TZ Stellar X2 Large Diaphragm Cardioid Condenser XLR Microphone

Amazing microphone. I got this on sale for $170 and the quality is honestly crazy. The microphone is sturdy, huge, and very well built, and it definitely punches above the price I paid for it, especially in terms of durability. It feels solid in hand and doesn’t feel cheap at all. The presentation is also very premium, and in terms of connectivity it functions like any other XLR microphone you will need an interface with a good preamp. Setup is straightforward and easy, just like any standard XLR mic. The microphone works well and has great sound presence and sound wise it has great clarity and picks up vocals very well, and compatibility shouldn’t be an issue since it works with pretty much any audio interface. Overall, it’s easy to use, sounds great, and feels like a much more expensive microphone than what I paid for. At first I thought had gotten scammed because it got delayed a few times during shipping but the packaging probably made it look menacing to transit haha

Ladies and Gents, if you're looking for a top quality mic for a pittance of a price, this is it. Holy cow... the sound is beautiful. Like a couple of the other reviewers, I listened to the Booth Junkie comparison and instantly fell in love. I got myself on the wait list, especially seeing that they'd "fixed" two of the major issues he had with noise floor and decibel spread. I am absolutely not disappointed. Hands down one of the best mic purchases I've made. So, now that I have the glowing praise done - let's talk comparison. I don't have a Neumann to compare this to. I own four mics now: Shure SM7B, CAD E100S, Rode NTK (which I upgraded the tube for to a Telefunken Black Diamond E88CC), and this one. Let's say that the CAD isn't in the running simply because it is flat - which is a great thing for using your board as you can really color it any way you see fit. The Shure didn't get a head to head for me, as I feel the SM7B is beautiful for bass note/deep voices - very warm. So it was down to the NTK, which can be considered unfair as a tube mic already has an edge (IMHO) since, once it warms up, it spreads honey over everything. For my voice (contralto), the Rode still is my favorite. The X2 by contrast is brighter and touch more shimmery (even after adding not only it's foam head, but a pop filter in front of it), which doesn't make me sound my best. THAT SAID... the moment my baritone-voiced son got on it... it was absolutely beautiful. His voice sounded like a million bucks. It lifted his vocals and added a shine that nothing else I have has done. Even then... my own vocals through it are still nice and it is my solid second in the four I have. I did not send any vocals through my Mackie board for the comparison. They were straight into my Zoom H4N using Kopul Studio Elite 4000 XLRs. In conjunction with those cables, the sound was pristine and super clear. I will rave about this mic until the sun sets for a final time, because for the price this mic is ABSOLUTELY out of this world. I would snatch this up in a heartbeat before they raise prices, because once they figure out they're sitting on a mic that people would pay over 500 for (potentially more - as once this is put through a board, I'm certain the true magic will shine through), I'm sure it won't be this price for long. Get it, get yourself some quality cables, and pat yourself on the back for being the smart cookie who jumped on a tremendous deal for a... ahem... "stellar" mic. ;)

Fantastic Mic! Really. It's just, right! Instant satisfaction for female vocalist. This mic is staying out for vocal duty that is for sure. There are 3 mics I also use most often. The Aston Origin and Spirit, also the WA87r2. This is tied with my favorite, which is the Origin. I also have a Blue Baby Bottle, Blue Spark, AKG c214, Rode nt1a, WA 47jr, MXL V69, etc....So I have some decent mics. The x2 is very impressive. Great tone and clarity. You just can't lose with this mic. It's inspiring and sounds like "me". Yet makes "me" sound better. Quality and hard work at TZ that comes shining through. Thank you for producing such a great mic! UPDATE: I forgot I already wrote a review! Hah. Ok, since I am here. Reminded again that this is an absolutely amazing microphone people. I don't care if it was made on the moon. I have a TLM 103 and I like this better. Sure, looks cheap, not attractive but who cares! It's about the sound. WOW, get one. Using it with a dbx 286s channel strip, a WA73 eq and a Fredenstein V.A.S. Likes the clean preamp/dbx. So if you are just starting out, get a pro sound by adding a preamp/channel strip like the dbx 286s, about $220 and the mic is $199, The channel strip has compression, a gate, eq...So fast and easy you have a fantastic sound without a lot of fuss. I am talking singing vocals here not broadcast or voiceover although check out Booth Junkie and see just how impressed he is with this mic. It's true. Really. You'd be a fool not to get this mic is all I can say.

Let me start by saying that I was skeptical of the reviews upon hearing this microphone compared to the mighty Neumann U87. There also seems to be some conflicting videos out there about this thing. While I do not own a U87, I do own a Neumann TLM103 which I have used extensively (the manufacturer claims that the Stellar X2 is "in between" the TLM103 and the U87). I set the mics up to do a 1 take, A/B listening test and here are my findings: This microphone is ABSOLUTELY an incredible mic at this price point and far beyond anything else you can get, even compared to mics 2-3 times the price. It is a very, very similar sound to the TLM103. Is it exactly the same? No, but it is close enough that most people would not be able to tell the difference. It is slightly more sensitive than the Neumann (about 2db of difference), and also slightly less sensitive to plosives (a good thing). The biggest audible difference is that the X2 has a slight boost in the presence/sibilance end, as well a very slight low end bump around 200hz. It is not harsh or muddy compared to the TLM103, but that little bit of presence is the only main giveaway that it is not the Neumann. Pros: - Incredible sound quality - Great value (especially considering it comes with shock mount and hard case) Cons: - Build quality does not feel as robust as the Neumann mics, but that is to be expected. - The very slight boost on the bottom and top end may not be the right thing for all applications - A tiny bit higher noise floor than the TLM103 In summary, buy this mic! Remember that a microphone is not a 1 stop shop, it is a tool and you use different ones for different needs. This thing is killer, and despite having several much more expensive microphones, this will be added to my arsenal to use for the right application. Also worth noting that they came out with the Stellar X2 Vintage model, which I would LOVE to compare to my Neumann U47 if I can get my hands on one. Expect a more mid-forward presentation with that model.

If you are looking for a great LDC microphone at an unbelievable price, buy the TZ Stellar X2 now. There's nothing like it (or even close to it) available on the market today that wouldn't cost you the proverbial "arm and a leg". This is a precision, hand made product using premium parts and materials that sounds unbelievably good for a mic at almost any price point. It has been favorably compared to the Neumann U87 in a number of recent high profile reviews and will not disappoint even the most critical listener. I've been testing the X2 for the last several days in my studio with both male and female vocalists and I have to say that the results have been really impressive. The sound is extremely well balanced; warm lows without any evidence of boominess; a remarkably smooth midrange (where I think this mic truly excels) and a crisp high end that is never overly bright or annoying (like so many mid priced condensers these days). Extremely low self-noise and beefy output means that you can run your preamp at lower levels and avoid distortion and clipping. The X2 has been widely praised for voiceover work but I quickly found that it shines equally well for music vocal applications. The long and the short is that you absolutely will not find a better affordable mic anywhere at this price, or even at multiples of this price.

I had the honor of reviewing a product for TZ Audio! My very first time being able to review a product for a major organization! The microphone itself is an amazing product that is able to capture audio at a better quality than that of cheaper products I have used. The only thing I wish the microphone had included was some type of base to come along with the microphones included stand. Outside of that, highly recommend this product!

When I received this microphone, I immediately plugged it into my Universal Audio Apollo Twin MKII and, with no fx on at all, it sounded beautiful. The slight boost in the low end really warmed up my voice. There is a slight bump at around 5-6k, slight cut at around 8k, and slight bump at 10k. These bumps and cuts on the high end add a beautiful sounding presence. After adding EQ and compression, HOLY COW!!! This microphone is great for vocals and acoustic guitar. I haven’t tried it out on anything else yet, but I’m pretty confident that, with another one of these, they’d make a great pair for overhead mics. This mic is, by far, the absolute best budget mic I have ever heard. I would recommend this mic to anyone and everyone on a budget. You do t need to take my word for it. Watch Booth Junkie’s shootout with a Nuemann U87 on YouTube. That was the clincher for me. Edit: We’ll, I tried it on my guitalele and recorded an entire song using ONLY this microphone, aside from using an amp sim for the bass and drum loops. I was so impressed at how accurately this microphone records everything. It’s almost like it translates what my ears hear perfectly. I can’t say enough good things about this mic. When I can afford one, I will be getting another one, maybe two, if they have a matched pair.

This is an absolute delightful mic to use. I had never used an XLR mic before, and even among the mics I have used, the choice had been to use the inbuilt mic that an iPad or Mac laptop has or an auxiliary mic with minijack connector for iPad. I have been recording with the inbuilt mic within iPad using GarageBand. But this mic has blown my mind with what I have been missing for years. It sends absolute gorgeous sound quality to the ears. The packaging is very good, it comes with a small aluminium case to prevent any damage, and even has a leather case inside to enable easy carry outdoors. It even has a cover for the top of the mic. TZ Audio had contacted me almost two years ago with their lines of audio products, and I saw it just recently. I subsequently looked up the prices in India (which were sky-high, nothing compared to what the prices have been quoted on Amazon.com site), and I contacted them to confirm. Their responses were very quick and very professional and considerate. Ultimately I bought it from Amazon.com site in the USA.