AKG Pro Audio C214 Studio Grade Professional Large Diaphragm, Single Capsule, Vocal and Instrument Condenser Microphone with Rugged Aluminum Carrying Case. XLR Connector. Gray with Gold

If your looking for a professional high quality MIC to add to your collection or looking for your first professional MIC, this is it. Many are asking the question on what MIC do i buy, what pre-amp do i get etc.... I use this MIC with a PRO MPA II pre-amp made by ART. It sounds awesome. Its clear, clean and crisp. The MPA II has a low noise floor and works very well with this MIC. Any frequencies you don't like, you can cut them out during the mix phase. I do plan to buy another MIC pre because i want to have versatility in my studio but i assure you, this MIC is a smart buy that wont disappoint you. UPDATE!!! As i stated above, there is a low noise floor with the setup i have. After doing some recording, it dawned on me that i was using low quality MIC and patch cables from the pre-amp to the sound card. I purchased two Hosa pro series balanced TRS patch cables and a 15 ft MOGAMI gold analog reference cable. Doing so has given me virtually no noise at all in the recording. Cable quality matters, especially if you are a mix engineer and the details are important. I'm not endorsing these brands, merely sharing the results I've obtained with these purchases and this setup.

It was a struggle to determine just how much to spend on a mic for our start-up podcast. Everyone says start small, you can always upgrade. Well, my friends, I don't want to always be upgrading. You spend more, in the long run, that way. There are other places to save money, but your voice IS the podcast. I read reviews for weeks, you know what I found out, people that write these reviews get a commission if you buy the mic from there link. Which made my skeptical mind think, just how unbiased are they? So I went to several guitar stores in my area and tested out every single mic they had in the store. $40 mics all the way $5,000 mics. What I found out was this: you know imediately which ones you hate. It comes down to how the mic makes your voice sound. I repeatedly found that the AKG mics work best for my voice. The sound is rich and warm without any tweaking. (Remeber I was testing in a guitar store, all controls were the same, just the mic was different.) When I saw the price tags, I had a mini heart-attack. Then I thought about my studio needs. So I did a mental budget check and decided I'd rather spend the money on the mic since it's the most important piece of equipment for a podcast. I couldn't be happier. It's solidly made and should last me for years to come. If I need to buy another mic, it will for more hosts on the show, not to replace this one.

Sounds great! Highly recommend for people looking to upgrade their home studio but don't have the money for a higher price range just yet

I wish I could write a long detailed review on how awesome this is! But I can tell there are plenty on here! But when I bought this I only saw a few tell me what I wanted to know! What kind of music they use it for! So I will tell you now that I use this for rap vocals, really any vocals! I can't tell you if it sounds warm tinny or any of that(amateur) but what I can say is that it sounds great! I highly recommend getting an acoustic shield with this if you don't have a treated/soundproofed studio! Which I will assume most of you don't, get it I was honestly unimpressed with how the mic sounded without the shield! That may be accompanied by the fact I was recording in an unfinished mini barn! But your not here to hear how you need an acoustic shield, bottom line you need this! All tho recording in your bedroom may be an issue due to the fact this thing will pick up a fly changing its mind in the next county!! So there is no reason to go spend $1000 on a mic when your environment can't accommodate it and honestly with this mic on the market its stupid to spend that much! Buy this now and happy recording!!

So let me preface this by saying the ONLY reason I gave this 4 stars instead of 5 is because I came from an (unmodded) MXL990s for years, and thought this would be a MASSIVE upgrade. It wasn't. That being said, I absolutely love this microphone, and when I do get another one, I can't see myself selling the 214. I just wanted to let everyone know that there are a lot of other upgrades that can be done in your signal chain, and to let you know that the microphone is only a small part of that. The highs can be a bit sibilant with this microphone, but that was something I was aware of beforehand, and something I kind of wanted. I'd say my style of singing is similar to that of Chris Martin, so having a mic that is a bit "bright" is something I was going for. I have mine paired with a Steinberg UR44, and it's an extremely quiet setup. I think I need to tweak my settings a little though because unless i have the 0dB pad on, I'm not getting the best results when I'm 12-16" away from the mic. Again, I think this is something I need to tweak in my setup, and not something directly related to the 214. Unfortunately, I have not gotten to try this on anything other than higher-register male vocals, but I have heard that it is a good mic for hip-hop, and will update my review (can I do that?) when I get a chance to record some rappers that I know. I was really tossed up between this and a used 414XLii, and I think I'm going to eventually scoop up the 414 as well. Some of my friends who work in studios told me I was dumb for thinking this could hold up against a C414, but I didn't know if it wold justify the extra $300-400 for the 414. I guess if I could do it again, I probably would've gone for the 414, but hey I guess that's life. I'm in no way unsatisfied with this purchase, but can definitely see myself upgrading sooner than if I had just gotten the 414 the first time. I don't necessarily need the polar patterns, but the 414 is industry standard, and the 214 is still going to be seen as a "budget" model. If you're on a budget, I would definitely recommend this mic, but if you can afford something a little more industry standard, I would definitely choose the latter. Again though, I still love this mic and don't plan on parting with it even if I choose to upgrade.

I’ve had this microphone for a while, and I cannot say that this was the best microphone I have ever invested in. I recommend this for any vocalist that wants to do covers.

Fast shipping, works perfectly and sounds great.

hands down this is one of the best microphones i've ever owned. and in my opinion, it's priced pretty reasonably for the quality you get.

Habe 10 Mikros verglichen! auch teurere... diese Kapsel ist der WAHNSINN und das zu dem Preis. Sorry, aber da kann auch NEUMANN einpackern. Wenn es nach meinen Ohren geht... Stimmen sind seidig weich, werden bis in KLEINSTE Detail gezeichnet. nur ein geringer aber warmer Nachbesprechungseffekt. Das was ich gesucht habe, Mit diesem Mirko kann man selbst den Anflug von Traurigkeit in der Stimmer erahnen... jeder kleinste Regung.... Die Mühe hat sich gelohnt den Vergleich zu machen! Egal wo. Dieser Kauf lohnt sich für jeden, der prof. Aufnahmen von Stimmen machen möchte. Toller Job von AKG Tolles Produkt.

Microfono Professionale ottimo Qualità

Un clásico , muy bien

O microfone é um autentico c214. Porem a entrega foi ruim, não veio com a caixa, sem qualquer proteção, só a maleta, a caixa veio amassada, claramente sofreu uma queda.

These are simply stunning mics by any class. I am using these primarily as drum overheads, but they are so versatile you could turn them to almost anything. The 20dB pad option is perfect for recording loud sources (such as drums) and in close mic'ing situations. I've not tried recording more distant/quieter sources, or used the bass rolloff filter yet. These are my first foray into professional mics, so I have little else to compare them with (other than a little USB snowball mic!). But these are in a totally different class all together!! On setting up for my first test recording, I was simply blown away with the sensitivity and how accurately these mics will capture detail. On my first listen back to my recording through headphones, I had to double-take - as I actually thought someone was in the room with me physically playing my drums!! I simply was not prepared for what I was about to witness. The accuracy and realism of the recording was incredible! - These mics pic up every minute nuance of your performance, and even pick stuff up I couldn't humanly detect with my own ears. (For instance, they even picked up the sound of the click track playing in my in-ears with huge Peltor Ear Defenders over the top!). They have a lovely smooth top-end (admission: I didn't even know what this meant, until I listened back to my recording, and heard it for myself with my own ears!). The cymbals have a lovely wash to them when played, with no harsh overtones at all. The cardiod pickup pattern also does a great job of rejecting unwanted room noise from the recording, by rejecting everything from the rear of the microphone. With careful microphone placement you can achieve fantastic results. (Note: these mics are fixed at 'cardiod' - so if you are wanting omnidirectional mics, you will have to look at the more expensive C314, or C414 mics that come with different selectable polar patterns). I didn't opt to buy a 'matched stereo pair' (it's a hotly debated topic in audio circles) so I saved a bit by buying individual mics separately. I'm not convinced I have a 'perfectly matched pair of ears', and in any case I dare say the average listener can't audibly detect the difference in a blind listening test - so that's good enough for me!! The build quality is impressive too - they feel reassuringly heavy and rugged. The suppled flight case is well padded, and should hopefully keep these mics in tip top condition for years of useful service.