Review: RØDE NT1 Condenser Microphone

The NT1 is Peter Freedman’s good luck charm. Peter is Rode Microphones’ owner and it was the mic that started it all: the one that put him on a path out of debt, a path that saved his father’s business, and on which he built his own empire. It’s almost like he feels he owes it to the little mic to keep perfecting the idea of what the NT1 can be. As Rode grows, so does it.

The original NT1 wasn’t much to speak of. A Chinese import, before Chinese imported microphones were ubiquitous. He imported 20 as a hail mary pass at solvency. Cracked them open, realised they were crap, fixed them up and went about trying to sell them. The ‘U87-copy’ market was ripe for the picking, and the promise of the NT1 led to to his next mic, the NT2, which gave him a foothold in the American market, and things really started taking off for Rode microphones.

Shortly after, Rode radically reversed its business plan. While everyone else was importing more and more Chinese capacitor microphones, Freedman became dedicated to the idea of wholly designing and manufacturing all Rode microphones in Australia. The company’s Silverwater plant quickly grew into a full-service manufacturing facility. And Rode continues to build on its manufacturing expertise. In 2012, Rode launched the Rodeworks design facility. A slice of Sydney’s CBD turned into a designer hub for product and design innovation. It’s been working overtime, delivering svelte new packaging, and some ground-up new and redesigned products. The NT1 is one of the first beneficiaries of this intensified focus on design.

BACK IN BLACK

The most noticeable departure for Rode is the move to black. Rode has released live and broadcast products in black, but up until the NT1, M3 and M5 pencil mics, all Rode’s studio mics had followed the classic European mic tradition of plated-metal housings or, at least, metallic tones. It was a function of the Neumann/AKG/Telefunken tribute. Once again, the NT1 leads the way. It’s a proper one-inch condenser Rode has voiced to sound like a classic mic, without looking like one. 

The black finish is not just a gimmick, it’s the final ceramic coating on top of a machined 6061 aluminium body that’s first plated in nickel so it won’t corrode. The military-grade black coating is super durable, so you won’t be scratching it off in a hurry or greasing it up with fingerprints. Also, Rode has stopped using stickers for branding, which is a good thing.

A NEW LEVEL OF SHOCK

One of Freedman’s strengths has always been his ability to get a deal done, and strike up golden relationships. Rode’s partnership with Rycote is one of those. Initially, the relationship was devised as a perfect partnership around Rode’s dominance in the camera-top microphone market, and Rycote’s longtime mastery of the top of the boompole. But the relationship has since spilled over into Rode’s other lines, resulting in the new SMR shockmount, which is packaged with the NT1, but also compatible with most of Rode’s side address condensers. It uses Rycote’s Lyre system, twice. The larger Lyre takes care of the hard work, while a smaller, inner version acts as a tensioning system to keep the Lyre in the neutral position where it’s most effective. The NT1 also has a small internal suspension system. All three elements provide pretty effective isolation, enough to eliminate all stand-borne vibrations, and heavily dampen the effect of tapping on the stand. But best of all, there’s no rubber or elastic bands in sight, and the Lyre system won’t sag or lose shape over time.

Also included in the suspension mount is a removable pop filter. A double-thick fine mesh number that is as good as any pop filter on the market. It slides snugly into the shockmount’s protruding lower lip. At first, the lip might seem problematic for placement, but it’s not too much bigger than a standard shockmount, and eliminates the annoyance of trying to get a rogue goosenecked pop filter to stay in place. The fixed positioning means no matter how many times you have to alter the mic position, the pop filter will always be in the right place. If you really need to get the mic closer to a source, or just can’t fit the shockmount through a particular drum crevice, you can grab the optional Rode RM2 ring clip.

Lastly, and probably the most brilliant of all, is the tension system. Instead of the same old friction plate design we see in almost every mic clip, suspension mount and mic stand on the market, the SMR shockmount uses a cylinder tension system. When you tighten the mount, it squeezes the cylinder all the way around, making for a much more effective tightening system that easily holds up the mic, and requires much less force. There are a few things about the SMR shockmount that should become industry standards, and that’s definitely one of them.