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Goods things do come in small packages.
Small out-of-the-way microphones have innumerable applications, particularly in live performance or lectern applications, and the Audix MICROS Series definitely fits the bill.
The MICROS series of condenser microphones initially came about as a result of experimentation by Audix with increasingly smaller preamp designs. The cigarette-size M1290 ($399) was the first incarnation, and ultimately, the M1245 ($379) followed. In order to shrink the microphones, sacrifices were necessary-for instance, the loss of an octave of low-end response in the M1245. Also, interfacing the preamp with the capsule on such a small scale presents tremendous challenges in terms of noise floor and interference levels. Nonetheless, after all the hard work, these microphones emerge as useful, high-quality units.
THE DETAILS
The M1290 is, as the name implies, 12 mm in diameter and 90 mm in length. The M1245 is simply half that length. In the case of the M1290, there are three polar patterns available: cardioid, hypercardioid, and omnidirectional. I tested a cardioid pair. The M1245 comes in just cardioid and hypercardioid versions; the pair I tested was the M1245 CV, which is the contractor-version cardioid.
These mics are otherwise virtually identical in terms of the specs, with an output impedance of 250W and a more than sufficiently low equivalent noise level of 19 dBA. Signal-to-noise ratio here is 75 dB, and these mics can handle a sound pressure level (SPL) of greater than 138 dB. Because they are not electret condensers, phantom power is required, and though many phantom-powered mics are relatively forgiving, these ones definitely want to see 48V to 52V. Frequency response is published at 40 Hz to 20 kHz in the case of the M1290 and 80 Hz to 20 kHz in the...