Your first condensor MIC was?

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You Are The Walrus
Mine was the AT3525. At the time I wasn't even sure what I was looking for, I had a budget and I had to stick to it. 15 years later I still use it from time to time on finger picked acoustic guitar and sometimes I'll pull it out for certain singers backing vocals.

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My first was a used Shure KSM44. It's a really good mic. I sold it unfortunately.
 
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Mine was the cheap-o standard. The MXL 990/991 kit. I have two of those sets which still see occasional use (mainly the shotgun mic since it's my only pencil condenser). I got the first set about 7 years ago, and being able to afford that set helped me start to take audio engineering a little more seriously. I was still running through a small Behringer mixer>RCA to 1/8" TRS>Stock computer soundcard. It helped me get some demos for my folk project at the time. Of course, as I learned more, I contracted GAS (gear acquisition syndrome)...fortunately, my passion for recording grew instead of dwindled, and I'm still loving it!
 
1995 - First condenser was an Audio Technica ATM31 SDC electret that used an internal AA battery and was able to use it with a Fostex X15 cassette multitracker that had no phantom.
2002 - Stepped up to an Alesis GT AM52 LDC.
Still have both.
 
MXL 990 for me. The original version with no pad or roll-off switch. I've still got that thing, and really it's not a bad mic for what it costs. It was a nice alternative to my only other mic at the time, the SM57. It recorded acoustic guitar with more hi frequency detail, although at the cost of that weird ringing midrange that it and the 993 (and a few other MXL mics that I've tried) have.
 
MXL V57M. A darker condensor mic, but I didn't know that when I bought it. Excellent for my voice, I still use it.
 
mine were two Superlux CMH8 some 15 years ago, great mics, still use them, very underrated, but excellent performers. Before these I used Beyer Dynamic,

PE1MMK
 
CAD E-100

per the GC sales guys recomenndo... there was so much noise I couldnt use it. My troubleshooting was funny as hell, because I realized the noise was the frkn attic fan it was picking up and magnifying!! it was like using hipowered binoculars to see a fly from 400 ft, the mic and sound was magnified and amazing in a way to hear the squeeky bearings of the attic fan but unusable for my recordings. Couldnt hear the fan at all with my ears. One of the learning audio gear moments, funny stuff.
 
Mine was a RODE NT1, the original prototype design, which I still own (I have 2).

By the way I own 3 x AT3525's that the OP shows, use them mostly as tom mics, but they sound good on female vocals.

Alan.

NT1_1.jpg
 
Mine was a RODE NT1, the original prototype design, which I still own (I have 2).

By the way I own 3 x AT3525's that the OP shows, use them mostly as tom mics, but they sound good on female vocals.

Alan.

View attachment 98718

Very nice!

AT3525's on toms.. Long ago when the 3525 was one of my only mics, I accidentally :ogot myself a really nice kick sound with that lil mic (it happened once) I was never able to recapture the same result again with that mic. Thus forcing me to go out and purchase the right tools for the job.
 
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Used AKG C451EB from work. I got a really good deal--mainly because they assigned me to set the selling prices!

Source aside, I've found SDC mics to be the real work horses in my kit. I have some dynamics and some LDCs but I probably use the various SDCs (more 451, a couple of AKG391s and some sE 1A pairs) more than any other type of mic. They're great on instruments and, in certain conditions, can even do a good job on voices.
 
Witzendoz may have owned a pair of the very firest Rode NT1 mikes, but my first was the very second Rode NT1. I bought sometime just before the turn of the century. It still performs very well!

rode-nt1.jpg
 
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