I had the idea of acquiring a microphone mainly to record voices. I had given myself as a maximum budget the sum of CHF 300.00. Having no preconceived ideas about the brand, it is therefore natural that I turned to commercial sites. The problem when you are looking for something without having a precise idea or knowledge, it is almost like looking for a needle in a haystack. I have two or three sites that I visit regularly when I plan to buy equipment.
In the budget set there is a lot of choice and I admit that I hesitated. I first focused on well-known brands like Shure, AKG, Sennheiser etc. As I searched, I came across a brand I had never heard of. This brand is “Aston“. But what is this brand? Aston is a fairly well-known English company that has already received many awards for its achievements. In my budget I selected the “Origin” model. The question is why?
Well, believe it or not, I was first seduced by the look of the microphone. It looks more like a tin can than a microphone to be honest but think again, this microphone is indeed a professional quality tool. Judge by the technical specifications at the end of this article.
Also note that this microphone requires 48v power so if you do not have an audio interface like the one I presented in my previous article. I did some tests that turned out to be rather convincing. The microphone is very sensitive and requires a shock absorber. However, an anti-pop f iltre is not an obligation because, and this was one of the points put forward in all the tests I read, this microphone absorbs surprisingly well the “pop” of voices. In short, overall, if you are looking for a microphone not too expensive but still of excellent quality, this Aston Origin will not disappoint you.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Transducer Type Condenser
Acoustic Operating Principle Pressure Gradient
Directional Polar Pattern Cardioid
Frequency Response 20Hz – 20kHz (+/-3dB)
Equivalent Noise Level 18dB A-Weighted
Sensitivity at 1kHz into 1kohm 23.7mV/Pa
Maximum SPL for THD 0.5% 127dB
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (rel. 94dB SPL) 76dB A-Weighted
Pad Switch -10dB
Low-Cut Filter 80Hz
Product length 125 mm / 4.92 in
Product width 54 mm / 2.13 in
Product weight 450 g / 0.99 lb
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