MXL606 Condenser Microphone - Silver

I used this on acoustic guitars and choir stereo recording. It looks a bit cheap but sounds okay!

I use this to mic my upright bass, using an Audix CabGrabber instead of an H-Clamp (the cab-grabber is about $100 cheaper and just needs a little additional padding). I had toyed with the idea of mounting an inexpensive condenser mic for some time, and I finally borrowed an Audio Technica u873r condenser to try it out. I was pretty hooked on it after that for duos and jazz trio gigs, but I didn't have the $250-$300 for a new one. So I scoured Amazon and found the MXL606. The response curve looked as flat as I could imagine, and I pulled the trigger on a Warehouse Deal, just to hedge my bets a bit in case I didn't like it.I need not have worried.The mic sounds great, is solidly constructed and looks fantastic. For my bass, it worked best pointed directly at the treble-side bridge foot from below. Pushed towards the bass-side it got a bit more trebly, and pushed towards the treble F-hole, it was very bassy. Use that as a guide to what you want tone-wise.The little carrying case will keep it safe when tucked in with other gear between shows, but the one thing I would caution here is that little mic clip. It's just a plastic clip, and when you're mounted to something resonating at about the same pitch as an open A ( 55Hz or any multiple thereof) got a sympathetic buzz out of the little fellow, and try as I might, I couldn't tighten it up or get rid of it.The solution was simple, though. I took a normal-sized, rubberized mic clip, and put a pair of velcro-wraps inside the throat of it, loop-side in, and slid the MXL606 in there. Fit snuggly, held the mic, and damped any vibrations running through the body of the CabGrabber, or just vibrating the mic.All in all, a GREAT deal on a GREAT little mic. I would buy it again in a heartbeat if it was lost, stolen or damaged beyond repair.

I just love this mic for drum hi hats

I can't believe how small this mic is! It seriously is as big as my middle finger (I have some big ole' meat hooks but I can't believe how tiny this is!).Two problems I have with the overall packaged deal right out of the box (not the size, actually) is the "switches" on the face of the mic. They aren't switches but rather indents which cannot be changed unless a sharp object is inserted into the holes where the "switches" are. I don't know why they don't just have actual switches? Bogus design on there part here. (this is why I put 4 stars..although practically speaking you'll hardly ever switch the settings...if you're recording drums you use the -20dB if you're recording acoustic guitar for example you don't...so whatever I'll live).The other problem is the mic. clip it comes with is really cheap looking/made mic. clip (the "traveling case" is also very cheap but I don't want that anyway). It is fully plastic and there is no knob to adjust how tight it is, instead it has two flat head screws for this? The mic. is very light weight so the screws seem to hold it up where you don't actually have to tighten them with a screw driver, but it'd still be a nice option to have. I'm probably going to remove these screws and add my own brand of "wing nut" to it to make it into a normal mic. clip.So back to the mic. As far as the sound..well..it sounds great. It's not as warm as my large diaphragm but it's not meant to be. It makes my guitar sound even better than it already does, but there are better mic.'s for the price unless you're planning on recording drums because it sounds pretty great for that.Overall I'm throwing out the case that this came with and modifying the mic. clip annnnd probably soldering my own switches into the mic. for convenience, but all that said..I'm willing to do that work for this mic. because it was still basically worth the price.If you're not that handy I'd still recommend this mic. if you either are recording drums or are looking for a very small..small diaphragm mic. (if you're looking in this price range, obviously).Best of luck recording!

For it's price the mic sounds excellent. It's not as revealing or transparent as my Neumann 184 but it's about $600 cheaper than my 184 so I'm very happy with it's performance relative to it's price. It's quiet and offers good solid detail and I think it's bit smoother and more fleshed out sounding relative to my MXL 603 mics.I bought two and use them for drum overheads and I'm happy with their sound for home recording.