Looking for the user manual?


Check the heading on this page:

Product manual or files


Or search our  Samples/Files/Manuals  section!
We have hundreds of manuals added to the site!

You'll see this reminder one more time after which it will not appear.

Hide
skin: 1 2 3 4 |  Login | Join Dancetech |

the t.bone SC400

28-Mar-2024

Info-line:   [synths]    [sampler]    [drumbox]    [effects]    [mixers]     [mics]     [monitors]    [pc-h/ware]    [pc-s/ware]    [plugins]    -    [links]    [tips]

the t.bone SC400



Display 360 degree
zoomable picture




Category:  Products / studio-gear + dj / condenser microphones

Added: 10-Nov-02  |  Author: admin

New price: 79 Euro's - 51 quid  |   S/H price: Not listed


the t.bone SC400

These T-Bone mic's are chinese made for the distributor Thomann, & are sold through their shop only as far as I know.

We received this 'SC400' model for a test, and I was very interested to see what such a measly price tag could yeild in terms of sound quality & character/performance... and it turned out to be very impressive!

For the purpose of testing we sent it thru a Joe Meek VC3 with a 'touch' of compression and nothing else... We used a home-made pop-sheild made from a pair of old tights and a coathanger!... Also the recordings were done in a straight room, no special sound absorbing room or vocal booth or anything like that... just as most budget users would employ this mic in the real world... There's no point testing a cheap budget mic of this price with a flashy top-end pre-amp in a special vocal booth; so whilst the VC3 is a perfectly acceptable pre-amp, anything we came up with could be improved upon by a better sounding vocal room/booth.... So this was a real demo budget test setup! - How did the 'SC 400' fare then?

The mic sounds very clean... with not too much 'added character'. Like many mic's of this type (even very expensive ones) it add's a slight touch of top-end emphasis, but not so much that it means lot's of nasty sibilance like you get from some budget small-diaphragm mic's.... You might need some de-esser if your vocalist add's alot of 'sss-ing' with the character of their voice, but with our 'test vocalist' we didn't 'need' to add any de-esser, it was optional depending how we decided to Eq the final vocal mix...

Overall the mic has a nice 'full' sound typical of a large diaphragm mic, much clearer and fuller than you'd get from a small diaphragm condenser such as an AKG C1000 series etc... You don't hear the 'body' of the mic at all which I find you do hear with some small diaphragm condensers like the C1000... Y'know?.. sometimes with those cheaper small-diaphragm condensers you feel as if you can hear a slight 'tone' or 'character' being added from the metal body/shell of the mic... The 'SC 400' instead gives you a full 'wide' tone... a nice low-end without overload and it handled bass notes well without undue negative effects like 'pops'... I think this mic has a built in fixed roll-off at 100hz.. whatever, you get a nice full & detailed sound.

Ok, it's not a Neumann or whatever... but for the budget user, this mic (for a tiny �50 quid/79 Euro outlay) allows you to step into the world of a 'quality' vocal sound, and of course it'll double for other jobs like acoustic guitars etc, adding overall 'quality' to your recordings for a VERY modest outlay.

The whole package is really good value... a cool chunky mic, nice black anodised cradle, stand adapter, and a handy thick 'pencil-case' type zip-bag to keep your pride & joy clean & scratch free when storing or carrying between sessions. - Remember, we're talking here ONLY the price of a pair of Levi jeans, cheap 'budget' trainers or a few rounds of drinks down the pub!!... I think anyone opening this package when it arrives and then setting the 'SC 400' up and using it will be delighted and feel their money was really well spent!

Dancetech has always had an emphasis to promote the use of cheap gear and a philosophy that you CAN get good results with budget gear, and now with products like this T-Bone 'SC 400' mic, things are only getting better for the cost-concious user!... We now have cheap powerful PC's, superb cheap s/w fx and synths & drumboxes to assist us in making cool music on a budget, and the mic was that one area where the budget studio used to have to seriously compromise... Not any more!!

Get two why doncha for your budget studio? - You could use them for drum-kit overheads or other studio tasks... All I can say is, if a mic as cheap as this was available when I started my first home-studio all those years ago, i'd have fallen down in a faint!

Excellent value!... I can honestly say I never heard a mic this good for such a small price!!... It compares VERY well against other mics from the traditional 'named' mic companies which might cost up to �200/300 pounds or more! - 10/10













Product Manuals or Files

no user manual




Product Resources

Ask a Question?
0 related links
Audio demo?









User Comments

Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: R. Schultz
Email: Email supplied but hidden
www.mindplay.dk
Activity: part-timer
Date: 26-Mar-03

This cheap mic is similar in quality to other brand mics of 400-500 euro. Seriously, best thing I've ever done is buy this mic - brilliant clarity and volume, you won't find this kind of value for money anywhere else!

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: Al Richardson
Email: Email supplied but hidden
Activity: part-timer
Date: 23-Dec-03

Thanks for the accurate, informed and helpful review.

The mic has made a huge difference to my home studio set up, replacing a Rode NT1a as my main vocal mic. Even though it's around half the price of the NT1a it is (in my humble opinion) a superior mic for most applications. Whilst the Rode may advertise itself as the quietest mic in its class, this fact pales into insignificance when the warmth and depth of the mics are compared - now I get a 'real' feel to my vocals - extra S/N or not!....

AKG watch out - Thomann are on the case

The inclusion of the demo is an excellent feature.

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: Pete
Email: Email supplied but hidden
Activity: Professional
Date: 16-Jun-04

Does anyone know what the blue push button switch on the circuit board inside the SC 400 mike is for?

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: Nick Parkes
Email: No email added
Activity: Professional
Date: 02-May-05

I bought one of these mics second-hand and was so mightily impressed with it that I bought another 5! I use them as close-in detail mics, in conjunction with a "Soundfield" multi-capsule mic, to record chamber groups & choirs, etc. The sound of the SC400 is very natural, without the overblown bottom-end that besets so many large diaphragm condensers. There is also plenty of high end detail (no need to add any top EQ at all) and a very good output level, to keep things quiet. If you were of the opinion that a mic of this price couldn't compete with well known ones costing ten times it's price, think again! This is a seriously good piece of kit that can be used to do serious recordings!

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: roman
Email: Email supplied but hidden
Activity: Hobby-ist
Date: 19-Sep-06

I'm just warning the rest of you that this review is crap. The recording doesn't sound better than any sm58 would., as far as I can tell.
It sais there is only "slight compression on it" but they put a crapload of delay on it to make it sound full.

And the rest of the review sounds very uneducated as well. I'm not going to get into detail. ("sometimes with those cheaper small-diaphragm condensers you feel as if you can hear a slight 'tone' or 'character' being added from the metal body/shell of the mic")

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: admin
Email: Email supplied but hidden
Activity: Professional
Date: 21-Sep-06

well of course, you used one right? *sigh* this mic is consistantly in the top seller list in the mic category month in month out at Thomann, so there's a hell of a lot of crap recordings going on in europe in that case. The vocal example we addded with the review was done in an ordinary sitting-room, without any wall treatment, acoustic tiles etc etc, and no special preperations were made. We just set it up and recorded a vocal take. The example therefore is the WORST quality you'd expect from this mic. I don't see the point for home-studio users in demo-ing budget microphones in special vocal booths with hi quality pre-amps. That's NOT how people on the whole will utilse a mic in this prixce range. Therefore, if one took a bit of time, set things up properly and also recorded in a decent environment with better acoustic properties the results can be much better with moire taken. We'll try and get round to adding some more audio examples at some point, inc' some typical songwriter acoustic guitar takes.

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: Benjamin Kanarek
Email: Email supplied but hidden
Activity: Professional
Date: 04-Oct-06

If you don't mind my asking, How does it comapre to the SC 450's. I own 2 SCT
800's and 2 SC 1100's which I absolutely love. I know that the two above
microphones are manufactured by FEILO and are identicle to the FEIO's 5500 and
z3300. I don't think these are FEILO's however.

Ben

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: roman
Email: Email supplied but hidden
Activity: Hobby-ist
Date: 20-Oct-06

I'm just saying, that the review is crap. I haven't used the mic. But all that talk about LD's being clearer and more detailed than SD's - uuargh!

And why does it say they only used "slight compression". Taking a wild guess - this is at least a 3:1, 0 attack, -6db reduction. And ALOT of delay and reverb.
And since when are best seller lists a sign of quality?

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: Iulian Ionescu
Email: Email supplied but hidden
Activity: part-timer
Date: 19-Jan-09

What about SC 300? I'm looking to buy one.

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: Scumpos
Email: Email supplied but hidden
Activity: Hobby-ist
Date: 05-Feb-09

Im saying, that the review is excellent, because I bought it, and really cant believe, how good it actually is. Of course some people look down on equipment without a brandname, but for everyone else who owns a small project studio I can only recommend this really excellent Mic (and I would say that its worth about 150 bucks- yet you can get it for 59,-)

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: mr_bling
Email: Email supplied but hidden
myspace.com/dubfed
Activity: Professional
Date: 26-May-09

I did a session a few weeks ago with a vocalist who reckoned this mic was up there with a neumann u87.. I did laugh.. Anyway a few days later he brought it down to the studio and we played around with it. To start with I thought the construction was pretty good for what I suspected to be a mid range priced mic. We ran it through a Focusrite ISA one and then through a TC Electronics Konnekt interface. I have to say, I thought the quality and neutrality of the mic was good. It certainly sounded a hell of a lot better than an SM58 for vocals. I assumed it was a 300 - 400 mic.. I was then told how much it cost! For the money this is astonishing. I also have a Beyer MC 834 and we tested this alongside the Tbone. There was very little in it in my opinion. (It actually sounded marginally better through the TC than thee Beyer did through the Focusrite)
I just need to point out that I'm not a sound engineer. I know what I like and I go with what works. I couldn't detect any hums or buzzes or anything else annoying. For writing and getting demos together, this mic is fantastic value. Not sure how long it would last you though, bearing in mind that I bought a u87 20 years ago and it's still going strong.

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: Martin Mitchell
Email: Email supplied but hidden
www.instantmusic.co.uk
Activity: Professional
Date: 28-Jul-09

This is a remarkably good mic for the money. For live work I use a pair as overheads on drums and they produce a detailed and punchy sound with excellent transients on the cymbals. For Jazz gigs I quite often use the SC400s with an AKG D112 on bass drum and nothing else; which produces a great natural sounding kit. It would be useful if Thomann produced tech specs for their cheaper mics.

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: mark pieper
Email: Email supplied but hidden
www.unbezahltemehrarbeit.org
Activity: Hobby-ist
Date: 13-Mar-10

The sc400 is a rebrandet stm9 from the taiwanese manufacturer AV-leader (or AV-Jefe).
The small swich on the circuitboard (you got to open the Mic to swich ist!) is a low-cut of -6dB below 100Hz.

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: Rob
Email: Email supplied but hidden
www.boyatheartmedia.com
Activity: Professional
Date: 29-Apr-10

I have had 2 of these since 2004 and I got them because I was on a very low budget and just needed a condenser mic.

I have since tracked several albums and recorded well over one hundred demos using this mic. The main gripe I have with it is the shockmount. It doesn't really work very well, but for the money I can't complain.

My room is totally untreated for sound and quite reverberant. It has never been a problem. I make music for a living and I do have better mics. In fact I am starting to use dynamic mics more for vocals these days, but the SC400 always comes in handy.

I get lots of comments on the vocals on my recordings and people laugh when I tell them it was recorded on a 40 microphone. I also set up this mic along side an SM57 and blend them for vocals, which works great for rock tracks.

I am very fond of my SC400s. They sound good (not amazing), but they helped me get some great results when I was broke and needed a mic.

Oh yeah, they sound absolutely excellent on drums: Overheads and snare especially and very nice on acoustic guitar. I leave the 100hz hi-pass on permanently.

Isn't it great to still get comments on such an old post?

All the best SC400 lovers!

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: Tommo
Email: Email supplied but hidden
Activity: Professional
Date: 13-Jun-10

Ok I bought the SC400 along with an SCT800.

I have quite a few mics in my collection, I think 19 last time I
counted and I admit I do like buying new mics however the SC400 is now
my workhorse.

For years and years I used the Rode NT1-A and then an AT4040 but when
this little black beauty arrived, I was stunned.

In my opinion it is as good as the AT4040 and wins all contests
against the Rode NT1-A.

The SCT800 lives in the cupboard as it takes a while to warm up, so I
use that for larger projects but on a day to day basis I use the
SC400. I feel the shock mount works well, the 100hz cut is great for
radio broadcast and the design looks very much like a Neumann.

The great thing about these mics is that no too many people know about
them and because of this, it's almost like they are the audio
engineers secret to affordable good quality microphones.

You will not find a better large diaphram in this price range. If
you're looking at other expensive mics then stop now, this will do
anything you want it to do and more.

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: dave
Email: Email supplied but hidden
Activity: Professional
Date: 29-Sep-11

[quote] Pete wrote: Does anyone know what the blue push button switch on the circuit board
inside the SC 400 mike is for? [/quote]
i just discovered this button, it says under it 100hz -6db so i imagine that it is some kind of high pass
filter. the review said "I think this mic has a built in fixed roll-off at 100hz" it does when this button is
pressed but normally it has a response od 30hz
great all around mic i mainly use it for vocals and acoustic guitar but i can imagine a set would work well
for drum overhead and on any string instrument

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: nicola
Email: Email supplied but hidden
Activity: Hobby-ist
Date: 22-Feb-12

Ho appena provato il t.bone sc 400 e ho fatto una registrazione voce alla fine ho pensato che quella voce fosse uscita da una sala di registrazione professionale e invece ero nella mia stanzetta poco insonorizzata fantastico questo t bone sc 400 vale tutti i pochi soldi spesi un grande microfono ad un piccolo prezzo AUGURI t.bone sc 400

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Last added comment

Product:  the t.bone - SC400
Name: Rob - KSound
Email: Email supplied but hidden
Activity: Professional
Date: 17-Sep-12

For the price this is an amazing microphone. If your engineering chops are
good then you can get really great results from this mic. I've had two of them
(unmatched pair) for about 9 or 10 years and they're great on drum overheads,
acoustic guitar and vocals.

The blue button on the inside is a 100Hz rolloff switch. If you look closely you'll
see it labelled on the circuit board underneath the switch.

I've used them on several recordings, not just demos and they hold their own.

Product rating out of 5: 

Reply |  Add review/comment



Add your comments here for the product:

'the t.bone SC400'

Looking for the manual? - Check this page above under the heading: 'Product manual or files' - We might have it!


Your Name   * required field!

Your Email   * required field! (will not be displayed)

Add your email if you want replies to any question you post - You will receive an email if someone replies!
To receive automated replies be sure to add a valid email address!

Comments   * required field! - NO weblinks allowed in this feild!

My user type is:    * required field!

Professional   Part Time   Hobbyist




Rate this product out of five:   * optional

   5 - TOTALY AWESOME POWER !!!!!...

   4 - TOTALY 'AUSTIN POWERS' !!!!....

   3 - HOT HATCHBACK POWER !!!.....

   2 - PIZZA-MOPED POWER !!......

   1 - HAMSTER/TRUNDLE-WHEEL POWER !.......

Please copy the displayed number into the box to post:

668288  

     

Note: To cut down on spammers, cookies must be enabled to post comments to this page.



Looking for the manual? - Check this page above under the heading: 'Product manual or files' - We might have it!



 [back to top]

1: No good!
2: Average!
3: Great stuff!
4: Excellent!
5: Awesome!
Rate this product!
  • Currently 4.3 Stars.
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
Currently: 4.3/5 | 86%

Total stars: 116  |  Total votes: 27

Read 22 comments
Add review/comment 

Buy this item for:

€48.00  |  £42.98


Quantity:

 

40 other
products from
the t.bone








Thomann deals

Help support the site & the users music space - Buy via our affiliate store. One fixed price delivery for most items!