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i can either get an AKG C2000B and a C100S or a RODE NT1A.
any opinions / advice would be great.

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dvdhawk Thu, 02/19/2009 - 00:39

I don't own a C2000B, so I can't testify about those.

But I do own an NT1A and a few C1000s, these are my observations.

The NT1A, is a very smooth sounding mic. It's got a bump way up around 13kHz, but it drops off pretty sharply after that, so the net result is a fairly articulate mic, but not much 'air' above a certain point. With the exception of that 'airy quality', it compares reasonably well to the Neumann TLM-193.

The C1000s, and a lot of other AKGs, are famous (infamous) for a rise around 5kHz - intended to help vocals cut through a mix. And if that wasn't enough high-mid / treble for you, the C1000s also has a "presence booster" to give it even more of a boost in that range. (I never use the presence booster).

I use the C1000 more than the NT1 because A) it's a self-powered condenser I can use on a video shoot without dragging another piece of gear to provide phantom power, B) the interchangeable hyper-cardioid filter is useful for field recording, C) if the high-mid sounds over-hyped I can deal with it.

These two are both very useful mics, but they are night and day in terms of high-frequency character.

If I were doing more in-studio recording I think I might favor the NT1 for more applications.

So like most questions you'll find on this forum, all I can do is answer your question with a question - or give an answer with several qualifiers.

It depends on what you'll be using it for. I do video and field recording, so if I could just own one it would be the C1000s. Not knowing what you would be doing with it, I can only give you my impressions of both.

Good luck,

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