AKG Pro Audio C214 Studio Grade Professional Large Diaphragm, Single Capsule, Vocal and Instrument Condenser Microphone with Rugged Aluminum Carrying Case. XLR Connector. Gray with Gold

I recently purchased the AKG C414 microphone and I am extremely satisfied with this product. The sound quality is outstanding, capturing clear and detailed audio with impressive accuracy. The versatility of this microphone is exceptional, offering multiple polar patterns that make it suitable for various recording situations. The build quality is top-notch, with a sturdy and reliable design that ensures long-lasting performance. If you're looking for a high-quality microphone for professional use, I highly recommend the AKG C414. You won't be disappointed.

If your looking for a professional high quality MIC to add to your collection or looking for your first professional MIC, this is it. Many are asking the question on what MIC do i buy, what pre-amp do i get etc.... I use this MIC with a PRO MPA II pre-amp made by ART. It sounds awesome. Its clear, clean and crisp. The MPA II has a low noise floor and works very well with this MIC. Any frequencies you don't like, you can cut them out during the mix phase. I do plan to buy another MIC pre because i want to have versatility in my studio but i assure you, this MIC is a smart buy that wont disappoint you.UPDATE!!!As i stated above, there is a low noise floor with the setup i have. After doing some recording, it dawned on me that i was using low quality MIC and patch cables from the pre-amp to the sound card. I purchased two Hosa pro series balanced TRS patch cables and a 15 ft MOGAMI gold analog reference cable. Doing so has given me virtually no noise at all in the recording. Cable quality matters, especially if you are a mix engineer and the details are important. I'm not endorsing these brands, merely sharing the results I've obtained with these purchases and this setup.

Excellent Mic.I own many mics and they all have their own characteristics. The standout characteristic of this microphone is it's very low self-noise. At 50dB gain, in my "quiet" room, on a very quiet Liquid Channel preamp, I register ~ -110dBFS across the spectrum. This is sensational for my recordings of quiet sound effects and acoustic guitar.Particularly with an acoustic guitar, paired with a small diaphragm condenser mic, the sound is just beautiful. Quiet picking or a strum sustaining never gets caught up in the noise floor. I can crank the track all the way up in post and never hear more than room noise.Vocals are great on this mic, both speaking and singing. I do adjust EQ a bit in post to boost some of the high end, but it works out fine. It handles loud and quiet segments beautifully without distortion or large swings in volume. Some of my mics require much more adjustment of the singers distance during recording than this mic. And since the noise floor is so low, I can compress my tracks much better.It is expensive but it is a tough-built, all around mic with exceptional audio quality. Think of the price as relating to a lifetime of use, especially if you plan to make money recording with it. It will work so well for you, put up with abuse, and resell for a good price.

So let me preface this by saying the ONLY reason I gave this 4 stars instead of 5 is because I came from an (unmodded) MXL990s for years, and thought this would be a MASSIVE upgrade. It wasn't. That being said, I absolutely love this microphone, and when I do get another one, I can't see myself selling the 214. I just wanted to let everyone know that there are a lot of other upgrades that can be done in your signal chain, and to let you know that the microphone is only a small part of that. The highs can be a bit sibilant with this microphone, but that was something I was aware of beforehand, and something I kind of wanted. I'd say my style of singing is similar to that of Chris Martin, so having a mic that is a bit "bright" is something I was going for. I have mine paired with a Steinberg UR44, and it's an extremely quiet setup. I think I need to tweak my settings a little though because unless i have the 0dB pad on, I'm not getting the best results when I'm 12-16" away from the mic. Again, I think this is something I need to tweak in my setup, and not something directly related to the 214. Unfortunately, I have not gotten to try this on anything other than higher-register male vocals, but I have heard that it is a good mic for hip-hop, and will update my review (can I do that?) when I get a chance to record some rappers that I know.I was really tossed up between this and a used 414XLii, and I think I'm going to eventually scoop up the 414 as well. Some of my friends who work in studios told me I was dumb for thinking this could hold up against a C414, but I didn't know if it wold justify the extra $300-400 for the 414. I guess if I could do it again, I probably would've gone for the 414, but hey I guess that's life. I'm in no way unsatisfied with this purchase, but can definitely see myself upgrading sooner than if I had just gotten the 414 the first time. I don't necessarily need the polar patterns, but the 414 is industry standard, and the 214 is still going to be seen as a "budget" model.If you're on a budget, I would definitely recommend this mic, but if you can afford something a little more industry standard, I would definitely choose the latter.Again though, I still love this mic and don't plan on parting with it even if I choose to upgrade.