*** SAMSON Studio Mic ***

[dod]

C01U - USB Condenser Microphone

The C01U USB Studio Condenser Mic is the first affordable studio condenser mic with a USB interface.

For the first time ever, musicians who record music on computers have a simple, affordable way to capture high-quality vocal and acoustic instrument performances.

Seamless integration was the idea, and it was obtained by creating a studio condenser microphone that can be plugged into any computer with no in/out boxes, no expensive computer pre-amps, just a USB cable.

The C01U condenser microphone is based on our wildly successful C01. It features a 19mm internal shock mounted diaphragm with a cardioid pick up pattern ensuring pristine studio quality recordings.

The C01U works perfectly on any computer, Mac or PC, and with any DAW software program. It immediately solves a huge problem for users of many laptops, many of which have no other input method for audio devices.

It’s a must for any musician on the road or in the project studio, but the C01U is going to offer solutions to more than just musicians. The mic opens up possibilities for anyone who records audio—from Podcasters, journalists, students, and business people adding audio files to websites and multimedia presentations.



Be sure to check the FAQs for the latest info on how to integrate the C01U with your recording software.

[3rd world order]

a mic with an A/D converter and preamp which requires software?  sounds llike a disaster waiting to happen..

 

[dod]

I suggest we test it first before we criticize. Here's a review...

Performance

As the C01U is an integrated computer microphone system, we were unable to compare it directly to other microphones or directly to another USB audio interface; we could only evaluate the integrated combination of capsule, electronics and driver software.

The C01U easily met our high expectations, despite its remarkably low price. As its specifications suggested, we found recorded sound to be accurate and uncolored across the whole audio spectrum from thumping bass drums to sizzling cymbals and in between. Recorded voices and acoustic instruments sounded like they did in real life, and this is exactly what we want in an all-purpose microphone.

Typical proximity effect increases bass response with close sources, but Samson's bass roll-off control deals with this pretty well. (You can control roll-off frequency, but not roll-off level. Post-processing with a good EQ plug-in should handle any special requirements.) Polar response was as expected, given Samson's charts, falling off sharply at the sides and picking up a bit at the back.


Conclusions

We weren't sure what we'd get with a product this innovative at a price this low, but the Samson C01U lived up to the high expectations set by its specifications and description. If you need to record high-quality audio into your Mac on a tight budget, this is a great solution. The C01U is far cheaper than a USB or FireWire audio interface in conjunction with a high-quality microphone. Ditto for an analog pre-amp and microphone, which can suffer from issues with the quality of Mac audio inputs, laptop power supplies and electrical noise generated by the Mac. And a Griffin iMic may look cheaper than the C01U, but it's not in the same league sound-wise, and you have to buy an additional mic to go with it (despite its confusing moniker).

What's not to like? Not much. Getting a long cable to the mic is a little tricky, given USB's limitations, but active cables may work (for a price). It's probably easiest to use the C01U with a laptop.

For the very utmost quality and flexibility in a studio, you might want a high-end computer audio interface with specialized microphones, but that is many times more expensive.

Perhaps our biggest disappointment with the C01U was the lack of support for stereo, since we're big fans of stereo mic techniques in live recording, but that's much less of an issue for other applications, and we hope to see workarouds or updates to address this limitation.

In the meantime, as Samson suggests, the C01U seems ideal for podcasters, and it's a very professional, useful and flexible answer for many other Mac recording tasks at a price low enough to make it a certified bargain.


By Ric Ford
(Sept. 15, 2005)

- from MacInTouch Special Reports, Samson C01U USB Microphone (Review)

[glassjaw_jc]

uy lumabas na... how much?

[dod]

mga $79 daw ang street price sa amerika.

[3rd world order]

I suggest we test it first before we criticize. Here's a review...

this is crazy talk.  what happens in 5 years when the usb software for this stops getting updated and you're running a new pc OS?

this is needlessly complicated.. just get a shure sm57/58 and an audio interface.  jeez.  there's no way this thing can sound good for $79.  you may as well use a karaoke machine.

 

[glassjaw_jc]

i think the purpose of the product is not to produce high end studio quality sound. it's targeted at the beginner DAW users who can't shell out the dough for the mic, mixer, audio interface, and software.

after five years and this is still what the person have, i suggest he quits recording altogether.

[3rd world order]

i think the purpose of the product is not to produce high end studio quality sound. it's targeted at the beginner DAW users who can't shell out the dough for the mic, mixer, audio interface, and software.

after five years and this is still what the person have, i suggest he quits recording altogether.

translation: it's junk.

[dod]

okay, fine. the product is not for you so don't buy it!

[Tarkuz Toccata]

uy lumabas na... how much?

Now available!

List price is P3,680 only.

[aperture]

uy lumabas na... how much?

Now available!

List price is P3,680 only.

saan ba to available?  thanks..

[Tarkuz Toccata]

Available sa lahat ng Audiophile stores & Apple Center computer shops.

[YJMCowboy]

Un sa USB na CO1 I read a review from a mag that
sumably ito sa certain version ng DAW software.
This is scary. There seems to be a substantial risk invovolved,
there always is when software is involved.

Mas gusto ko un CO1 na standard. How much is it ba.
May nagsabi sakin 2k plus lang sa audiophile. Is this true.
I couldn't believe it. Meron ba ditong satisfied customers.
Speak up naman para wag nakong mag save for an AT2020.

[Tarkuz Toccata]

Un sa USB na CO1 I read a review from a mag that
sumably ito sa certain version ng DAW software.
This is scary. There seems to be a substantial risk invovolved,
there always is when software is involved.

There will always be some risk involved pero kahit naman sound cards sumasablay depende sa software.

Samson C-01 (not USB) - P3,000 list price

[starfugger]

nakita ko to kanina sa megamall.  looks really nice sepcially with the shock mount.  i havent heard it though but im guessing it's good too.  yan sobrang affordable.

[Tarkuz Toccata]

It is possible to connect up to 6 C01U mic's simultaneously on one USB. You would use a USB-hub for this. The attached file demonstrates 3 C01U's at one time.

[abyssinianson]

i imagine the purpose for this would be for mobile rigs that don't want to pack A/D converters/ Interfaces when they go on the road to write. When I fly, my lap top has Ableton live on it as well as Adobe Audition so I can work on music even when I get stuck waiting for my plane to board - and it has happened a lot. Having a mic on the road would be useful if I want to record something in a jiffy like a phrase or maybe a melody that I might want to translate to guitar when I get back to my studio.

I can see a lot of potential use for this USB microphone.

[KitC]

Samson might have some pedigree compet.ition from this:





The usb Blue Snowball.

Adding GAS to the fire...

As a sidenote, I've read reports not recommending using audio devices with usb hubs. I know usb 1.1 devices have limited bandwidth and putting several of them on a hub could cause problems.

(Btw, since when did bots start editing out compet.ition? that's why i had to spell it out that way... )

[abyssinianson]

wow..I was just browsing Blue mics last night and seeing what the fuss was about on the the Baby Blue bottle...it seems to be pretty good. However, I think, for the amount of money you are spending for the Baby Blue, you could wait a bit longer and get the Neumann TLM-103.

[KitC]

wow..I was just browsing Blue mics last night and seeing what the fuss was about on the the Baby Blue bottle...it seems to be pretty good. However, I think, for the amount of money you are spending for the Baby Blue, you could wait a bit longer and get the Neumann TLM-103.

True... I'm more partial to the Microtech Gefell M930, though.

[abyssinianson]

Gefell makes some very, very good mikes. If you could go that route over the Neumann, that would even be a better choice.

[KitC]

Gefell makes some very, very good mikes. If you could go that route over the Neumann, that would even be a better choice.

How I wish...

Pass the Maalox, please. I need something for my G.A.S.!