Cheap Overheads - Audix F15, Samson C02, Apex 185?

I've just done a weekend recording session with a big band and the recording auditorium was miced up with lots of different mics, Rodes, Oktavas, AKGs and other names I recognised, but there were some mics in use I didn't recognise. These were badged as RED5 AUDIO RV6. I'd not heard of them before and asked the recording engineer about them. He rated them as good as some of the top name mics and better than most others. I was astonished to find that these LDC cardioids cost just £57 and come with a hard carry case, shock mount and pop cover. At that price I couln't resist ordering one for my home studio and I'm really looking forward to giving it a workout.
 
Also look at the MCA SP1 for 50 bucks each. GREAT SDC for the price! Basically a MXL 603 in a larger body.
 
Also look at the MCA SP1 for 50 bucks each. GREAT SDC for the price! Basically a MXL 603 in a larger body.
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You wouldn't think that a mic with a small diaphgram mounted in an LDC case and with discrete component electronics and transformerless output would be worth a look, but I've had several people tell me this is a great mic for the money. If I could find it for sale in UK, or Europe for that matter, I'd buy one but it looks like it's only available in the US, so the boot's on the other foot re the Red5 Audio RV6.
 
Peter B said:
You wouldn't think that a mic with a small diaphgram mounted in an LDC case and with discrete component electronics and transformerless output would be worth a look, but I've had several people tell me this is a great mic for the money. If I could find it for sale in UK, or Europe for that matter, I'd buy one but it looks like it's only available in the US, so the boot's on the other foot re the Red5 Audio RV6.
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Definitely worth it if you can get a pair! The Red5 stuff always looks good too.
 
Just to follow up my previous post here about the Red5 Audio RV6, I've had it a few days now and thought folks might be interested in what you get.

First things first, it's a massive chunk of microphone. It feels big and beefy in the handand and weighs in at 530g (just over 1lb in old money) which has got to be one of the heaviest LDCs around. The shock mount which comes with it is also very solidly built and together they give the impression that this is a pretty bomb proof combination.

It's spec sensitivity of -36dB, which if I've got my sums right is around 16mV/pa, seems about right because at the same gain setting it gives me around the same level on the DAW as my other mics with similar sensitivity specs.

I've got a couple of other budget LDCs to compare it to and I have to say that the RV6 seems 'brighter' than either of those on solo tenor sax, and it produces a very clean acoustic guitar as well. I've got a sax quartet rehearsal in a couple of days time, so I've got it mounted mid/side with a figure 8 mic ready to go on that, as shown. Picking adjectives to describe what you hear is never easy, but I think bright, clean and crisp does this mic justice.

The bottom line as far as I'm concerned is that this mic costs just £57 which is quite unbelievable really. I think this raises the bar on budget LDCs for home recordists like me so well done Red5 Audio - keep up the good work!!!
 

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I have a pair of Behringer C2 mics that are working out just fine for me, I use them for overheads, percussion, acoustic guitar, ambient mic'ing and at 65 bucks for the pair with all the accessories a nice bargain.

BEHRINGER: C-2
 
I've got a pair of C02s, and I like them quite a lot. Detailed enough for me, and they're pretty quiet. I've used them on drum overheads, acoustics, hand percussion, ukulele, and probably some other stuff that I'm forgetting. One thing to consider, though, is saving up and getting something you'll keep. I'll (hopefully) end up getting NT5s at some point and then I'll forget about my C02s, which means getting the SDCs I want will have cost me $140-ish more than just buying NT5s in the first place...

But for now, I like my C02s.
 
wow, that red5 looks exactly like a chinese akg (sorry typed apk before the edit LoL) perception mic. which isn't a bad thing - but.... for that price, it's gotta be a chinese rebrand. agian - that's not a bad thing - and it looks nicer than the perceptions although the akg nametag never hurts either :-)
 
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chawps said:
I've got a pair of C02s, and I like them quite a lot. Detailed enough for me, and they're pretty quiet. I've used them on drum overheads, acoustics, hand percussion, ukulele, and probably some other stuff that I'm forgetting. One thing to consider, though, is saving up and getting something you'll keep. I'll (hopefully) end up getting NT5s at some point and then I'll forget about my C02s, which means getting the SDCs I want will have cost me $140-ish more than just buying NT5s in the first place...

But for now, I like my C02s.
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Yeah I've tried those. They sounded pretty good for the price.
 
To be honest, what I was using before was a set of Nady condensors, which were just about the worst you can buy. I tried it along side my friends AKG 414 on acoustic (I know, it is a LDC so not really a fair comparison) and they stood up decently. Of course the 414 is about 10 times as much, so it isn't going to sound quite that good.

I went with the 170's because a guy I work (the afore mentioned friend) with who went to school for recording arts had used them quite a bit and he thought they were great sound for the price. I agree, for the most part. Still would rather use my tube mic or a ribbon mic for banjo though..
 
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