Apex SP-1 Studio Pack
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Posted on Jun 06, 2005 12:39 pm
BeerHunter
www.TheLondonProject.ca
Member Since: Feb 07, 2005
Is it any good? The price seems good at $210 CDN for one Apex435 medium diaphragm condenser microphone and two Apex180 pencil condenser microphones with interchangeable omnidirectional and cardioid capsules.
Keeping in mind, this would be my first condeser mic but I still don't want to buy it if it is crap.
Do you guys have any feedback on this studio pack or is there something else that I should be looking at?
Thanks
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BeerHunterwww.TheLondonProject.caMember
Since: Feb 07, 2005
Jun 07, 2005 11:57 am Sorry guys but I've gotta bump this post as I really need to move ahead on this if I'm to get this deal (on sale now).
I would be using the 435 as a vocal mic and the 2 pencils as drum overheads.
The reason for this post is that I have concerns that they are too cheap to be good mics.... or are they? Maybe it is just a good deal. I've been happy with other Apex stuff but hesitant because of the price of this package.
I have never bought a condenser mic before. What should I be watching out for (I've got phantom power)? I know that this is no "blue bottle" but I'm just a hobbiest.
Any feedback is appreciated. Even if you haven't used these specific mics, feedback on the brandname would help as well.
If you know of any other packages that fall in the $200 CDN price range (~$150US), that would be really cool as well.
Thanks a million.
Jun 07, 2005 12:04 pm hmmm man, i gotta admit, i've never heard of Apex, so....WAIT! my parents DVD player is an APEX! HAHAH umm i donno if it's the same company (possible i guess) and yes it IS a cheap DVD player. but it still works.
at that price point i'd check into Samson....i've uesed the 02's (SDC) and liked them alot, infact if ya spend a bit more money and get some Samson 02's and a Rode NT1 or even an MXL, i think that'd be alot more reliable.
just my opinion
wyd
BeerHunterwww.TheLondonProject.caMember
Since: Feb 07, 2005
Jun 07, 2005 12:23 pm I just checked out the Samson's, Rode's and MXL on MF. Samson and MXL seem to be around the same price point. The Rode's seem to be quite a bit more (out of my price range).
I'm interested in the MXL package 990/993 but I don't know where I would find it in Canada. MF won't ship to Canada. Real bummer 'cause they will send a free pop filter with it.
WYD, based on your recommendation, I would purchase the MXL package but I might have trouble finding it here.
Thanks for the feedback.
TadpuiI am not a crook's headMember
Since: Mar 14, 2003
Jun 07, 2005 12:43 pm Yeah, Musician's Friend and MXL have some sort of deal...MF is the only place that you can find a lot of those MXL models, which is a bummer for people outside of the US.
I can vouch for MXL, I have a 990 and two 993s and they all perform very well for such cheapies. The 990 has a weird high-frequency rise that kinda bugs me. I hear great things about the v63 tho.
First, check eBay and see if there are any MXLs up for grabs there. If not, maybe you can swing a deal with somebody here in the states to do some indirect shipping. HRC is about the only place on the net whose members I'd trust to do such a thing.
BeerHunterwww.TheLondonProject.caMember
Since: Feb 07, 2005
Jun 07, 2005 01:23 pm Hmmm, what to do?? Apex is a Canadian company and this may be why the price is so good and few have heard of them. I have a wireless Apex mic and it works great (5 years old). Totally pleased with it. I'm still leaning towards the Apex package. Mostly because of the price and convenience (its at Long & Mcquade which is very close to home).
Assuming that the Apex package is reliable, what sort of specs should I be looking at.
The Apex435 has the following specs
Type - Wide Diaphragm Condenser
Polar pattern - Cardoid
Frequency Response - 20 - 20000 Hz
Sensitivity - 14mv/Pa = -40dB (0dB = 1v/Pa) -40dB
Impedance - <200 Ohms
S/N Ratio - 76dB
Max SPL - (for 1% THD @ 1000Hz) 24dB
The Apex180 has the following specs
Type - Small Diaphragm Pencil Condenser
Polar pattern - Cardoid, Omni
Frequency Response - 30 - 20000 Hz
Sensitivity - 14mv/Pa = -40dB (0dB = 1v/Pa) -10dB
Impedance - <250 Ohms
S/N Ratio - 76dB
Max SPL - (for 1% THD @ 1000Hz) 125dB
Now then, all of these specs mean almost nothing to me. Is there any of these specs that I should be paying close attention to when doing my comparison shopping?
TadpuiI am not a crook's headMember
Since: Mar 14, 2003
Jun 07, 2005 01:42 pm On the Apex 435, is that correct that it has a max SPL of 24 dB without distorting? I think that's barely above a whisper! Maybe its a typo?
But I think that signal to noise ratio is going to be a big element in the quality of the mic. Same for a preamp...you want lots of signal and little noise. You might want to compare the 76dB s/n ratio to that of other mics in the same class and see how it stacks up. I'm not sure how quiet a 76dB s/n ratio is.
The frequency responses look comparable to those of the MXL mics. The switchable polar pattern on the 180 is a plus (assuming that its switchable between cardioid and omni).
Also I think that sensitivity is a big issue with condensors. Although I'm not sure how to interpret those figures either. maybe look up some comparable mics and compare figures.
BeerHunterwww.TheLondonProject.caMember
Since: Feb 07, 2005
Jun 07, 2005 02:03 pm Oops, ya typo on my part s/b 140dB on the max SPL which goes to show how little I know about mic specs.
As far as the polar pattern, it comes with both cardoid and omni "cartridges". I'm not sure if this means its "switchable" or if there is usually an actual switch that you can toggle. This sounds to me that you would unscrew the mic and change an insert piece.
Thanks for the info Tadpui. I'll focus on the S/N for my comparison shopping.
Cheers
PS - my Nady PRA-8 pre-amp has a S/N of better than 80dB which is the pre-amp I will be using.
BeerHunterwww.TheLondonProject.caMember
Since: Feb 07, 2005
Jun 07, 2005 04:57 pm ...one other thing, is a smaller S/N value better or worse.... ugh, that sounds like a lame question
TadpuiI am not a crook's headMember
Since: Mar 14, 2003
Jun 07, 2005 10:23 pm Actually, that's a good question. My understanding (which may have no bearing on reality) is that a 76dB s/n ratio means that the device produces 1 dB of noise for every 76 dB of signal...does anybody have any information to the contrary?
So I would think that a higher s/n ratio is better.
BeerHunterwww.TheLondonProject.caMember
Since: Feb 07, 2005
Jun 08, 2005 12:33 am Well, nobody seems to have anything negative to say about Apex thus far so I think I will go for it for the reason of price and the experience I've had with my other mic.
I'm not sure how much a few dB in a S/N is going to make a differnce for what I'm doing. Either way I can't see this package being a "bad deal" so to speak.
Nov 29, 2005 04:33 pm I realize this thread is abit old, but I think "Apex Digital Inc" (dvd players, tvs, etc) is not the same company as "Apex Electronics" (which make microphones, preamps, etc). I believe Apex Electronics is originally Canadian, which is why no one else seems to have heard of them ;)
BeerHunterwww.TheLondonProject.caMember
Since: Feb 07, 2005
Nov 29, 2005 07:47 pm I'm in Canada and Apex products are quite common here. I ended up buying this 3-mic pack and I couldn't be happier. It was great value.
