Akg 1000 S ??

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Fontcow

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I recently have been able to open the budget a bit and finally purchase a pair of condenser mics that would be used as ambient mics in situations overhead drums, middle of room when jamming, even on guitar amps but only as ambients. I also would like to be able to use them to mic acoustic instruments such as a guitar and/or a voice. My budget is $500 and I've been thinking the AKG 1000 S looks pretty good and versatile for my price range.

Now I've never bought or even experimented with condenser mics but I do know that I need some to improve the sound of my recordings. Are these AKG mics good for this price range? Or should I be saving more money up to buy a pair of good flat-mics?
 
OK, you didn't do anything wrong, I just didn't want to fall for one of our old regulars re-registering as a Newbie and asking that question just to get a laugh out of one of us responding to it.

Since you're new here and seemingly sincere, Welcome to Home Recording! Glad you're here.

You might want to start by doing a search on the AKG 1000 to see what other people's experiences have been with it. Even without a search, you can probably find five or more threads about the mic right here in the first several pages of mic postings.

A couple of caveats: Don't pay more than about $149 a piece for AKG 1000 S brand new. Better yet, look for a used pair if you think you'd like to try them, so that you can more easily resell them (in case you don't) without taking a huge loss. If you can find a used pair in like-new condition for about $215, that would be perfect.

More experienced posters will be along any moment with alternative selections for the same or less money.

Here's a guy who likes the mic, as I recall. His article is now about 3 years old, but it still is a pretty good list:

http://www.prorec.com/prorec/articles.nsf/articles/62600CDE2A2ED769862566880015FFC5

You'll probably note that a fair number of people really *don't* like the mic, but they may be just the ticket for your application.

Again, sorry for the rough start -- and welcome!

Best wishes,

Mark H.
 
It's just there's a lot of other mics out there that outperform it in most applications. I still find uses for my C1000S now and then, for instance it worked better than anything else I had as a drum overhead mic in that room. Go figure. Still, I'd sell it in a heartbeat for $125.
 
For $500 I'd buy one large and one (or two) small condensers. This will give you more versatility, especially if you plan to do vocals.
 
I have a pair of C-1000s and as stated, I still find uses for them around the studio but for what you're describing, maybe a pair of Octava MC-012's with the three different pattern capsules and the -10db attenuator would give you a lot of options. YMMV.
 
For your budget, you could get a pair of Marshall MXL-603s's ($79 a pop or thereabouts) and a Studio Projects C1 (~225 give or take), and have a more versatile kit than a pair of C1000's, and better sound to boot. The C1000s can be very brittle in the top end. The MXL603's are amazing mics for the money - I really dig mine. I've gotten great tone on acoustic guitar and Leslie cabinets so far.

TP
 
I use the c1000s as overheads and am generally pleased with the results, but the cymbals can sound a little harsh. The toms sound great though. One thing to keep in mind is that the c1000s can be run with no phantom power since it can run off a battery. This may or not be important to you, but I have used one live as an overhead for my kit when we played an outdoor gig, so the battery option was pretty convenient.

There seems to be "better" options, and cheaper, out there for overheads for strictly studio recording purposes. There are lots of posts on this subject, but the mics that come up most often are the Marshall MXL-603 and the Behringer ECM8000 (both dirt cheap), and the Octava MC012 (a little more expensive). If you do decide to get two c1000s mics, check out the "special page" at bayviewproaudio.com. They sell a pair new for $299 - no tax and no shipping. Used ones tend to sell on Ebay for around $140 each, so once you throw in shipping you will likely pay as much or more for a used pair as the new pair.
 
the c1000 is way too expensive, and sounds like crap. well, maybe that's too radical, it sounds like crap on a lot of sources. the mxl 603 is a lot better for a fraction of the price, and so is the ecm8000, and so are the audio technica small condensers, all at a better price than the akg's.
with $500, you can get a pair of 603's, a pair of ecm8000's, and a pair of audio technicas. the 603 is wide cardioid, the ecm8000 is omni, the audio technicas i think are cardioid too. it's a better deal than the akg's and the oktavas in my opinion. also, don't forget to check out on the rode nt3.

just my 2 cents.
 
i have a few c1000's. like someone said, you tend to find uses for them now and again. i sometimes have used them on the bottom of snares. the top end of the c1000 is a little harsh.

but, for a beginner, i think it's a great mic to use. works good on most instruments, and later on, it's still a good mic to have lying around.

mind you, you could probably find a nice large diaphram mic with a nicer response for general applications for cheap now. depens on what you want. check out eh audio technica 3035.

i was given an AT3035 for review a while ago and i forgot about it. used it on a track, plugged it straight into a joe meek vc1 studio channel. i didin't eq the vocals, just a slight low cut.

http://www.nowhereradio.com/artists/2/1252
 
as far as good cheap large diaphragm condensors go, check out the marshall v67, and the new studio projects mics.
 
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