NT1 Rode ?

Ears

ADA
Ok, I ahve AKG, Audio Technia, CAD, and Shure.
Someone I know wants to try the NT1.

How is it guys and gals???
 
If you only wanna spend around $200 then most of us would agree that it's probably the best large diaphragm condensor around in that price range. Do a search for it in our handy search option just up to the right.

If your friend has more money then there are certainly other mics that people tend to prefer over the NT1.

I can't really tell you how good it is because I only got mine yesterday and haven't had a chance to use it yet. But I can tell you the reason I got it is because some people around these parts think they are really great value for money.
 
I am impressed with the NT1. I tried it this weekend. I think for the price I may even look at a stereo pair. I also tried the KSM32 Shure. Another incredible unit but a little steep. I have the CAD E200 and Audio Technica and Akg small condensors. I may wait to try a TLM193 and 103. Neumann. I want different sound with a good quality combined.I guess I should post that seperately. Or maybe do a search.
 
I've had my NT1 for over 6 months now and I love it. Great for vocals, acoustic gtr, and anything else that large diaphragm condensers work great on.

Do it!
 
I bought my NT-1 when they were $299 :(. But I am still happy with it. Definitely better for acoustic guitar than what I was using before. At least, it sounds better on my acoustics.
 
When I came to buying my NT-1 the only mic in its price range that was of any comparable standard was the AKG C3000B. If you want a mic for vocals and accoustics then buy the NT-1, the AKG on the other hand is more of an all round as it is advertised for live performances and electric guitars etc. The only trouble with the AKG is that it has no set standard as it is all round, the NT-1 is designed for what it does best and I would opt for the NT.

Don't take my word for it get your friend to try 'em out.

Finally a word of warning. If you don't like one NT-1 try another as they all sound slightly different. If you have a trained ear you will notice the difference.
 
I agree with you all regarding this NT mike but be careful as it has an exaggerated top end and you can easily run into sibilance problems with vocals. The TLM193 is a far better mike in my opinion - and hey! I'm an aussie! Oh by the way there is one problem with the NT1 - when you open it up make sure you put it back together the right way because you can find (as I did one day) that the capsule was reversed in the case and I thought I was pointing at the artist but in fact was pointing away!!! Its not a dual capsule like a U87.


[This message has been edited by John Sayers (edited 06-25-2000).]
 
I don,t believe it there made in australia and you guys still get them cheaper than us down here. we pay 500 odd dollars down here and you guys pay 200 :( .even with our exchange rate yours is still cheaper
 
Yeah, just wait until you find out how little we pay for gasoline up here in relation to the rest of the world! Everybody's in a fit about it, even when we have it so good. (about $1.50 a gallon down south)
 
Thanks all....
I tried one form the store. My CAD is twice the price and has all polar patterns, but I was impressed with the NT1 for the price. It has one hell of a hot signal too. The thing I noticed is that it lacked a bit of air, like the Neumann TL103 and Shure KSM32, but for $374.00 Canadian, it is a good price. Maybe I might go with two. I am looking at all these right now. The NT1 is bang for buck a good deal.
 
Thanks all....
I tried one from the store. My CAD is twice the price and has all polar patterns, but I was impressed with the NT1 for the price. It has one hell of a hot signal too. The thing I noticed is that it lacked a bit of air, like the Neumann TL103 and Shure KSM32, but for $374.00 Canadian, it is a good price. Maybe I might go with two. I am looking at all these right now. The NT1 is bang for buck a good deal. For vocals though, the Neumann or Shure. Unless it's hard rocking stuff.

[This message has been edited by Ears (edited 06-25-2000).]
 
Peter Miller, I'll tell you why they are cheaper in the US... Peter Freedman (is that his name? the guy that owns Rode???) told me that they have to import most of the internal electronics etc - when they purchase these they have to pay tax on them... but when they export them they get the tax back... ie making them cheaper to export than sell here. Also because Australia is a VERY limited market for them the amount of shipping per mic is higher in comparison with the 1000's of mics that get shipped to the US. Yes it sucks but there's not a lot that can be done.
 
Hi

>I don,t believe it there made in australia and you guys still get them cheaper than us down here. we pay 500 odd dollars down here and you guys pay 200 .even with our exchange rate yours is still cheaper...

Dont worry I cracked up bout this too....now with the GST were gettin ripped worse

>Peter Freedman (is that his name? the guy that owns Rode???)....Yep thats him...havent heard that name for 12 yrs or more...the bugger made a Freedman for a $100 Aust that nearly blew an sm58 away


Hey Kelly try a $1 (a buck) a litre or $4.50 a gallon
Tony

[This message has been edited by tutton (edited 06-25-2000).]

[This message has been edited by tutton (edited 06-25-2000).]
 
I've owned/used the Rode NT1 for about a year now. Yes, I'm one of those unlucky guys that paid $300 for it before the price drop. No matter, though. The mic is worth $300. I have two AKG C3000's that I use for Stereo recording, but the Rode is by far a better vocal and acoustic guitar mic.

Here's my review of the two mics:
Overview:
Recently I've been doing some work on my home recording setup. I've been using a trusty pair of AKG C3000's for awhile now, as they have always provided great sound and excellent sensitivity, with very low handling and ambient noise pickup. Recently, in search of a better vocal mic (read "warm"), I bought a RODE NT1, after having read several favorable reviews on it. I've been working with this mic for a few weeks, and have come to the conclusion that I really like it. Tonight, I decided to work on a side-by-side comparison of the two mics, and compare them for those out there that might be interested in either. Let me say first, though, that if you can afford a set of Neaumann U87's, then what are you waiting for? This review is for the rest of us working folks. :-)

AKG C3000:
In the "under $500" and "under $300", there is a dizzying array of large-diaphragm condenser mics to choose from. I've listened to mics from C.A.D., RODE, AKG, EV, Alesis (GT), SHURE, Audix, etc.. All of these mics seem to have their own unique character, and I doubt that any of them can be considered "great" for all types of recording, but rather, each would probably sound good in one situation or another. I originally chose the AKG C3000, because of it's obvious high-sensitivity and good presence. It's not a terribly "warm" mic, nor is it bright or harsh like many of it's competitors. The sound is crisp with good tight bass response, and the mic doesn't muddy up when pushed. (I've heard that this mic is a favorite among "tapers", and I would have to agree that it would probably do a good job recording a live concert.) The C3000 has a switchable bass roll-off, -10db pad (in case you're inclined to mic a kick drum at close range), and two polar patterns - cardiod and hypercardiod. It can handle very high sound levels even without the -10db pad, as it's rated at 137db SPL. The frequency response is an even 20hz-20khz. The overall sound is very clean. The mic doesn't color the sound much if any. Pretty much, what you hear is what ends up on tape. That makes this a good mic for a lot of different situations, such as micing a choir or live performance, or acoustic instruments, etc.. Again, the mic has a very crisp sound, which might be undesirable on acoustic instruments such as the acoustic guitar, where too much "finger noise" might be picked up. However, mic placement is a true art, and if you find the right spot, you can get a very nice acoustic guitar recording with this mic, with minimal unwanted finger noise. For vocals, the C3000 does a good job, but it certainly isn't going to give you the warm vintage sound that is so popular right now. It will give you a very "accurate" vocal sound, though, with very minimal coloring if any. As always, listen to one of these yourself and see what you think before you buy. Your ear is definitely the best judge.

RODE NT1:
This mic has received some rave reviews, and I'm not surprised. From the first time I heard this mic through my own equipment, I knew it was a winner.
I bought it because I wanted a "warmer" vocal mic, and the first recording I did with it was with an acoustic guitar. I was instantly impressed with this mic. It's very sensitive, and has a very warm character, without being muddy, or sounding "too colored" like some other vintage wannabe mics. Yes, this IS a vintage wannabe mic. It's supposed to sound like an old Neumann. Now I don't claim to have a "golden ear", nor have I spent much time in a studio with a couple of U87's. However, I'll bet that RODE knew what sound they were looking for when they built this mic, and I'll bet that it's the same mic that the NT1 is cosmetically similar to. Since most of us working folks can't afford a U87, nor do we want to drop the money ($1000) for a "budget" TLM-103, The RODE series mics are an excellent alternative. The NT1 is a very basic mic in it's design. It only has one polar pattern, no bass rolloff or, no -10db pad, etc.. The warm sound from the NT1 is VERY welcome for vocals, as it even made my voice sound good, and that's VERY hard to do! It also does a really nice job on most acoustic guitars, though I wasn't 100% happy with how it recorded the 12-string. I don't think that this mic would be good for recording a live concert or choir, but I do think that it might add just the right coloring to many acoustic instruments. It does color the sound, but it does it in a good modest way. The recordings you get from this mic can be very vintage sounding depending on your pre-amp and EQ settings. I suggest seriously checking one of these out before looking at other mics.
*Note: The NT1 is said to have an internal shock mounting system, but it definitely picks up a lot more handling noise than the C3000.*

Sound Samples:
I'm not posting these samples to demonstrate my playing in any way. I'll be the first to admit that my playing needs a lot of work. These recordings were done to demonstrate the C3000 and the NT1. You'll notice that these mics actually compliment each other very well! The C3000 is panned hard Left while the NT1 is hard right. These were recorded using the stock mic preamps on the Alesis Studio 24, which aren't exceptional, but they are clean and work well for our purposes here. The signal was routed through a DBX DDP compressor with a very light amount of compression added, and the signal boosted a few db. It was then routed to a Tascam CDR. Getting the signal over to MP3 wasn't exactly done the best way... The signal was routed back through the mixer from the CDR, and into my Soundblaster card for conversion over to MP3. The MP3 conversion colored the sound much more than I would have liked. However, it will give you a rough idea.
Left=AKG C3000
Right=RODE NT1

Taylor 712:

Taylor 414CE:

Taylor 355:

*Notice in the 355 sample how the NT1 seemed to color the Taylor 355 12-string a little too heavily? This just goes to show you that one mic isn't going to accel in all areas.*

Conclusion:
Both of these mics are very good mics, period. Forget about the price range.. I'd be willing to bet that the NT1, especially, would hold it's own against a $1000+ mic. The C3000's are good "utility" mics, and at their price point, you can afford a nice stereo pair. These are handmade in Austria and appear to have very high quality construction. The internal shock mount is very effective, and makes handling noise virtually non-existent. Another big plus for live taping situations. At $269, everyone should own an NT1, unless you don't like it's sound of course. It's a great vocal/instrument recording mic, with just the right amount of warmth and vintage flavor. It's very sensitive, even more so than the C3000. Also, there's no substitute for a good mic preamps. Fortunately, costs have come down and you're now finding good preamps built into mixing boards like Behringer and Mackie. I'm even pretty impressed by the preamp in my Alesis Studio 24. Surprisingly enough, it's very clean unless you push it really hard. Tube preamps will of course give you a vintage sound, but be careful. The coloring of a tube mic preamp might not compliment the sound of your "vintage sounding" mic. If you're trying to warm up a cheaper condensor mic or a dynamic mic, then a tube pre-amp might be what you need. Be careful about buying into the "hype", though. I've heard some pretty
 
Cypher - liked your review. I've got the Rode, now I'm curious about the AKG.

BTW, the NT-1 sounds way better through an ART tube pre than through an Alesis Studio 12-R. Way better.
 
I had bought an NT-1 when they were around $400. I ended up trading it for an EV RE-27. Neeless to say, I am not complaining about the price drop.
 
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