AT3035 Microphone - Perfect mic for budding Voice-overs

As an aspiring Voice-over artist, I'm in an odd position where I need good quality equipment, but don't have the budget to afford the expensive stuff. After much research, I settled on the Audio-Technica AT3035 microphone. I'm extremely pleased with my purchase.

The Microphone is fairly heavy duty, with a completely metal casing in an attractive brushed metal finish. It is good and heavy, which means it's not a mic you're going to hold for long periods, or at all. Instead, it should be mounted in some sort of a shock mount. Thankfully, such a mount is included in the package (which also includes a padded case). A little too stiff for my tastes, the connector that attaches to the mic is suspended from the part that attaches to the mic stand by thick rubber bands. So if the mic is bumped, the vibrations don't travel to the mic.

However, if the stand is bumped, you're going to want to do another take, because while the vibration might not be picked up, certainly the sound will be. This is a very sensitive mic. And while it's not omnidirectional, it does have a wide range of coverage. Therefore, anyone using this mic should have a quiet room or sound booth. I routinely pick up the sounds of the computer fans, and other annoyances. Once, when I was playing back a recording, I kept hearing a train at least 3 miles away. I then realized it was on the track. I typically tune out that sound, but the mic did not.

The signal response on this mic is 20Hz - 20,000kHz, which means it has more than enough dynamic range for the deepest bass or the highest soprano. And since it can withstand volumes in excess of 145dB, you aren't going to be able to max it out with your voice. I've yelled into it with no adverse effects. The only consideration is making sure your pre-amp is set up properly if you are going to do loud sounds. But other than that, yell away. This mic can handle it.

Being a professional condenser mic, it takes a 3-prong balanced XLR low impedance cable. It also requires power. So while you won't be able to plug this directly into your computer’s soundcard, you can get fairly cheap mixers and pre-amps that have the necessary 48v phantom power.

Technicals aside, this mic sounds really good. I don't have the dynamic range of someone like Mel Blanc, but I've run the scales in terms of different voices. All of them sound fairly warm, but retain a crisp clarity that VO performers need, without any excess boominess. While I doubt you'll ever hear Don LaFontaine (the movie trailer guy) using this mic, it is a favorite among those looking for economical, high quality sound.

For samples of this mic, all of my demo reels were recorded with it at http://JeffreyKafer.com