Samson CL2

Been recording since the release of the first cassette 4-track back around 1981-82. Bought a Teac 144 then; am using a Korg D1600 and a Yamaha MD8 now. I'd classify myself as a serious hobbyist, not a pro. For critical listening I rely on a pair of Beyerdynamic DR770 headphones, which are more accurate than my mixing monitors.

The CL2 mics are sold as matched pairs. They have swappable capsules; you can fit either an omni or a cardioid to the mic bodies.
I have a decent group of cardioid condensers already (Shure KSM32, AKG C1000, Rode NT1, etc.) so I was primarily looking for a utility omni mic, at a reasonable price. Getting a second, small-diaphragm cardioid pencil mic as part of the package seemed a nice bonus, since all of my other cardioids are either medium or large diaphragm types.
The idea in my head was to capture acoustic guitar -- particularly single-note lines -- from a fairly close distance for maximum impact, but without radical changes in level caused by proximity effect when playing the low notes. Omnis are not as prone to proximity effect as cardioids, but since I did not yet have an omni in stock I did some shopping so I could test out my plan.
When the mics arrived, I screwed the omni capsule into one, and left the other with in cardioid mode, for some head-to-head listening. I had a preconceived notion that the omni would do a better job than the cardiod at eliminating the low frequency boom, thereby keeping levels more consistent so that I could apply less compression. I ran them both though a Joemeek 3Q, with no EQ or compression, so I'd be hearing just the mics.
The result? Surprisingly (to me) while the cardioud exhibited a bit more boom, its note separation on chords, and its overall clarity, were clearly superior. The omni sounded a bit muddy in an A-B comparison. I knew from the supplied frequency response graphs that the omni is flatter in the low frequency range, but has a bit more of a boost in the highs. I thought about it for a while. How could I get the clarity of the cardiod along with the reduced proximity effect of the omni?
I soon realized that the murk in the omni was not caused by the mic, but by room reflections. Because the omni can hear from all around, and because I was in a live room, using relatively high preamp settings, the mic was capturing a lot of reflected sound. That sound was being delayed by its trip to the walls and back. It was then coming back into the mic milleseconds after the attack of the original note, in the form of phasey midrange murk, muddying things up in the process. The trick was to limit the reflected sound by deadening the hard surfaces of the room.
I hung a comforter from the wall behind the mic to limit the reflections which the mic had been hearing from that direction. I also engaged the 80Hz rolloff to mimic the response of the cardioid capsule. I began to record.
On playback, there it was: I had the note separation and frequency response of the cardioid, but without the boom in the bass, and with a little smoother and more extended high end. In other words, I had found the sound I'd had in mind when I'd decided to try these mics.
So: I will be using these mics primarily as described here -- for acoustic guitar. I'm happy with my other mics for other applications. A few other observations, for anyone who feels left out by my limited scope:
* This is a fairly bright set of mics. I'd expect that they'd sound good on strummed acoustic in a crowded mix with the low frequency rolloff switch engaged.
* The mics are very prone to handling noise. The supplied shock mounts are a must.
* The P-Popping is the worst of any mic I own, including ribbon types -- particularly with the cardioid capsule. Although you get two nice pop hoops and two foam windscreens in the kit, I would put the idea of using these as either vocal mics or outdoor mics out of your head.
* These should make very nice drum overhead mics. The high boost is smooth and extended.
* The overall package is an excellent value. You get two of everything, plus a mounting bar for stereo mic'ing. All are of reasonable quality. Most important is the fact that the mics sound pretty good, as long as you have another mic for vocals.

I have been creating music since the 5th grade (over ten years of experience playing music). I am also attending school to become an audio engineer (BA). I do all of my recording to digital formats, either hard disk recording, or flash based field recorders. I mostly use digidesign pro tools 8 for recording and editing (through an M-box), and I use Apple logic Pro for mixing and creating. I am running an intel iMac (10.5.6), and listening through a pair of Fostex PM1 speakers or AKG K240 studio headphones. I am recording/listening mostly in household spaces (bedrooms, and untreated rooms) but occasionally have the chance to record in larger "live" wood floor rooms.

The Samson CL2 is a small diaphragm pencil condenser. The package that I bought came with 2 microphones (each with their own set of cardioid and omni-directional capsules), two mic stand clips, two mic stand noise reducing harnesses, two pop filters, two wind screens, an XY cross bar, and a padded aluminum case to hold it all. Simply an amazing deal. I found the set on ebay, and I was able to "offer" my way down to $250. I think they retail for $350 if you buy them in stores. Either way, I would have payed the full $350.

The mics feel very solid. Sturdy construction, hefty weight, and the capsules screw on nice and tight. The accessories that came with the mic were a little on the cheap side, but I'm glad it came with anything at all. Besides, I would rather have cheap accessories than a cheap mic. I had never heard of the company "samson" making microphones. I was a little weary of buying a set of pencil condensers from an unknown manufacturer. I had heard of the company through their association with Hartke, and Zoom (Which both make pretty solid products) but I had never heard any of their mics. I do like that samson has grown up from a "2 person operation" with a local sort of attitude. I like to support local vendors and small businesses.

Anyway, the audio from the mics is what really counts. These mics sound great. In fact, I would put them in the same category as the Microtech Gefell M300's. Granted, I don't have a pair of M300's sitting around to A/B them back to back, but I have recorded with the M300's and these aren't too far behind. They sound more like the M300's than the Neumann KM184's (which is what I was hoping for). They have a glassy top end, with a small presence boost in the upper ranges. Otherwise they are pretty flat. They have fairly good bass response for pencil condensers as well. My voice sounded smooth and natural, if not a little exaggerated in the 250-500hz range. Obviously they don't sound quite as good as either the M300 or the KM184, but as I said before they sound more like the M300 to my recollection. Still, given the price, they sound amazing.

One thing I did notice was the microphone's volume was lacking at any significant distance. Of course you would normally adjust preamp gain if you are using them for room mics etc. But when I set the volume for speaking about a foot away, the mics seemed to really drop in level after I moved about 3 feet away or so. They don't have enormous range. So I figure I'll just adjust preamp levels as necessary.

I didn't have a chance to really test these out using them as room mics for a drum set, or even do stereo mic-ing on a guitar. But I did test using my voice, and using them one at a time on a guitar. From what I can tell these are pretty solid mics. They sound virtually identical to each other (matching serial numbers), and overall I'm really impressed with the quality of these mics. Of course I could have a better preamp than the Digi Mbox, and of course you could get better sounding mics for $1000. But for someone looking for a cheap set of pencil condensers these are them. They are probably the best sounding, and cheapest set you'll need. Don't even bother with MXL crap, spend an extra $100 and get this matched set. They sound great, and they're sturdy.