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John Lennon, recording acoustic guitar with a Sony C22 |
The 33-1080 is reported to be a rebranded cousin of the Sony ECM/C22.
It is a back-electret condenser mic that runs off a single AA battery. Overall, it's a pretty decent mic. Smooth, flat frequency response and a nice vintage-y sound. But... the mic has one major flaw.
Noise!
Seriously. The circuit in this mic generates a ton of hiss. Back in the 70's it was probably not so much of a problem, because everyone was recording to cassette tape, which had such a high noise floor anyway, that maybe no one noticed how bad the mic was.
Realistic 33-1080 condenser mic |
However, plugging this mic into a digital system with clean preamps makes you very aware of just how noisy it is.
But, all is not lost! The performance of this mic can be improved!
There is a little 6 volt camera battery called an A544 that, when two are stacked together, are nearly the exact same size as a AA battery. Running the mic at 12 volts, instead of the normal 1.5 volts, greatly increases its signal-to-noise ratio and performance.
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Two A544's next to an AA battery |
Still, it has a great sound that is especially nice on acoustic guitar. If you can pick one up cheap enough, it is definitely worth having around.
Realistic sold a lot of these mics, and you can find them everywhere. Check thrift and donation stores, flea markets, garage sales, Craigslist and, of course, eBay.
I snagged mine on eBay for only $12, and I really like it. But I don't think I'd pay more than $25-30 for one.