ADK, Studio Projects, MLX...

[jeronimo]

Can you guys post your comments on those brands?
I have a V67 and a 603. I like both a lot, but never really compared them w/ other stuff... can you guys tell us more about yours? ADK, MXL, SP, doesn't matter, just tell us how your chinese friends are taking care of ya! :)

[Dot]

jeronimo, what kind of mic are you looking for and what type of applications?

MXL has some hits and has some misses. I don't like any of the 200X series. The V69 ME is an excellent tube mic and a definite hit. Very dark and colored. The 603 small condensers are pretty good for the money, and the kit they come with, including the shockmounts are some of the best out of 40+ small condensers we've used. At this point those are the only two I'd recommend from MXL.

ADK. A lot of good stuff. Front of the pack as far as the Chinese-made mics, IMO. The Hamburg and Vienna are very good. The TC is the best neutral tube mic we've tried under $1K. The TL 4-pattern is transformerless, very clean and a serious mic. The TT and CE are beautiful tube mics. Very rich. A lot of tonal variations can be had with the CE. ADK also makes custom mics through http://www.adkcustomshoppe.com/ Gotta love it.

Studio Projects. Good stuff, too. Lots of hits from this company. C1 very good hyped mic with sheen. Great kit with shockmount for $199. T3 is an impressive multi-pattern tube mic. Very versatile. The $79 B1 has set a new standard for an inexpensive workhorse mic. Neutral mics. Very good on acoustic guitar and instruments. Killer on toms and works really well on drum OH's. The B3 sounds like a cross between a C1 and a B1. The TB1 tube mic hasn't won me as much as the other SP mics for some reason. Maybe I just don't think the B series translates as well to a tube mic. I dunno. C4 SDC's are one of the more impressive mics under $500/pr - and they come stock with switchable cardioid and omni caps. The C4's could stand to some with better shockmounts.

The quality control on all three of these brands is pretty good.

[jeronimo]

Dan, that was exactly wath I was looking for.
Once, I compared my AT 3525 w/ the MXL 603 and the V67 for overheads... I put them over the drums and recorded some mono overheads. I must say I use a pair os AT3525 in this position, and I liked the sound of the V67 better, I didn't really care about the 603, maybe I did something wrong. The V67 had a little more top end than the other, so I found it to be my future buy to make a stereo pair and use it as overheads.
I use the 603 for hh, sometimes as a bottom snare, sometimes ride.
Have you tried the SP B1 as tom mics w/ heavy drummer (drumming), I'm curious how those LD will sound since I love the Beta98s on toms...