at 75 Hz and 150 Hz – both are 6 dB per octave, so it makes a smooth transition. It can be quite useful for close miking to compensate for proximity effect, as well as reducing low frequency machinery noise, such as from air conditioners, etc. The pad options are -10 dB and -20 dB, which I hope does not require explanation. Finally, it relies on phantom power to operate, consuming 2mA @ 48 volts. If powered by digital recorders, it will drain them pretty quickly so plan your production accordingly.

Edit 2019: the original model was reviewed at $99.99 (please note, the older reviews did not include this piece of information). A few years later I see this mic sold for $299, which may look funny but I feel sorry for those who actually paid full price for this somewhat dated model, which is not at all bad but it just wasn’t supposed to compete in this price range. Hence the rating has been adjusted accordingly, also no longer editor’s choice. For other older reviews where the reference price was avoided I’ll try to keep the ratings in regards to price up to date to the best of my ability.

Edit 2020: I see the mic’s price is back the original $200, so I’m going to adjust the rating once again. For this price I don’t know if there are better deals out there, but it certainly works and it’s a good mic to have still, especially if you are afraid to experiment… $300 was overkill though.

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Features

Not so long ago, AKG C1000s has been robbed of omni mode and continuous variable pattern. Now, you can only switch between cardioid and hypercardioid – but the good news, it became a lot cheaper. It’s important to note that switching requires unscrewing the mic’s head and inserting a polar pattern converter that looks like a perforated plastic cap. Aside from this polar converter, the package also includes another cheap looking cap that is promised to ‘boost’ the high range. This makes it sound even brighter but technically it’s not a booster. It is a simple hi-pass filter so it actually reduces the lows, also resulting in lower sensitivity.

This mic has two powering options – phantom power and two AA batteries. It draws quite a bit of phantom power, so don’t even think of powering it from digital recorders. However, it is much more efficient when running off internal batteries, which are claimed to last for 120 hours. A handy on-off switch is there to converse the energy. Finally, there is a low cut switch (that will further help males sound like castratus, though it can be safely used on cymbals) and 10 dB attenuation pad.

Sound & quality

Most of the small diaphragm mics available on the market have a flat frequency response, so they sound more or less similar. There are of course many differences, but essentially they share the same character. However, AKG C1000s does not sound like the rest. It’s quite a bit brighter and creates an impression of a more expensive sound. I personally enjoy it, and find it very useful for live performance. This mic clears the things up and helps musicians to cut through where flatter mics don’t.

On the other hand, I can achieve a similar sound by applying EQ on some flat mic, so for me it isn’t a great deal. But, if you want to have this brighter sound out of the box, then getting C1000s is fully justifiable. Nevertheless, this pleasant sound character and versatile multifunctionality may work together to divert your attention from something that is lacking, and that something is quality. Self-noise figure of 21 dB-A coupled with unusually low sensitivity of 6 mV/Pa could be considered only average at best. It would be ok back in 2000s but for today’s standards it’s fairly noisy!

Placement

AKG C1000s is no doubt a versatile mic, but it’s also sensitive to placement. You should never get too up close and directly on axis, otherwise you will likely get that brittle, harsh and distorted sound. Small diaphragm mics usually need some space to breathe. Moving slightly off axis will also help to reduce popping and control the brightness. It may actually take a while to find the best sweet spot for your application, considering there are many things to play with… However, once you nail it down, you’ll find it quite rewarding. When set correctly, it should sound as good as expensive pencil mics only not as quiet.

Build

This mic is obscenely huge and massive compared to other pencil mics. It may be solid and even durable but it feels cheap. The glittery paint may look attractive at first but over time, it will get ugly with dents and scratches. The grille is not only the ugliest I’ve seen, but it’s also not very functional and the wide frontal openings actually expose the internal foam. The cheaply looking plastic polar & frequency converters are the final blow for me. Aesthetically I hate this microphone; nevertheless, the internal electronic parts and the connector appear to be quality and deserve a credit.

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Sound & quality

Audix SCX1-HC sounds slightly bright – it’s got some nice unobtrusive clarity and plenty of air. As you would expect from a quality SDC, it is very transparent and easily extends to 20 kHz without producing any noticeable distortions. The midrange is markedly clean and naturally represents the timbre of my voice. The acoustic guitar also sounds beautiful when you find the right sweet spot, which is not at all difficult. The bottom end is represented fully, without leaving anything out. And, it also exhibits a good sense of balance so the sound is neither thin nor too bassy.

The polar pattern of SCX1-HC is relatively narrow, which can be both a good and a bad thing, depending on the situation. The good thing is that having an excellent side rejection, it will minimize the echoes and other extraneous sounds coming from the environment. Especially when booming, noises coming from the camera crew or even the audience will be greatly reduced. The bad thing is that you will have to deal with a slightly more colored off axis response. When booming correctly, you will not hear any difference, but if boom operator is slacking, this could become a little bit more noticeable.

In terms of rejection, it feels similar to short shotguns, except it just gives better indoor performance. I find it works best for miking just one or two persons. For larger groups of people you will need to use something with a wider range in order to achieve better results. You can still get away with SCX1-HC as you raise it higher, but this is not something that I would advise doing on a daily basis. In terms of noise, this mic shows an excellent performance. Self-noise figure is only 14 dB-A, which is good for this type of mic, especially for the price – better are only expensive Sennheisers.

Comparison

Many people compare this mic to Audio-Technica AT4053b, because the two are in the same price range. If SCX1-HC has a narrow pattern, AT4053b is the exact opposite – it is widest of all. Audio Technica can work for larger groups of people, but it has issues with handling noise, so I do not particularly recommend it. Unless you are planning to use it exclusively with mounted booms. Despite having a wider pickup, the sound quality is inferior to Audix. Self-noise figure is only average – 16 dB-A. Considering the price of Audio Technica mic, the performance is rather sub-par.

Sennheiser MKH 50 is another mic widely used by videographers. It has better specs and sounds richer and more natural than Audix SCX1-HC. The self-noise of this mic is very low – only 12 dB-A; plus it has a significantly higher sensitivity (25mV/Pa vs 17mV/Pa), which converts into 3 dB more signal. This effectively makes it less noisy by 5 dB, which is amazing. The pickup is not as narrow but still offers a good rejection. I find it somewhat easier to work with – it has a good range and it’s a bit more versatile for different situations. Some people even use it outdoors and achieve great results. However, MKH 50 is about twice more expensive than SCX1-HC.

Poor Man’s Schoeps

Audix SCX1-HC happens to be one of the most affordable hypercardioids designed specifically for indoor miking. Considering the price, it has a fantastic performance and closely matches the specs of Schoeps Colette MK41. Accordingly, it is dubbed as a poor man’s Schoeps. Colette’s performance is only slightly better, yet it is three times more expensive. Among the available models, Audix SCX1-HC is the only one built in the USA. This allows to cut down on customs and other charges associated with import, so it will cost you less than imported brands. Unless you can afford Sennheiser, it should be a no brainer.

- Reviewed at $499

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