Wednesday, August 25, 2010

review - AKG Perception 120 USB Microphone

I had an opportunity to try a Perception 120 USB microphone from AKG.  It's their first USB microphone.  And (per their website) "the only USB microphone with an integrated analogue-to-digital converter with 24-bit and 128x oversampling. Instead of usual one-chip-solutions..."



Their manual states:  "The Perception 120 USB microphone has a cardioid polar pattern...The microphone should be 20 to 40 cm (8 to 16 inch) from the speaker's mouth in order to obtain the best results."  A pop filter is integrated into the microphone.

A tripod table stand, swivel mount, and 14.5 foot long USB cable are included with it.



The microphone supports Microsoft's Windows 7, Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Apple's Mac operating systems.  "The computer operating system detects the microphone and automatically installs the device driver."  It did:  I plugged it into a computer that had Windows Vista installed, and the blue LEDs at the two switches on the microphone glowed.

The attenuation selector switch "enables you to increase the control limit by 20 dB to enable distortion-free recording of very loud sound sources and in close proximity to sound sources" to attempt to reduce distortion.



"The switchable bass-cut provides additional distortion reduction...The bass-cut also counteracts the proximity effect that can occur when the microphone is only a short distance (less than 15 cm) from the sound source."

Included in the box, that gave me a little thrill...because I always like to get "toys"...was a 4 by 4 inch sticker of the AKG logo.  That's always a nice little extra something to give to people...that's a great idea.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is not much of a review; just cutting and pasting the manufacturers info. Perhaps you could tell more about your experiences with it, apart from the free sticker that came in the box.

S!ick said...

You may have a point. But, based on my experience with it...it was all I could think of to post about it: I expected to have it to use in various scenarios, but was informed after it arrived that it needed to be returned. So...I spent a week or two with it, and sent it back. And, this is my "review"...what I know, and have learned, of it.

The one thing I didn't like about it was the stand was too small and short.