Rode NT1-A Complete Vocal Recording Reviews

Does exactly what it says on the tin!

The NT1-A is simple, yet brilliant at it's job.

No need to mess around with settings...just plug it in, spend a minute or two moving it to find the sweet spot and hit record. Job Done!

Excellent quality, unbelievably low noise (lowest in the world I think Rode say) and plug n play, what more could you ask for?

As if that wasn't enough, register it online with Rode and get a 10 year warranty.

Perfect.

Very good solution for a home studio

This is an excellent choise as a microphone on a home studio situation or as a back up on a real life studio .

It provides very low noise levels , in my opinion this is it's main advantange and it has a transparent tone , in the hands of someone who knows a few things about recordings it can easily sound much -much more expensive .

For the time i'm working with it i can't find any cons except maybe that you have to be carefull with it as with any condecer microphone .

Great microphone for this price range

This was my first studio microphone ever bought. I received many recommendations on this microphone, so I decided for it, and I'm very happy for this decision. I use it in home recording of demos for different bands, so far I used it on vocals, guitars, accordion, clarinet, trumpet and it worked really well.

Pros:

- For 200¤ you get not only a good mic, but also shockmount which can be put on different sizes of threads on mic stands, pop-filter which is very useful in recording, cable, cover so you can cover it when not using it and CD in which different mic techniques are shown on practical example.

- Sound of this mic is really clear, present, with no annoying middles.

- Trying different mic techniques can give you different interesting sounds and colours of it.

Cons:

- Recording vocals too close to mic can give too sibilant sound, but you can avoid this with recording a bit further from mic, or by recording little off-axis of it. Deesser also helps in mixing.

- Sometimes I find difficult to connect a cable with connector on the microphone (clip of the cable doesn't clip well with the connector).

SUMMARY: I would definitely recommend buying this microphone in this price range.

Great Value

Performance really is quite amazing for the price. The quality of the bundled accessories is also very good.

We use this mic mostly for vocals but also for some acoustic instruments such as guitar, violin and accordion. The clarity is crystal with practically no noise.

This is a perfect mic for the home studio and having used ours for a while now I can say we will always have an NT1-A.

Perfect mic for the price

I use this mic live but mainly in the studio and I must say that for the price it delivers a perfect sound and comes with great accessories. Definitely recommend as a first microphone, or as a budget condenser.

Fantastic mic for a great price

This mic is the best thing you can get for the money - it's robust, versatile and sounds great. There is no buzz from this mic even when you really crank the volume.

The mic also picks up so much sound and sounds great when singing from a distance, or when singing right up close to the popper-stopper. The mic also comes with a dvd with some tips about home recording and getting the best sound out a the mic which is actually really useful and has enabled me to get a really clear crisp sound when recording through an interface at home. The mic cradle, dust-protecting bag, popper-stopper, and the xlr cable are all excellent quality.

Overall this mic is great and is more than capable of producing the same studio quality from a really high-end microphone!

Fantastic

I bought this mic as I was getting right down into the noise floor of my other microphones doing some extremely quiet sound effect recording.

This mic really blew me away, the noise floor is incredibly low and the sound isn't too coloured making it an ideal foley microphone!

The kit comes with a pop filter which is integrated into the shock mount cradle. This can be removed by unscrewing the lower wingnut-style bolt. The cable feels decent quality too and is on my rack in the studio as one of the go-to quick-grab cables I use in a flash on inspiration.

My only criticism would be the lack of hardcase like the MXL990.

Perfect beginners mic!!

This microphone seems good for just about most things! It's ridiculously silent for its price point, it has a really balanced sound and the shock mount/pop shield combo is fantastic!

Obviously vocals is it's main focal point with this mic, although great for acoustic guitar, single drum overhead, shaker mic, anything you really throw at it! Yet to try it on louder instruments and amps, but for acoustic elements it really does handle brilliantly compared to other microphones in it's price point!

For a project studio I wouldn't wish for much more - although It is possibly more exciting with a male vocal than a female vocal. sound is pretty much well rounded, not hugely characteristic - but clear and detailed, without being too boring and flat, or too characteristic and limited.

The only Con I guess is it doesn't have the extended top and bottom end that other mic's may have (I blind tested compared to my AT2020) but then again my AT2020 has much more noticeable noise (this thing is silent!)

I'd certainly go for this for your first mic, maybe even get a couple - It truly is a lot for your money for a large diaphragm condenser!

Rock solid microphone

This microphone is the bottom of the line from rode, but this means anything. It can handle years of operation with no problem, while delivering great sound.

The overall construction quality is just spectacular, its a pretty rock solid unit.

The audio quality is very good. For most applications, like voice recording, acoustic guitar and guitar amplifiers, it does the job perfectly, the more expensive mics just don't worth the price difference.

The only downside is that is only have one polar pattern.

The large and well built diaphragm allows for very low noise recordings especially in higher gain situations.

The included shock mount delivers the needed in a nice package with a fantastic pop filter. Is works perfectly, you will never need another shockmount or popfilter.

No Complaints

its Great as a Room mic for acoustics. great on close micing situations and amazing on vocals.

Best microphone in price and quality

I have been saving money for this microphone quite a while eheh. I was always told that in price and quality this was perfect. And that's exactly what they told me. Very good ! I have both the time and aconcelho you to buy, if they want to have a good quality and a good price, this is exactly what you have to buy! As early'll change my microphone ... I might even say it's a microphone for life if they use the microphone for personal purposes. very good!

Rode NT1-A

Rode NT1A

For some reason I recommend this microphone.

Very good microphone, I have in my home recording studio, for almost 5 years And after so many years I can say, definitely I like it.

1 I got nice and clear voice especially when I'm recording < women voice >

2.very low noise, even when I use in high level,

3. Also It's a quite balanced when I'm recording background voices.

Of course I found one thing I don't like so much when I'm recording Acoustic guitar

some frequencies is too much, then i have to remove them use the equalizer.

But anyway...

I'm sure that, is a lot of good microphones out there, and this is one of them.

I bought this microphone and after 5 years, I do not regret.

Really the complete recording bundle

Within this bundle you do get everything you need in order to get recording. The mic, shockmount, pop-filter, xlr cable, bag and an instructional dvd. At the moment i do own 4 of these mics and use them as two stereo pairs. Although these mics are relatively affordable they produce a really clear and pristine sound. They may not match the ten times more expensive mics but for the price you dont get any better. I have recorded all sorts of instruments with the Rode NT1-A. Most of the time I use it for vocals and acoustic guitar with good results. For the price this bundle is a bargain. Easy to use and really good sounding.

One of the best deals for the price. Sounds good, noise is low, looks good!

Definately a very good investment every studio should have.

An affordable piece of surprisingly professional equipment

This mic is an astonishingly good value for the money. I have several professional condenser mics that I use for vocals, and this one despite of the price is a very decent member of my microphone park. In my case, it works especially well with baritone voices. The complete set is also a very good value for the price.

Crisply captures an authentic sound.

This is my first condenser microphone. I use it for voice recordings, not for music.

The reviews that I had read suggest that this is a good microphone for the price - having a flat frequency-response curve, and a realistic sound. I agree with this. The sound that this microphone captures is detailed. It has been written that this microphone can capture too much of the crispy high-end sound, I cannot say for sure if this is true, but I am happy with it, but it must be said that the characteristics of your voice can be changed by good microphone technique (changing distance and relative position). Ensure that you have the correct side of the microphone facing the sound source. This side is marked with a gold dot.

The build quality is good, with a solid and satisfying feel. It is manufactured in Australia in some very high-tech facilities. Rode is very proud of its manufacturing process and there are videos available online for those interested. The integrated shock mount and pop screen are also robust. I have the feeling that this piece of equipment is going to serve me well for a long time.

Other accessories include a 6-metre XLR cable and a black bag with gold drawstrings, emblazoned with the Rode logo and a gold dot. I always keep this microphone on a stand, with this bag over it to keep out the dust. The stand that I use is the K&M 21070. It looks great on the stand - ready for good use!

-- happy customer

Just what I needed

Wanted to buy a decent quality condenser mic for home recording, and after quite a bit of research, I went with this one.

The mic quality itself is excellent, and if you're decent with EQ'ing you can get a very professional sound from it. It's a very low volume mic.

The bundle is also great with the pop filter and shock mount. The shock mount is quite heavy and is very good quality in itself.

It also comes with an XLR lead that has been very reliable so far.

I would consider the pricing of this mic to be middle of the road, there are definitely cheaper options out there, but I doubt they could rival the sound quality that the Rode NT1-A provides. Very happy!

The most important thing first: the mic is GREAT. It is probably the best microphone you can get for that price. Some say it's a tad dark, but please, you could EQ that, but for my low voice it's just fine as-is. I haven't used it for anything else but vocals yet, but I've been told that it is quite versatile, and that I can believe. At least any singing style I've tried so far (and they are many) all has good.

As for the accesories: pop-filter is basic, and basic is good. But the stand is plain horrible. The mic ain't the most light one around, and the stand is having big trouble staying stable and not sliding downwards. It is probably the stand I've owned, but from a package deal like this I guess I should have known better. It's Millenium, and it's garbage. Keep that in mind and consider buying the article 235937 (same, but no stand) and another stand instead.

Rode NT1-A

Excellent sound reproduction. Nothing compares at this price ! Highly recommended.

Rode NT1-A

This is a great recording microphone. I was only messing around with it for about 10 minutes and it sounded better than anything I'd used before. Would definitely recommend it. Great value.