Behringer B-1

I have been playing for about 25 years; have had my own studio for about 20 of those years. Started out with a simple 4 track Fostex real to real. Today, 24 track studio Fostex d-80???s and integrated with cakewalk pro audio for sequencing. I wanted to write this review not to rave about the quality of the microphone. After all, it???s not the best; it is good, very good for instruments, drums, piano and such. But I wanted to comment on their service. I took 2 of these mic???s out on a gig and one of the cases was damaged. So I contacted Behringer via email through their sight. About three weeks later I got a response. Never expected one to begin with, but why not try. I was told they do not sell the cases separately. However they would try to locate one and they would let me know. A couple of weeks passed and they wrote back again telling me they found one and would ship it to me at no cost to myself. WOW. I was greatly impressed. They found a case and shipped it to me for free. I have several Behringer products, I have heard a lot about the quality not being the best and so on. I have never had a problem with any of the Behringer products I have, and as for the quality, I think in most cases they are just as good as their counter parts, sometimes better. But after experiencing their service on such a small item. I am sold.

Large Condenser, They work great, maybe not a great option for vocals. but for guitars, piano, drums and so on, a good mic. Very sensitive. maybe to sensitive at times. use a good compressor. I would replace it if lost, damaged or stolen.

I've been a live and recording musician since around 1968, which gives me quite a number of years in the business, and during that time I've got to know what I want from my equipment. I've recorded in some pretty big studios, and some big studios that weren't so pretty. During my time I've used quite a variety of microphones, mainly AKG and Shure, and some others.

I play various kinds of music, acoustic and electric. Probably music is the mainstay of my life and keeps me sane in this uncertain world of ours, a world that seems to get crazier by the minute and with each and every day that passes.

I've been using the same two B1 microphones that I bought some 5, 6 or more years ago, and they have served me faithfully, like all the other Behringer equipment that I use and own.

I have my own small studio where I spend quite a bit time, when I get the time or I have a recording project to do, and sometimes I have other singer guitarists, and duos, small combos and trios in who want to record tracks for a CD for promotion or sale.

It's a condenser mic, and it requires phantom power which my mixers can supply. I've used this microphone to record my own and other peoples vocals, and the results have always been very good. I've not had to equalise the mixer microphone channels that these microphones have been on when I've been recording with them.

The only thing that gets to me is that these microphones can be susceptible to picking up the noises from fans, even quiet fans, but I also have this problem with other condenser mics such as the AKG C214 which I also use. The problem is eased in most cases by using the -10db setting, which the B1 also has.

I always use the foam shield that came with the B1, and I always keep them in their flight case when they are not in use in the studio. I get good vocal recordings from these microphones that sound natural on playback, and they are bright but not sharp, quite vibrant in fact, very pleasant and pleasing. Personally I like these microphones. I bought one because I wanted a condenser but didn't want to spend too much, I used it for a while and I liked it so I went back to the same shop and bought another.

For recording instruments I use AKG dynamic microphones. I haven't used the condender mics for this purpose, perhaps I'll try it sometime.

Condenser microphones do need careful handling in transit, they don't like being knocked about or getting damp in them, which can cause all kinds of problems like fizzles and pops and total breakdown. But I treat all my microphones with the same considerations because I believe in looking after my equipment.

I have used the option to show my email address. You are welcome to contact me if you have proper reason to do so, but please be aware I only reply if the contact is interesting and I have the time.

Been recording music for 24 years. Many years of open reels, the past 5 years with a digital multitrack.

I've used this mic mostly on vocalists and acoustic guitars from about 1 foot away. I would have to recommend this as a good deal if you have a limited budget, because it has multiple patterns, a suspension mount, foam cover and a great case for a low price, and it does the job. I wouldn't get it as your only mic though, or if you can't afford to have it fail on you. It picks up acoustic guitar very clearly, without too much guitar body resonance, because it is bright - perhaps too bright for some breathy vocalists. I have to eq out a lot of high end with this mic, and often de-ess, but at least I'm eq'ing out alot of the noise also. Otherwise, it's so sensitive in the highs that it 'seems' to be noisy. It's a good choice for distance micing or picking up the room sound when in omni mode. I like to run it into my pre-amp with the input impedance set real low to help tame it. I tend to grab this mic if I want to accentuate a lot of highs, otherwise I would use one of my flatter condensors.

i bought several of these when they were on special at one time, primaily for recording vocals and acoustic guitar.

i'm not a microphone expert by any means, but i've been more or less satisfied with the sound i get from it. seems rich and clear enough for the price.

the main problem, and it's fairly serious, is that of the three i've owned, two have completely gone out on me. same symptoms as one of the previous reviewers, all kinds of clicks, pops, squeals, rustling......
completely fried.

i treat my equipment well, so i feel pretty certain this is not the result of abuse on my part. maybe you should consider it a loan of indeterminate length rather than a purchase if you decide to buy one of these.

I use this with a Tascam DA38 to and Aardvark 20/20.

For the money you can't beat this. It works very well on bass cabinets, acoustic double bass, vocals. It seems to be a bit harsh on drums and steel string acoustic guitars. Not the tightest cardoid pattern, but i have found it very useful.

I've been making music for about 25 years, which 20 have been at a pro level...both as a recording artist and producer / mixer.

Had a few international hit's and seberal locally mostly during the 80s-90s..

Behringer B1 condensor,

Fairly sensitive, and quite topy...pronounced at around 8 - 10 khz..

Not too bad for a cheap mic really, way better that most dynamic mics...so good for the home studio buff / semi prof...

Mainly I had 2 cheap mics to compare the other being a cheap Samson ( C01 ), i ended up using the Samson on this particular job, as the female vocalist had a fairly airy voice, and the Behringer just exajerated it too much.. while the Samson gave her a warmer old skool tone..

I've been playing bass in bands for, well, I'd rather not mention but suffice to say for decades. I just started recording some tunes I wrote years ago on a Boss BR-864 which is an awesome little machine. So I picked up a B-1 mic based on the rave reviews I've read about it. The mic has been fabulous until a couple nights ago. I was laying down some vocals using this mic and all of sudden in the middle of a tune the thing went psycho - clicks, pops, squeals, cutting in and out, you name it. Of course I checked the cables, mixer, etc. and all seems to be fine. My wife always says, "Ya get what ya pay for" and I suppose this is no exception. Perhaps the microphone mill in Bejing has a bit of a quality issue. You may pay more for a Senny or an AKG but I doubt you'll have quality issues like I did with the B-1. Let's see how good Behringer is with service.

I work in a pro studio but I also run a low budged-gear studio at home for my own demo productions.

well, I know what expensive condensor mics sound like, and the Behringer obviously does not come close to a neumann or akg. I'd not use it in the studio. But, don't get me wron, it does not sound bad at all! the only negative thing, it gets all the background noises, no matter where you place it. It sounds natural, a bit flat.
On the other hand, for doing home demo's, its number one for doing nice vocals for a low price. For vocals, this cheap condensor mike ist still better than the most expensive dynamic microphone.
If you on a small budget, get one!

Oh, I almost forgot: I used 2 of them in a pro-studio situation as room microphones for a drum kit: worked great! I'd do that again!

I've been in the broadcast industry for 25 years. I mostly do repair and installation, but also have some production and voice over experience. We use mikes for live on-air announcing and recording to analog tape and/or hard drive.

The B-1 is a large (1") diapharam condenser mike. Although it is supposed to be a cardioid, this mike seemed to pick up all sorts of machine noise (computer fans, cart machine motors) in the on-air studio, even with the 10db pad switched in. We tried it for a week or so, but at one station we decided that the BeyerDynamic it replaced was a better, more natural sounding mike, so we boxed up the Behringer and sent it back.

I suppose we were expecting too much for a mike that lists for $129.99. If you are on a tight budget and already own a mike processor, you can make it work, as I did for another client.