Neumann TLM 103 Studio Set

Ok. first of all Thomann did a great job delivering the mic in great package, on time, without any problems. This is great, since not many companies keep the amazing customer satisfaction on such a high level. Kudos for this! When it comes to the mic? I have upgraded from Rode NT2A, and what I have noticed is that the clarity is amazing. Rode was great for keeping the vocals in the mix - but it was just one of the instruments, and nothing above that. TLM is cristal clear. It shines over the tracks and you can definately notice that vocal is the main instrument. You dont have to sing much to get the mic's attention, since it is a beast. BUT! you need to do a little of EQ and compression to make is glued to the final track, but the outcome is extraordinary. The highs are present, mids are sitting right on, but what I love is the bottom. It fights for the presence so much that you feel it is right on the spot without that muddiness. Going from Rode to Neumann is like buying a 1st class ticket on any airline. More room, better service, and quality. Thank you Neumann, thank you Thomann. This will be a great journey!

It's very small fits in my hand, and I'm a very petite woman, but the sound is amazing, I upgraded from a Rode NT1-A because of a horrible distortion around the 3K-5K area. That mic didn't fit my voice whatsoever, so I decided to make the splurge on this one. I was very doubtful that it would make a huge difference but god was I wrong! it totally changed the tone to a more appealing almost velvety sound, this one fits my soprano voice way better, I'm so happy I purchased it.

So far I see no cons, the pros are an excellent sound quality from the get-go. I ordered online and it got to my house in exactly two weeks with the standard shipping method.
The microphone is not cheap, but It fits higher voices so beautifully that In my opinion, It's worth it. I recommend it!

Well, I have my small home studio and work with recording and editing stuff. I use steinberg mic that include in the recording bundle around 5 years back, and then I have AKG Perception 100 that had many good review and all serve the purpose well, no complaint.

But as I look at many review I decide to saving some bucks to buy this TLM 103 instead of 102. For my scale, this one is a giant leap for me cause higher models won't fit my budget. Okay, from the first impression I immidiately felt like this one is a quite bright mic but the highs is very smooth. I noticed very well because for years I use cheap low end mic that always quite harsh in the top end (especially the steinberg tho it's still good mic for the price). But this 103 is fantastic.

Mid and low end captured very well also. The built quality is insanely well and felt like it will be last at least for 20 years or so if it's well maintained. The shockmount is also very sturdy and duper solid, it's expensive yes, but it's quite speak the volume. Happy with this purchase.

Not sure why this mic became so popular, as I don't find its character useful on enough sound sources to warrant the price. It has a lot of weight in the lower frequencies, and a lot of sparkle on top. The lower mid is rather scooped, so you essentially get a smiley face type of character. This can of course be useful, but in real life this is mostly for getting dull sound sources to rise and shine.

I think it's excellent on raspy male voices that need all the clarity they can get. I've also used it on upright bass, and on some occasions on some acoustic guitars that needed to be brought to life. It would probably have been good in front of a kick drum, if it had been equipped with a pad. It hasn't, and its output is really hot as it is?so in front of louder sound sources, it will basically give you line level signal which is not something all microphone preamps are comfortable with. So it's useless for drums.