I'd been looking for a condenser mic with a high SPL due to the fact that I record metal with mostly screamed vocals.
I'd been using an SM57 for a long while (only mic I owned before the AKG, use it to mic up my my Peavey 5150) and the darker high-enddidn't really do it for me for vocals. Felt like I had to do too much work in the mix because it didn't sit that well with everything else, had to compress the sh*t out of the vocals and apply a fair amount of EQ.
So, I'd heard this mic was very good quality considering how much it costed, so I picked one up.
Of course, I'm not a good judge of quality because I've only worked with a few mics, SM57's and 58's at home, and a couple of mics at college (RODE NT-1a's and M-Audio Solaris' as drum overheads ) but to my ears, this mic is incredible for the money. My range of screams and growls is everything from extremely low pitched "cookie monster" vocals up to Randy Blythe-esque shrieks, and everything in between. Bright enough to have enough clarity to sit in the mix with very little work without being harsh.
For clean vocals it works very nicely aswell, but I haven't tested as much as I have with screams/growls, as that's more my style.§
For the price I paid for it, I couldn't be any happier. Plus the -10db pad and bass roll-off have showed their usefulness already.
I highly recommend this mic to other people on extremely tight budgets.
(Btw, I run this into an ART Tube MP with the stock tube, then into the line input of my Yamaha UW500 interface)
Cluster, I agree. It's a hard mic to beat in that price range.
Cluster,
I agree. It's a hard mic to beat in that price range. It's lacking in sonic accuracy just a bit but I find the tonal coloration to be pretty flattering. I find myself reaching for more expensive mics when I want to record vocals but I still often match it with a 57 on heavily distorted guitar tracks. Also, you're right - it handles very high SPLs - another plus for recording guitars. To find better sounding mics you have to step up in price quite a bit. I'd say it really outpunches it's weight.
Don13