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New Mic on the block - Techzone Audio Stellar X2

 
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ShaneGraham057
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Joined: 01 May 2014
Posts: 49
Location: VA

PostPosted: Tue Dec 10, 2019 10:48 am    Post subject: New Mic on the block - Techzone Audio Stellar X2 Reply with quote

Recently Techzone Audio released V2 of their pseudo popular Stellar X2 microphone.

On their site they claim to "Capture the tone of vintage microphones, but with modern specifications" I initially stumbled across their offerings from a YouTube creator who was doing different mic shootouts.

Will it have all of the bells and whistles of what they 'claim' its emulating?
I doubt it. But for under $200USD I feel that I was able to satisfy my GAS craving, and have a decent mic to add to the locker.

I guess in a sense they are (sort of) picking up where MJ left off when he stopped his offerings.

Has anyone else heard of, or sampled this mic?
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JohnV
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Joined: 25 Feb 2016
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Location: Md/DC

PostPosted: Tue Dec 10, 2019 6:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

ONLY from listening to a few of the (amusingly hysterical Crazy Eddie hyped) demos... The TZ seems to have a bit of a higher proximity resonance than, say the 103... a little more 'air' up top... which could be ok or not depending... and at $200 I'm wondering just how tight the mic-to-mic tonality is maintained in production runs.

TANSTAAFL always holds...

Anyone play with the Audio Technica 2035?
I have a pair and they maintain the AT family-character... which is more neutral. I tend to prefer that. YMMV
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George
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Joined: 09 Dec 2019
Posts: 283
Location: Seattle, WA

PostPosted: Tue Dec 10, 2019 10:58 pm    Post subject: Re: New Mic on the block - Techzone Audio Stellar X2 Reply with quote

ShaneGraham057 wrote:
On their site they claim to "Capture the tone of vintage microphones, but with modern specifications" I initially stumbled across their offerings from a YouTube creator who was doing different mic shootouts.


I think I saw the same shootout and was thoroughly impressed. Impressed enough to feel it was worth it when coupled with a discount code they offered in email for signing up for their mailing list.

Should be arriving in the next week or two. I'll have to report back when I can do a side by side with my normal beast: Lauten Audio Atlantis
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Bish
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Joined: 22 Nov 2009
Posts: 3738
Location: Lost in the cultural wasteland of Long Island

PostPosted: Wed Dec 11, 2019 6:37 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

What's most impressive about this microphone is the way they've managed to get the word out and make it "personal" by getting it in the hands of quite a few "influencers". So many people are treating this like as a revelatory discovery. It's quite brilliant... they've managed to create some very powerful world-of-mouth hype, rather than just get buried in the anonymous pages of a few tech reviews.

I have listened to some a/b comparisons sent to me by a friend (a member here)... and it certainly is an OK mic. It is NOT a Neumann killer... it is a perfectly good sub-$300 microphone, of which there are many. It's fit for purpose and no one will lose a job because they use it.

I just love their marketing. Top marks.
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Philip Banks
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Joined: 20 Jun 2005
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 11, 2019 7:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Raving about a cheap mic here is pretty harmless and I'm sure the Trabant is fit for purpose. Where we have to be cautious is with client facing stuff because those who care may get the wrong impression.

Signal to noise? Meh!
Signal to market? As vital as two vital things who have been made Professors of Vitalness at Nuffield College Oxford, which is like Harvard only not sh*t.
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todd ellis
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 11, 2019 8:08 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

a quick spin around the intarweb tells me this: they will sell a bunch of them ... and the vast majority will eventually find their way to a bottom drawer or ebay.
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ShaneGraham057
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Joined: 01 May 2014
Posts: 49
Location: VA

PostPosted: Wed Dec 11, 2019 8:10 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Truth be told (and excitement waned some) I did some side by side comparisons with my new <$200 vs my $1000+ go to.

Long story short - the old adage "You get what you pay for" still seems to hold true at least in this instance.

Is it a bad mic? Not at all. Is is not right for my voice and recording preferences? Lets just say that I have less heartburn spending the 5x coin for the industry standard. (Its the standard for a reason)

But hey! At least my GAS was satisfied to a degree! Laugh
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yarg28
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Joined: 25 Aug 2014
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Location: Indiana

PostPosted: Fri Jan 10, 2020 1:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I've heard a handful of "check out my new X2!" recordings and honestly, pretty meh.

Harsh, sibilant, noisy.

I honestly wouldn't even give it the "not bad for the money" title. I've heard plenty of other mics that are as good or better in that price range that do not have an unknown company associated with them.

Already seen a couple "it was great at first but now it has a lot of self-noise" comments.

Be interesting to see how the initial couple runs turn out.

Also, be interesting to see how many end up on ebay.

Worst case...people will trick themselves into loving them and most of us will compete with lower quality submissions.

Snake oil.
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Bruce
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Joined: 06 Jun 2005
Posts: 7921
Location: Portland, OR

PostPosted: Tue Feb 18, 2020 3:29 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Joseph from TechZone Audio which offers the Stellar X2 mic has asked to respond to the comments above made about the product.

Quote:
Thank you for your feedback.

While we do agree that the Stellar X2 was over hyped in the beginning, none of those blind tests made by BoothJunkie were altered in anyway and all viewers could judge for themselves if they liked it. To us it was noticeable that the X2 did not sound the same.

As for regarding the humming/noise floor issue, we have already made a public notice regarding these higher noise floor mics and an easy solution of simply re-tightening the end cap. This issue was caused by unexpected movements during transit. After our first batch this issue has been accounted for and we have not had a report of this problem since.

But when looking at the bigger picture and we ignore this very simple issue that is now accounted for and that could easily be fixed if it did happen, many customers including sound engineers, singers, voice over artists, and just regular folks love the Stellar X2. Not only because of its incredible value but due to its sound and the convenience of being able to place anything they record well into a mix. We never thought that Booth Junkie’s review would bring so much attention yet so much critique. Never did we advertise our microphones as a Nuemann Clone or marketed it as a Neumann Killer. The Stellar X2 lineup is more about bringing two models with a unique tone to the market for a lower price point.


B
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todd ellis
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 18, 2020 5:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

well ... there's that.
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