AKG C1000S confusion..

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ind1

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Alright so...

I check out the AKG C1000S on zzounds.com, and the reviews are absolutely awesome.

zzounds.com/item--AKGC1000S

And yet, a lot of places hate the mic.

Now while somethings work for some people and don't for others, what is the big problem?

I am getting my own home recording setup. I had a $500 budget and I purchased an AKG C1000S from eBay.

All it will be used for is vocals & guitar. Now, being a newcomer to all this, do you think I would be disappointed with the sound?

I check the reviews and it states "Best vocal mic ever", and other good responses on it, then I come here and people are saying its awful for vocals and what not.

Confused..
 
It's a condenser mic. If it's your first, you'll appreciate the sound. As your ears get better, you will discover better mics.

It's a decent mic, but doesn't stand up well to other mics in it's price range.
 
I've had a hard time finding any use for it in the studio other then a hi hat mic. It's a small diaphram condencer mic. and yes I haven't found it to good for vocals either. Its boomy on an acoustic, its to small for a vocal for a big sound. It worked once with some eq on a cello. If i was in the market for a cheap mic for vocals I'd look at the akg c2000b Rode nt2 or even a mxl v69 or 67. I love my v69 there good mics stock great mics modded. I've only heard recordings with the 67 and i was pleased with the results. Thats my thoughts on the c1000. Mine hasn't been turned on in over a year and a half but its a goto mic for hi hats cause it picks up the hat and snare well
 
ind1 said:
Alright so...

I check out the AKG C1000S on zzounds.com, and the reviews are absolutely awesome.

zzounds.com/item--AKGC1000S

And yet, a lot of places hate the mic.

Now while somethings work for some people and don't for others, what is the big problem?

I am getting my own home recording setup. I had a $500 budget and I purchased an AKG C1000S from eBay.

All it will be used for is vocals & guitar. Now, being a newcomer to all this, do you think I would be disappointed with the sound?

I check the reviews and it states "Best vocal mic ever", and other good responses on it, then I come here and people are saying its awful for vocals and what not.

Confused..
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Since you are a newcomer to recording, you probably won't know or care if the C1000S is good or not. Enjoy the gear you do purchase now and realize the most important thing is for you to begin to acquire recording skills.

Later, you will have opportunities to compare that mic with other mics. You can reach an opinion on it then.

To me, the AKG C1000S is one of the worst mics ever made for recording.
 
I use a pair as drum overheads and I think they're great.

Many people say they suck simply because they read that somewhere. I'm not directing that at anyone who posted in this thread. Everyone has their own opinion, which is cool. But, often, people just parrot what they've read even if they've never even seen the product they're talking about.

I'm sure there are better mics, no doubt, but that doesn't mean you can't get a very good sound with them, from my experience.
 
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I've had great success with a pair of them in micing acoustic guitar....nose to nose at about 90°.....not too close to the guitar!....actually best about 24" away and pointed at the 14/15th fret.....one of these mics also works well for fiddle..... http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7214241 here's an example of an acoustic guitar miced with 2 AKG c 1000's and a fiddle with one of them....vocal was a beyer m-500
 
ind1 said:
Alright so...

I check out the AKG C1000S on zzounds.com, and the reviews are absolutely awesome.

zzounds.com/item--AKGC1000S

And yet, a lot of places hate the mic.

Now while somethings work for some people and don't for others, what is the big problem?

I am getting my own home recording setup. I had a $500 budget and I purchased an AKG C1000S from eBay.

All it will be used for is vocals & guitar. Now, being a newcomer to all this, do you think I would be disappointed with the sound?

I check the reviews and it states "Best vocal mic ever", and other good responses on it, then I come here and people are saying its awful for vocals and what not.

Confused..
Click to expand...
'Awesome, great, worst, useless'... Just think of the scales in use here as being highly compressed. And it more or less applies to about everything in recording -even music if you look at it that way.
Awesome matched up to the right source, 'useless' read "to me because.. I demand and/or have other options that are slightly different but make up those final few millimeters."

Cut to chase scene..
Supercreep said:
It's a condenser mic. If it's your first, you'll appreciate the sound. As your ears get better, you will discover better mics.
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+1
 
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c 1000s

The c1000s was my first condenser mic. I bought it because it could use a 9v battery since I didn't have phantom power. I read the company's review but not the user's reviews before I bought mine. I've since learned that the company review is propaganda. If you wanna know about a piece of gear check out the user reviews.
I've also learned that the c1000s is good for some things but not everything. It is not a good vocal mic for my voice and I have other mics that are better on acoustic. I do like it on dobro and it's ok on banjo. I've even recorded harmonica with it. I read one user review that it was really good for fiddle in a live situation but I've never used it for that.
I agree with the others. Use it and enjoy it. Don't worry about it. There are a lot of negative reviews but there are some good ones too. Good luck with building your studio.
 
C1000s aren't too amazing, but they're cheap and versatile and always useful to have one or two around... you can point them at nearly anything and know that it may not sound brilliant, but it'll sound ok. At various times I've used them live and in the studio; as overheads, on amps, hi-hats, pianos, saxaphones, guitars, mandolin. Personally I find them to be a bit on the bright, harsh side (that's without the presence boost), but everything is down personal opinion. I'd generally recommend the Rode M3 instead of them.
 
i've always been kinda puzzled about the kind of loathing for the c1000s that gets thrown around. sure, it's nothing spectacular, and it does have a considerable high freq bump (and the harshness that accompanies), but so do all the other cheap condensers. why pick on this one so much?

about 7 years ago, i used one as a room mic for me on drums and my friend on electric guitar, and the sound was pretty exceptional for the half-assed setup i had at the time.

i've used it for other stuff too, but i haven't busted it out in a long time. maybe i'll give her another whirl and find that i despise it now. :p:D
 
drossfile said:
the sound was pretty exceptional for the half-assed setup i had at the time.
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I don't doubt it. I'm sure you know to tune your drums to make them sound good through any mic, which is more important than anything. I would bet that people that say they suck depend too much on a mic to make up for their lack of ability to tune drums properly.
 
RAMI said:
I don't doubt it. I'm sure you know to tune your drums to make them sound good through any mic, which is more important than anything. I would bet that people that say they suck depend too much on a mic to make up for their lack of ability to tune drums properly.
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excellent point.
 
drossfile said:
i've always been kinda puzzled about the kind of loathing for the c1000s that gets thrown around. sure, it's nothing spectacular, and it does have a considerable high freq bump (and the harshness that accompanies), but so do all the other cheap condensers.
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http://www.akg.com/site/products/powerslave,id,759,pid,759,nodeid,2,_language,EN,view,diagram.html
And the (politically incorrect:p) answer here -2 or 3db bell cut at about 5-6k, Q about 1.2 ..or double the Q and slide the center freq up or down to keep the part of it's rather broad presence rise that fits the moment.
Now enjoy a bit of extra 'milage'. ;)
 
Worst mic on the planet! Bar None! The first mic I bought-the first mic I sold!
 
You'd get a pair of AKG perception 150's for the price of one c1000s. They're great on acoustic guitar and drum overheads..... compared to the c1000s ;)
 
Big Kenny said:
Worst mic on the planet! Bar None! The first mic I bought-the first mic I sold!
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that's a bold statement.

ever used a samson r11? it's plain awful on everything, and i wouldn't even go so far as to call it "the worst mic on the planet bar none" simply because it's among the merely 40 or so mic models i've actually used out of the thousands out there. it's the worst i've ever had my hands on, but i'm sure there are worse in existence. :cool:
 
LemonTree said:
You'd get a pair of AKG perception 150's for the price of one c1000s. They're great on acoustic guitar and drum overheads..... compared to the c1000s ;)
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i haven't used the 150, but my perception 200 has proven to be a decent value, so i don't doubt what you're saying.

i also don't doubt that the return to expectation ratio is low on the c1000s for someone who doesn't know what they're buying--i got mine used from a friend (along with a d550) because they were available for cheap and i was trying to start a studio. a target of opportunity, if you will. but i gotta say, the d550 has been a much bigger disappointment than the c1000s.
 
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