SE Electronics X1A

Overall pretty good microphone for the price.
I will try to keep everything simple:
PROS:
-Low cut filter works great with recording the environment; makes the whole recording clearer eliminating some loud pops
-Sound is a little warm but still neutral in my opinion. Very sensitive and good for ASMR recordings ;)
-Build quality is fantastic no doubt all metal; filter switches are made of plastic.
-Hefty and stinkin great for the price, intimate condenser fella

CONS:
-Plastic filter switches wiggle a bit on the mic; they seem cheap but not too bad
-Could include a shockmount
-Sounds a little muffled; starts lacking after 10kHz. At voice over it’s annoying but can be fixed in post. While singing, not that noticeable imo

Used with Komplete Audio 1 and Snake TPD-3. Can’t tell if the cable is noisy or the mic haha.

Za tę cenę spodziewałem się znacznie gorszej jakości i mikrofon bardzo mnie zaskoczył na plus. Jest nieco ciemny ale spokojnie da się to skompensować EQ. Natomiast ogólnie brzmienie ma bardzo dobre i po odrobinie czasu spędzonego na ustawieniu do niego odpowiednio toru efektów można uzyskać bardzo porządną jakość.
Świetny dla początkujących lektorów i wokalistów jak i do budżetowych studiów nagraniowych.

I have used some of the more expensive SE mics in large live recording sessions and found them to be excellent. So, when it came time to buy a new mic for my home studio, I chose SE. The X1A is an entry level mic, so I figured it would be good, if not quite as good as the others I had used. I was right, the X1A is a good mic, but lacks some of the magic of it?s bigger brothers. That said, I am still pleased with my purchase. I used it for backing vocals and was surprised at how I could sing really close without the pop problem?I am an experienced studio singer so I do know how to sing close to a mic. Even so, I was impressed. Later, I used the X1A to record a female vocalist who I?ve made a couple of albums with. In this scenario, the mic was a little less impressive and required a pop shieled. It lacked life, if that makes sense. Adding a little top brought up the sibilance, and I found I had to lose some 300 Hz ish to lose some mud. I would have loved to boost some 2k5, but my preamp only has 1 swept mid so I couldn?t do it whilst recording?I did it on play back and the sound was fine.

In summary?This mic has the unique ability to make vocals sound up front, but lacks that certain sparkle that I was hoping for. I am happy with my purchase overall and will happily put this mic in front of any instrument that comes through the door.

Pros:
Great build quality.
Usable if slightly different sound
Reasonable price for the home budget

Cons:
No pop shield included and it needs one
Would like a more positive ?feel? on the switches

Addendum...11/7/17
OK, I've used the mic on several things now and I get what they've gone for...The sound of a valve mic. Makes perfect sense once you think about the sound that way.

Colin Owen
His Place Malvern

i am using this microphone for my home studio (podcasts, vocals and acoustic/electric guitar recording). This microphone works amazingly even with the cheapest audio interface possible (Behringer UM2). The clarity and quality of the recorded audio is great for the price of 100 euro (described as entry level microphone).
Probably the only two "cons" of this product are the fact that the attenuation and low-cut switches are a bit "wobbly" and the fact that it doesn't come with a protective pouch.
Generally this is a great versatile microphone for a great price.