MXL 993 Condenser Microphones Stereo Pair 

Comments about MXL 993 Condenser Microphones Stereo Pair:

I think these mics are one of those models that has some obvious defects, but not across the entire batch they make. While they are still not the best small-diaphragm condensers I have ever used, they sound good enough to satisfy me. I would still prefer a pair of SM81s, but those will have to wait for now. They have not given me any noise, so that is most likely not to change. If you get any noise, try to see if it is in your room, cable, pre-amp, 48VDC unit, A/D converter or something else first before claiming this mic to be faulty. It usually is something else that does not quite work right besides the microphone. When I first plugged mine in, it gave me noise - because I had my AC on. Turned it off and the noise was gone. Played a few chords and melodies on the piano and I was really impressed. Granted they are not the best I have used, but they are currently my favorite to use, although that is mostly because I was borrowing or renting the other ones. All in all it was worth my time to purchase these, and I would recommend to a friend.
When this comes with an omni capsule, nice looking carrying case, high-pass filter and -10dB pad, I can give it props for features.
Mine sounds fantastic so far. Used them on piano, guitar and a choir so far. They sound pretty darned good. Not the best of the bunch, but absolutely acceptable.
I got these on super sale for $120, so for me they have a bit higher value, but all in all they would have gotten a 10 anyway. These will serve me in many fantastic applications and definitely pay for themselves, even if they were $180 or maybe even the standard $250.

Comments about MXL 993 Condenser Microphones Stereo Pair:

I used these mics for the first time last night to record a choir. They sound far better than their price would lead you to believe. Although I have not had them long enough to comment on longevity or ruggedness, they seem quite well made and their performance is amazing at this price point.

Comments about MXL 993 Condenser Microphones Stereo Pair:

Excellent Value for people on a budget.
Mic has great features but would be nice if it had 15 db instead of 10db for miking Drumkit. My mixer has no pad. Gain is turned all the way down and microphone has hot signal 5.2db too hot. Luckily my board has an extra 10 db headroom so turning down fader 5.2db is good enough.
The only quality issue is that the Xlr connector housing is screwed down onto circuit board ground. This provides ground to entire mic chassis so it completes circuit when mic pickup is screwed on. Also spring loaded connector is screwed down to circuit board and glued to chassis near mic pickup screw. If spring loaded connector moves due to not glued properly it may not get close enough to make strong mic connection. both situation will cause hum but will be louder if it's spring connection.
Also if spring connector is not glued well and is moving it will eventually loosen the xlr connection down the circuit board.

Comments about MXL 993 Condenser Microphones Stereo Pair:

I used these to track an acoustic guitar and what a nightmare. I spent over 7 hours trying to clean up the noise. The artist did not want to do the song again for various reasons. I finally got a "listenable" track but I will never be happy with the recording. The only good outcome is that it put my mixing/EQing skills to the test. They may be good for some live applications but not for soft passage recordings. I am looking for a good instrument mic; lesson learned.

Comments about MXL 993 Condenser Microphones Stereo Pair:

I've been using a pairs of these for recording shows for many years. They sound great as long as you roll-off the high-end a little with an EQ. Alone they are too sensitive to highs. I guessed this from the frequency response chart that came with them...a bump of sensitivity around 10k. With a little cut they sound fantastic. So a few years ago I bought another pair, with hopes to use them as drum overheads. The new pair has intermittent circuitry issues, where each of the -10db pads causes the mic to cut out sometimes. I just check the mics and when it happens I switch the pads a few times to resolve the issue. Other than that I am very happy with these mics.

Comments about MXL 993 Condenser Microphones Stereo Pair:

at first i was glad getting a double mic in a case.but even at the first time plug in it give me some rare sound,it did not work..after 3 mounths the 2e mic juist gave me de same broke sound...iam going 2 buy a shure from now on

Comments about MXL 993 Condenser Microphones Stereo Pair:

I agree with most of the previous reviews; Although I seem to have had better luck with their reliability than others, you could easily get mics that would perform better at a slightly higher price. Their polar pattern is VERY wide, much more than normal... so using them as drum overheads can terribly slur your nice stereo image unless you visualize splitting the kit's cymbals by halves of the kit and place the mics closer to those half's centers. They do work well for picking up body and attack of acoustic guitars and add lots of liveliness to the guitar if both are used in an xy setup at the 12th fret, at 90 degrees.They do have a 3-year warranty through MXL. They're beginning to fall apart for me after two years of hard work, but MXL has given me an RA number to have them fixed/replaced. These mics would be great for a hobbyist on a low to medium budget.

Comments about MXL 993 Condenser Microphones Stereo Pair:

-Note: I used these as drum overheads only- I just replaced these with NT-5's, so I finally have a chance to look back at them objectively. They honestly weren't bad microphones for the price. They had a decent SPL, built in pads and hi-pass filters. Their response, compared to the NT-5's, is comprised entirely of high-end (makes you wonder why that hi-pass is on there?). They would not be an adequate solution for the RecorderMan technique-close micing is a requirement. They could potentially be shrill if not eq'd correctly. Their included mic clips are hard plastic and pretty much useless; especially for drum overheads-I had to tape mine to the clip/stand. Overall, they're not bad. These are not going to be a go-to mic for any respectably stocked mic cabinet, but I used them on a few records and nobody complained. That ain't bad.

Comments about MXL 993 Condenser Microphones Stereo Pair:

The MXL 993's by far exceeded my expectations especially after comparing them to 5 other pencil type and large condenser microphones. The were outstanding on acoustic guitar and other stringed instruments! The were also very good as drum overheads (after a small amount of eq) and worked well in the x-y position or as a spaced pair as long as they were not directly over the cymbals. In their price range they are unbeatable. You would have to spend 3X as much to get better results as drum overheads. They are my "go to" for recording acoustic guitar in which case I use just one. I would recommend a shock mounts instead of the mic clips that come with them. Very happy with the quality of these mics!

Comments about MXL 993 Condenser Microphones Stereo Pair:

Well, I got these mics with a lot of expectations about how they would perform both in live sound and recording applications. I immediately tried them out through my lexicon lambda interface and was pretty happy with the sound. I used them record a ?cello in a stereo setup and they were downright professional sounding. Everything was wonderful.So I put the mics away for about a week or so, then took them out again to record a small choir. I hooked them up with the same equipment as before, and I heard the loud electronic buzz that earlier reviewers mentioned. The mics were totally unusable, and I was very disappointed. I checked my interface and computer by using other mics, and confirmed it was indeed the 993?s that were the problem. When I returned home, I took off the mic capsule (removable on the 993), looked for any obvious problem, and replaced the capsule. Imagine my surprise when I tried the mic again and it worked flawlessly. I did the same thing to the other 993, and it too worked again. I have since had to repeat this ritual once more to get the mics working again.I am writing this review both for possible owners and current owners of the 993. This is how I got mine to work, and I hope it will work for you. As for MXL, they need to make sure their mics hold up their sound quality for the long term. When the mics were working correctly, they were great and got me many compliments from other musicians.