recordinghacks

Studio Projects cs1

Cardioid Condenser Microphone

Studio Projects’ cs1 is a transformerless FET condenser microphone with a large-diaphragm, fixed-cardioid capsule.

Onboard switches provide access to a 5-way pad and multiple high- and low-pass filters. The pad options are: flat, -5dB, -10dB, -15dB, -20dB.

There are four high-pass filters (aka “low cut” filters), attenuating the signal by 6dB at a selectable frequency: 50Hz, 75Hz, 150Hz, 300Hz.

Somewhat unusually, there are four low-pass (“high cut”) filters, attenuating the signal by 6dB at a selectable frequency: 3kHz, 5kHz, 7kHz, 15kHz.

The capsule is visually identical to the C1 capsule; it is a K67 style, although the rear backplate is clear plastic rather than brass, and the rear diaphragm is not metallized. The diaphragm diameter is ~27mm, while the O.D. of the capsule is 34.1mm.

In the sample mic we inspected, the backplate is polarized at 60VDC. Curiously, the front diaphragm is polarized at 3VDC, resulting in a net 57V polarization voltage.

The CS1 has a fixed Cardioid polar pattern.

The amplifier circuit is a low-noise design, measured at 10dBA self-noise. The output circuit is transformerless.

As of April, 209, the mic’s street price is $250-$400 — less than half its MSRP. It ships with the “halo” shockmount, a foam windscreen, a hardshell carrying case, and spare elastics for the moutn.

For more information, see the reviews of the cs5, which is the same mic with a dual-diaphragm, multipattern capsule (link in sidebar).

Permalink: Studio Projects CS1

The mic was released in 2007.

Specifications

Frequency Response - CardioidClick Graph to Compare!

Pickup Patterns

Pads & Filters

Cardioid (14 mV/Pa; 20 - 20,000 Hz)

Pad: -5dB (Via Switch) Pad: -10dB (Via Switch) Pad: -15dB (Via Switch) Pad: -20dB (Via Switch) Filter: HPF: -6dB/octave @ 50Hz (Via Switch) Filter: HPF: -6dB/octave @ 75Hz (Via Switch) Filter: HPF: -6dB/octave @ 150Hz (Via Switch) Filter: HPF: -6dB/octave @ 300Hz (Via Switch) Filter: LPF: -6dB/octave @ 3kHz (Via Switch) Filter: LPF: -6dB/octave @ 5kHz (Via Switch) Filter: LPF: -6dB/octave @ 7kHz (Via Switch) Filter: LPF: -6dB/octave @ 15kHz (Via Switch)

Capsule Dimensions	Impedance	SPL/Noise
Diaphragm diameter: 26.9mm Capsule diameter: 34.1mm Diaphragm gauge: 6 microns	200 Ohms (Low)	Max SPL: 154 dB Self-noise: 10.0 dB(A)

Weight	Length	Max Diameter	Interface(s)
n/a	215mm (8.46'')	52mm (2.05'')	3-pin XLR male (1)

Power Specifications
Requires phantom power Phantom voltage: 48 ± 4v

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