Anyone who’s looked at all the choices that exist in today’s condenser microphone market is probably overwhelmed at the number of brands and models available.

AKG Acoustics of Vienna, Austria isn’t new to the studio mic business – AKG has been around for nearly 60 years and has over 1,500 patents in small transducers (more than any other company in the field by far). Legendary AKG products like the C-12, the C414s and C451s (among many) are considered among the “Holy Grail” of microphones and are some of the most widely-used and highly-praised mics in recording history. AKG’s engineering team has the experience to know good design and what truly sounds right.

High Tech, Low Cost

The AKG Perception line melds AKG’s nearly 60 years of design expertise and intimate knowledge of what truly sounds right with the latest high-tech, yet low-cost production. The results are microphones with genuine Eu-ropean design pedigree, incredible performance and amazing consistency at bargain prices! The fit, finish and build quality of Perception mics are what you’d typically find in models many times their reasonable prices.

The AKG Perceptions are all large-diaphragm, side-address condenser microphones des-igned primarily for general-purpose recording studio use, but are rugged enough for tough stage use too. For vocals, drum overheads, guitars, guitar or bass amps, piano, brass, woodwinds and other applications too, these large-dia-phragm mics are excellent choices.

All AKG Perception models share a “big” classic, large-diaphragm sound that is impressively smooth with very low coloration. This sound is enhanced by a very smooth, yet unmistakable presence rise that starts at 5,000 Hz and rises + 3 dB at 10,000 Hz to bring sounds captured by the mic forward in the mix. This big, up-front sound quality never gets buried in the mix.

All AKG Perceptions use externally-biased, “true” condenser capsules instead of the more widely-used electret elements. The “true condenser” capsules deliver higher sensitivity, lower noise and better performance when faced with high temperatures and humidity. Compared to other mics in their price class, Perceptions typically have lower self-noise, higher sensitivity and greater SPL capability.

Feature Rich Options

What separates the various Perception models are the features – the Perception 100 is a basic large diaphragm model that comes with a metal screw-on stand adapter; the Perception 200 uses the same capsule and basic electronics, but adds a switchable 300 Hz, 12-dB-per-octave bass roll filter and a 10-dB pad for added flexibility, plus it also comes with a spider-type shock-mount and is packaged in a metal road case. The Perception 400 has all these features plus two back-to-back capsules and a pattern selector to switch between cardioid, omnidirectional and figure-eight pickup patterns. Perception 400 has very high 28 mV sensitivity so that gain controls on mixers or mic preamps can be turned down to minimize noise so important in digital recording.

With AKG Perception, you get class-leading performance, in-credible unit-to-unit consistency, rock-solid build quality and impeccable performance for the same price as products with much lower design pedigree. Each Perception microphone is backed by a two-year parts and labor warranty. Put an AKG Perception to work on your next studio or stage project and hear the impressive difference that a great microphone can make to your sound.