C-1 Studio Condenser Microphone

I work in film/video production, and I'm always on a lookout for a good mic to add to my gear cabinet -- and Behringer C1 is certainly one of those gems. I also teach video production and animation to high school students, where I use Behringer C1 as my go-to mic for voice-overs and any Foley sound effects. Besides Behringer C1, I also own two other relatively inexpensive condensers: a Studio Projects C1 (my favorite vocal mic, but with a price tag of about $250), and an AudioTechnica AT2020 (around $75), which I also rate highly. I find the Behringer to be equally good for most recording purposes as the other two condensers. I like to leave my Studio Projects mic in my home studio, so Behringer is my primary voice over mic when I need to set up mobile studios -- such as when working with high school youth. In a recent audio recording session, I had a Behringer C1 plugged into one channel of a small Behringer Eurorack (now Xenyx) mixer, with the AudioTechnica AT2020 plugged into the other channel, panned hard left and right respectively, feeding the signal directly into my Macbook Pro for recording with Audacity. The event was a panel-discussion with 6 teenage participants -- the idea was that the Behringer C1 would pick up the 3 kids on the left side of the table, and the AT2020 the kids on the right side. The mics were on booms, so I would adjust their position slightly to make sure the current speaker would be on-axis. The distance between the mics and the panelists was 2-3 ft, and the room was fairly quiet. The results were incredible - both Behringer C1 and AT2020 excelled, giving incredible richness to the spoken word recordings (both male and female). I would say that Behringer C1 would be an excellent choice for a podcaster or an independent filmmaker looking to bump up the production value of a low-budget project that relies on voice-over. In conjunction with an inexpensive Behringer Xenyx mixer, this mic works like a charm. In my opinion, Behringer C1 does sound inferior to the Studio Projects C1 for VO work, but is still an excellent value, and in my experience is comparable to AudioTechnica AT2020. I have no way of testing how well any of these mics reproduce various frequencies, but I can say that they all sound excellent, giving any voice recordings richness that I've never been able to achieve with a dynamic mic (I also own two dynamics: a Shure SM58 and the big Shure SM7b, which I don't even use for voice-over recording work anymore, just for any live PA applications). As an independent filmmaker, I still trust the Sennheiser ME66 for any location shooting, but for voice-over work my choice would be #1 Studio Projects C1, and if that's not available -- either Behringer C1 or AT2020. All in all, great value for the money. There may be prejudices against Behringer among audio pros, but the fact is that Behringer has brought excellent equipment to users who would otherwise not be able to afford anything with similar specs. I've used Behringer products (among others) for several years, and have never experienced equipment failure. I've used the 18 channel Eurorack for the past 5 years, and my smaller 4 channel Eurorack for the past 3 years, and they are definitely quality mixers.

First off, I want to say that I have been a multimedia professional for several years. Including going to school for video production and audio production. I've been recording music for about 10 years now and currently in a gigging indie punk-rock band. All I'm trying to say is that I have plenty of experience with audio equipment. This mic is super. The clarity and power make recording vocals, live performances, and voiceovers a breeze (get a pop filter). I was worried when I read reviews about there being a buzz or issue with unwanted mic noise. I have to say that mine works perfectly fine. It IS sensitive so if your gain is cranked you will hear EVERYTHING in the room - including the air vents and cars driving by on the street right next to your house. Honestly, unless you're in a vocal booth or studio with legit sound proofing, you will hear the room. I'm guessing that a lot of people are just hearing the white noise in their rooms as I have yet to hear any actual noise coming from the mic itself. You get a very nice and clear tone straight out of the C-1. I typically may roll off some low end and throw a compressor on it depending on what kind of project it is, but not much else really needs to be done in post. There are better mics out there for sure, but in my opinion the value of this mic absolutely exceeds the price tag.

Previous review after purchase of the mic in 2009: [Warning: The mic is indeed the Behringer C-1, but Amazon has provided it with the description belonging to the C-1U. Unlike Amazon's description, this is not a mic that comes with USB plug, phantom power, and computer connectivity. And, of course, none of the advertised "included" computer software programs is included. It's a conventional studio mic that requires connection to a regular amp / P.A. with an XLR jack and phantom power. It will NOT connect to the USB port of a computer without an expensive adapter and a preamp with phantom power. Moreover, Amazon's form thus far is denying a refund and offering only replacement--presumably for another mic just like this one! If you want the described mic, Amazon is showing it from a different vendor--at about 30 more plus S&H.] The Behringer C-1 mic is the best condenser mic I've used for the money, its large diaphragm capable of reproducing some of the rich and deep sonorities of the costly, high-end mics at the radio station (NPR) where I occasionally work. However, Behringer makes a distinction between the C-1 and the C-1U. The description on Amazon fits the C-1U, not the C-1. So one way or another, 50% of the purchasers of this product are likely to be surprised and disappointed. Indeed, the C-1U is a phantom-powered mic that doesn't require phantom power, which it derives from the USB port of a computer. Moreover, the mic not only saves its owner the bother of a pre-amp with phantom power but it also makes unnecessary a costly (and time-consuming) XLR to USB adapter. It's ready to go--just plug it into your laptop and start recording. (I use Sound Studio, but the included free software--Audacity--works practically as well.) On the other hand, if the mic is a C-1 as advertised, be prepared to receive a conventional condenser mic, with an XLR connector and a phantom power requirement (found on numerous recording devices and P.A. amps or available on a neat little pre-amp sold by Amazon, the A.R.T.). Having just returned a keyboard--the M-Audio Pro88sx--for which Amazon mistakenly provided the wrong description (for the M-Audio Pro88, not the Pro88sx), I'd be hesitant to place any bets on which mic the buyer will receive--the C-1 as advertised, or the C-1U as described. At least if you're purchasing directly from Amazon instead of a sub-vendor, you can be assured of a hassle-free return. And if the mistake is due to Amazon's description, returns are generally postage-free.

Summary: This is a marvelous microphone for the money, whichever way you plan to use it. But I've found it getting rave reviews on amateur radio ("ham radio"). Just remember that you need a phantom supply to use it. Details: I use a Yaesu FT-920 transceiver as my main radio. I used to have a Kenwood TS140S and frequently got spontaneous compliments on my transmit audio. When I upgraded to the Yaesu I stopped getting the compliments. Further, I wasn't getting through pile-ups anymore. Both rigs put out the same 100 watts. Once I learned how the new rig worked, I used its Monitor function to hear what my audio sounded like. It sounded like mud. I traced it to the handheld microphone that came with the radio. It was time to step up. I've had a great little Behringer audio mixer for years and it has phantom power supply capability. So after some shopping I bought the Behringer C-1 mic and plugged it into the mixer then into the FT-920 radio. It was a revelation. Using the radio's Monitor function again, I heard clear full nicely rounded audio with a bit of presence which is highly desirable on the crowded ham bands. Now I bust pile-ups again. Now I get complimentary audio reports again. And all for (at that time) 43 bucks. I use open-wire feeder that sometimes gives me a bit of RF in the shack. My computer speakers roar when that happens but the C-1 stays clean. It's well-shielded. Oh, and it looks really cool at my operating position. If you don't have a good mic on your rig, you cannot go wrong with this one. UPDATE: I've used this mic every day in my ham radio station since 2011 and it's still going strong at the end of 2021. Yes, there are better mics out there, especially for studio recording, but I have no need to change mine for my application. And, as many have noted, it's still a great mic for the money. 73, Chuck

Sweet microphone for the 50 dollar price tag. Granted you could spend 100 to 500 dollars for a quality condenser microphone such as a Rode, Electrovoice, Heil, Neumann or others. Yet this little microphone performs well and has good vocal clarity and sounds good to record with or even use in applications such as a home studio or amateur radio which I do both hobbies. I could have dropped 300 to 500 dollars and bought an Electrovoice RE20 or RE320 but I decided to get this one as a nice starter piece in condenser microphones. I also own some Sterling Audio microphones and Shure now but for the 50 dollar price tag it cannot be beat. I've spent 100 to 150 dollars on other microphones and was hardly impressed when comparing them to this little powerhouse. The only thing about it is that you will need phantom power through a phantom power box or to have a mixer or some other device to output the microphone in and amplify the sound. This model is not meant to be used with a computer without using phantom power by purchasing a box for minimal cost of 20 to 50 bucks for phantom power. If you're going to use this microphone type for a computer, buy the Behringer C-1USB model for ten dollars more which is designed to be used with a computer system.

A lot of people have been talking about how this microphone is an "Amazing Microphone for the price", I want to go a step further than that and drop off the "for the price" part of that sentence. This is just a great microphone, obviously it is not professional quality equipment, but for a home studio... why would you waste your money on anything else. Audiophiles might scoff, but it isn't worth buying anything else when such a great microphone is available for under 50 dollars. Thousand dollar Microphones, gold plated cables, and all of that extra equipment is the greatest waste of your money when setting up a recording space. You should be spending money on a mixer with the setting you will need, and equipment for sound dampening your room. I do a podcast, and some voic eover recording, voice acting, you name it, and this microphone is about 10 steps above the old cardioid stage microphones I was using. Sound comes through clear, the high range of the mic allows me to basically remove clipping (in loud laughing parts)without having to go in with software and edit by hand. Buy this and expect a huge leap in sound quality over cheap microphones, because this is a cheap microphone that doesn't sound like one. I would like to say that these are the opinions of someone recording voice, no instruments or anything, I don't know how this microphone performs in instrument and band recording studio situations, I just know that it is great for voice, and after buying one, I went out and got 3 more.

i noticed a few ppl down rating this superb microphone due to a listing error i did my homework and went to [...] and looked up the c-1 to be sure of the connector needed you need a xlr male on the mic end and whatever for what your connecting it to, but it seemed obvious to me that a "studio" mic would NOT be usb when it needs 48v phantom power to work right also the pictures dont show a cord at all leading me to belive a proper cord would be needed so yes the little typo needs to be fixed but to 1 star this gem is just stupid!! now for my opinion on the c-1 a little background on me, i have been playing guitar since 1985 and doing home recording almost as long my first "studio" was a boom box with a built in mic!! i have recently been building my 3rd home studio and have been around recording studios most of my life my stepdad is a recording engineer and has recommended beheringer among others for my latest project, i have recorded 4 studio albums and done many radio ads for local business's as well as having worked with the top brands of equipment including several models of the legendary NEUMANN microphone and let me tell you this c-1 is no cheap knockoff simply put it is amazing! the sensitivity and clarity are on par with the best in the industry this thing can catch a fly's fart mid flight 10 feet away i have it plugged into a beheringer eurorack ub1202 12 track mixing console with 4 tracks equipped with 48v phantom power and interfaced to my imb thinkpad with the beheringer UCA202 U-Control Audio Interface and a set of Audio Technica ATHM40FS Precision Studio Headphones for mix monitoring and its an amazing setup for under 240.00 (not including instruments amps guitars drum machine ect) but at under 40 bones its like stealing for this mic i have paid 500 for mics that are not anywhere near this mic! if you need a high quality studio mic do your self and wallet a giant favor and buy this beauty YOU WILL BE IMPRESSED AND GLAD YOU DID!! nuff said

Looking for a great low-budget large diaphragm condenser mic? This is a great option. Its sound is a little bright for my taste, and I feel its gain is lower than other condensers I've used. That's why I rated it 4 stars. Nonetheless, considering its price range, it's ok and gets the job done. Comes with a case and a plastic clip. I do recommend that you get a shock mount for this microphone. You can find several good and inexpensive ones here on Amazon; I bought the one I'm using in the view review for about $11. Be aware that this is a condenser mic, so it needs phantom power. You'll need to invest in an audio interface, mixer, or preamp that has integrated phantom power or a separate phantom power unit. Otherwise, the mic won't turn on and you'll hear no sound from it. Again, if you're just starting out and need a condenser on a tight budget, this will get the job done.