Only being used to stage-rugged dynamic microphones and cheap computer type microphones, I was blown away by this microphone…  This really was the first “Good Quality” microphone I ever laid my hands (and voice) on.

The package is filled with a good bang for your buck:  a shock mount / pop filter kit, a Studio Secrets Video DVD, decent length XLR Cable for connecting to your preamp, and off course, the RODE NT1-A microphone.

A sad part for me is that the pop filter cannot be taken off so that the shock mount can be used separately (or the pop filter on another microphone for that matter) – one doesn’t always record vocals you know!

Fitting the shock mount on a standard microphone stand is a no-brainer, although care should be taken not to make the rig top-heavy.  The microphone, screwed into the shock mount / pop filter kit is quite heavy, so I recommend positioning the microphone still well above the floor footprint of the stand, i.e. not branching out too far with an elbow, as usually required when recording singing guitarists.

Being a capacitor microphone (with an evaporated gold diaphragm), it obviously requires phantom power, so make sure your preamp or audio interface can supply the +48V DC.

The microphone has a very good sensitivity across the expected audio spectrum, and with the gain set properly, it hovers nicely in the yellow, occasionally peaking into the red of the Digital Audio Workstation.  With the gain turned up completely it becomes very suitable to record ambiences like halls and nature sounds.

Overall, I love this microphone, and I’ll treat it with a lot more respect and care than my two tough dynamic microphones.  For almost all recording work from now on, I’ll probably use the NT1-A by default...

Now, if I can only build myself a proper recording booth now...