MXL 2001

The mic wars hot up, with this low‑price contender throwing in a shockmount at no extra cost. Paul White puts the MXL 2001 through its paces.

The flood of budget capacitor mics from Chinese factories is a major reason why the prices of studio microphones have been driven down so much in recent years. While it is natural to be suspicious of the quality of equipment that costs so little, such mics wouldn't have been able to influence the market in the way they have if they hadn't turned in a decent level of performance. It is also tempting to assume that all the Chinese‑built mics are the same. However, even though many seem to use the same capsules and housings, the electronic sub‑assemblies are often sourced from different companies and the circuit designs frequently vary, so each model needs to be assessed separately.

One such orientally‑produced microphone is that under review here, built under the auspices of MXL (a division of Marshall Electronics — a US company which has no connection with the similarly named British amp manufacturer). The MXL 2001 is a cardioid model with a one‑inch, gold‑sputtered diaphragm. The pre‑amp seems essentially to be a conventional FET design with a balanced impedance‑matching transformer on the output. The standard of construction gives no cause for concern, indeed, the whole thing seems surprisingly well‑engineered for the price, with solid glass‑fibre circuit boards and a heavy brass body with a matt‑black powder finish. Given its 190 x 55mm dimensions (length x diameter), it is satisfyingly weighty at 470g.

With a frequency response of 30Hz to 20kHz and a maximum SPL of 130dB, the MXL 2001 ought to be able to cope with most home recording duties. The microphone's sensitivity is quoted as 15mV/Pa in the included specifications, while input impedance has been measured at 200Ω.

The only area in which corners seem to have been cut is that of 'extra features' — there's no pad switch and no low‑cut filter, though this should not worry most potential users as many desks or mic preamps have these fitted as standard. In any event, it is probably best to avoid using a mic like this in the proximity of extremely loud, low‑frequency sounds which might cause its internal preamp to clip.

Though the MXL 2001 is one of the cheaper mics around, it comes, as standard, with a very nice shockmount which uses a type of bulldog‑clip construction to clamp the body of the mic into the suspension cradle. The suspension has no threaded insert to fit small‑thread UK mic stands, so make sure you pick one up when you're buying the mic if you haven't got one of these spare. A soft vinyl carry bag completes the kit.

Performance

Compared with capacitor mics in the sub‑£500 section of the marketplace, the MXL 2001 stands up pretty well. It's not quite as full‑sounding as Rode's NT1 (its nearest competitor in terms of price and spec) unless you get in a little closer than usual, but it has all the necessary attributes to make a good recording, including a gentle, very broad presence lift above 5kHz which helps produce an airy sound without harshness. The noise level is adequately low, the general clarity and definition is good, and if you want that intimate radio‑DJ sound, you can use it close up in order to 'work' the proximity effect.

With such good sound‑quality, and the bonus of a free shockmount that would cost anything upwards of £50 to buy separately, the MXL 2001 can easily hold its own in the budget microphone market and has to be considered one of the current project‑studio bargains.