Rode NT-3

I play arranger keyboard and sing in clubs in around Europe i also own home recording studio and use rode nt3 for vocals.I recorded few singles in very good studios using serious equipment and i must say that when i record something at home im very satisfied how it comes out when i compare results with stuff i recorded earlier in pro studios.I must say that i use a lot of de-esser it has rich hi end but i am thrilled how it works in live applications specially on vocals.I used shure beta58,sm58,sennheisier,and beta 87 this mic beats them all big time!!!!!Very clear,also more demanding,it tolerates no mistakes in singing!When i sing lower notes every single note,letter,word is clearly heard.Even if you like more bass you can add it as much as you like it does not get muddy it just adds more power !

As live vocal mic it beats all other dynamic and condensers even twice more expensive and as studio vocal condenser works way better than most behringers sm and others in that price range,although it should be used with some preamp that will deliver bit more warmth for recording.Could not get any quieter,no hum at all and be prepared to use much more less eq because it sounds just the way it should..

Playing various things for a while; got into recording only last year to make a short film soundtrack and got hooked. I use a Macbook and (currently) an M-Audio card with Logic all played through Rokit monitors.

I find this to be a very useful mic for vocals (seems to prefer male to female, if that makes sense) and acoustic guitar; today I used for a tenor ukulele with pretty good results (if I say so myself). I guess the versatility is in part related to the medium sized diaphragm -- can be used close in for good focus (e.g. on acoustic guitar), or a bit further out for some room dynamics (e.g. voice). It's probably not the best at anything, but you can get decent results on everything.

Hi there,

I am a semi-professional sound engineer. I am self taught and have been a working musician and production engineer for a several years now.

I record Blues, Soul, Country, Rock, Funk and anything else that is not "heavy".

I am recording in a DAW running a few Motu 8 pre's, Line 6 UX8, UX2 and Presonus firestudios.

My main speakers are KRK Rokit 8 monitors and Technics DJ 1200 Headphones

Please read other reviews for techincal details.

The main thing to know is this is a condenser microphone.

What I really like about this microphone is how instantly "big" it sounds when you plug it in. It's much brighter than the newer Rode M3 microphone and it also has more volume at the same settings. It's apparantly clearer and brigher than the m3 as well.

These sound great for overheads on drums, hi hats, sound good for acoustic guitar and today I used them as a main vocal microphone and it did a great job.

It was raining and the NT2a was picking up the rain on the roof so I tried the NT3 and pointed it slightly down from the vocalist, this gave the recording a massive "chest voice" and the results were really amasing - some of the best I've ever recorded. I am using a Joe Meek Twin Q Preamp then through a valve preamp into the Motu 8 pre and the results are very professional. I need to finish the session tomorrow at the studio so I will continue to use this microphone due to the results we obtained today.

It might not suit all voices but it's a very honest, clear, bright and great sound for the money.

If you are wondering if the M3 is as good as the NT3 and how they compare. The NT3 will feedback easier, but the overall sound is smoother and less scooped. the M3 appears to be a great microphone which you can use live with no problems but in the studio, for an all rounder the NT3 is slightly better. Is it a few hundred dollars better? Maybe not that's up to you to decide. What I can say is both are great microphones but the NT3 did such a great job on the vocals today, I don't think I could get a sound like that out the M3 but who knows, it might need a little more EQ. I'll put an A/B test up on youtube eventually.

I'm starting to think the whole battery option in microphones is "good" but not really required at least for my use. Anytime I need to use this microphone I have a phantom power switch on a desk, preamp or interface with phantom power so this is the only feature for ME that I don't find that great.

It's a strong microphone, the grill screws off unlike the M3 which fall and break off if they hit the ground. Once the M3 grill breaks you need to send it back for repairs. Having the NT3 with a grill that screws on/off is a great feature.

This is a great microphone, if you want a microphone that does the job for various tasks that sounds clear, wide, big and bright (can be perceived as toppy) this is the microphone.

Have been playing guitar for 15 years, professionally for the last 5. Regular play with my 7-piece swing band and 15-piece big band. I use the mic almost entirely for live performance, micing my acoustic archtop guitar. Have recorded three albums - the studio uses mostly RCA44's for vintage sound.

This is a medium diaphragm hypercardioid condenser, with an on/off switch and a battery, in case you don't have phantom. This mic is internally shock-mounted, so you can handle it like a vocal mic.

I use this mostly live on my acoustic archtop guitar. It is a perfect solution for me, because I have to do my own sound, and the on/off switch is very helpful. It's also the only mic I've ever used on the guitar, where people have commented about how good the guitar sounds. The shock-mounting makes the mic perfectly usable on a live stage. The battery is handy, because I can just as easily plug the mic directly into an acoustic guitar amp, keyboard amp, or powered PA speaker (none of which provide phantom)if I'm on gig where I am not providing sound, or there is no PA.

Obviously this is not going to be beating thousand dollar mics, or legendary studio mics, but I think it sounds great, especially for my purposes. The hypercardioid/medium diaphragm set up is a good balance of sensitivity and off-axis rejection. There is always bleed, but it is very organic, and very reasonable.

I have recommended this mic to many acoustic archtop rhythm players, and Django-style guitarist, many of whom really love it.

Songwriter fro 10 years. Digital setup.

I agree with the other reviewer. This isn't a fantastic mic. It will get the job done if its all you can afford but it will never wow you. Noticeable thin and weak compared to a C1000 which is its closest competitor as far as I can see. Not too bad as overheads but on an acoustic it will not shine. Vocals feel buried (again when compared to the C1000). In considering this review you should not that I'm not a huge fan of the C1000 either, so...

I have been a music teacher for 4 years and every summer I run various week long work shops and one of my work shops includes audio engineering for live performance, home recording and I also teach an extensive course during the spring and fall semesters on mixing and mastering. In the home recording work shop we have a wide variety of equipment to simulate various studio rigs, cheap home DAWS, and portable recording multitrackers.

The NT3 is a hypercardiod condenser microphone. An interesting feature with this mic is the fact that you can use a 9 volt battery to power it as opposed to using phantom power.

Let me say firstly that this microphone is very economical, if you are a working musician with limited funds to purchase studio equipment this mic may be worth taking a glance at.

This microphone is useful in a variety of applications including:

hi-hats
overhead drum micing
guitar cabinets
acoustic instruments of all kinds
vocals

This last summer in the audio engineering workshop for live music we looked at affordable ways of recording a live concert to 8 tracks using a laptop, echo layla soundcard, inexpensive 10 channel mixing board and a variety of microphones under the $300 canadian mark. Students found that the Rode NT3 did wonders for live vocalists especially with the wind screen that it comes with.

The mic is very sturdy; I have purchased 7 of them for use in the studio and only one has defected after approximately 8 months of use.

Been recording for over a decade on all kinds of gear. Currently recording to PC-DAW with various outboard gear from Demeter, Speck, Phoenix, Lexicon, dbx, FMR Audio and monitoring on KRK V6 monitors.

This is a hypercardiod small condensor. I've used it on acoustic instruments and guitar cabinets mostly. Once used it to mic the bridge of a hollow body electric bass which was kind of cool. Anyway, the mic performs and sounds like a $150 mic. It's kind of thin, kind of brash, kind of hyped and not very natural. The hypercardiod pattern is handy at times and that's why I have it around. When run through my Phoenix DRS2, it doesn't sound too bad, but I'd hate to run it through a brash mic preamp. I can only imagine what that would sound like.

All-in-all, it's your average cheap condensor. It isn't great, it's the furthest thing from smooth, it's character/color isn't something to want for but in a pinch it can do the job.

6 years
Live and studio
DAW (Aardvark Q10+Logic Plat), digital multitrack (Akai Dps16)
Nad amp + Celestion speakers

Condenser, hyper-cardio
Snare drums, cymbals
6" from snare pointing at hitting area or at closest edge
Did consider the Akg1000 and a few others in that price range
Price, quality an sound did it
Easy to use and setup, sound is clear with no noticeable artifacts, fairly rugged but a bit bulky for cymbals overhead placement and tight snare spaces
I'd recommend it for that price range