recordinghacks

RØDE NT1000

Cardioid Condenser Microphone

The NT1000 is a fixed-cardioid, large-diaphragm FET condenser, described by some as the solid-state version of the NTK tube mic.

The 1'' capsule, known as the HF2, is an edge-terminated, true condenser (externally-biased) design. It has one metallized diaphragm. The rear half of the capsule is a drilled metal plate that serves as an acoustic delay network to create the capsule’s Cardioid polar pattern. The same capsule can be found in the NTK.

The capsule is mounted in a rubber harness that serves to provide some isolation from mechanical vibration.

The mic’s amplifier circuit is built using a mix of through-hole and surface-mount components: at least one capacitor is a through-hole film type, and several others are electrolytics. The output circuitry is transformerless.

Built of a heavy-duty cast metal satin nickel body, the NT1000 incorporates a high-strength, heat-treated mesh head, and comes supplied in a zip pouch with a stand mount.

SoundOnSound

To me, the NT1000 sounds like a hybrid of the NTK and the original NT1, both of which I had available to make direct comparisons. It alludes to the smoothness of the NTK and is noticeably smoother sounding than the NT1 (which in itself is an unbelievably good-sounding mic for the money), but it doesn’t have the same warm intimacy of the more expensive NTK. This is to be expected given that the NTK is a tube mic, but exploiting the proximity effect by working closer to the mic helps warm the sound up a little more, as does using a sympathetic compressor.

Terry Manning

…I was interested in comparing the RØDE NT1000, which seems to me to be based upon the U87, directly to an 87. I was recently able to do so, and was surprised by the results. There is a similar basic sound spectrum, but the NT1000 is a bit brighter… The NT1000 seems to have a boost of about 1 db at 6k, and a wider boost of about 1.5db centered at 12k. This makes the use of eq in the mix a far less likely incident than with an 87, and especially is beneficial in the analogue world, and on distant subjects. The mids and lows seem about the same balance, and the quality of the 1000 is pretty close. Given the price differential, even when compared to a good used 87, the 1000 seems an excellent value.

Permalink: RØDE NT1000

The mic was released in 2001.

Specifications

Frequency Response - CardioidClick Graph to Compare!

Pickup Patterns	Pads & Filters
Cardioid (16 mV/Pa; 20 - 20,000 Hz)

Capsule Dimensions	Impedance	SPL/Noise
Diaphragm diameter: 26mm	100 Ohms (Low)	Max SPL: 140 dB Self-noise: 6.0 dB(A)

Weight	Length	Max Diameter	Interface(s)
682g (24.06oz)	209mm (8.23'')	54mm (2.13'')	3-pin XLR male (1)

Power Specifications
Requires phantom power Phantom voltage: 24, 48v

Did we get anything wrong on this page? Please let us know!