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21C 414 XLS / XLII
2 Description
Fig. 2: Preattenuation selector.
Fig. 3: Bass cut selector.
2.4 C 414 XLII
2.5 Stereo Pairs
2 Preattenuation Pad Selector*)
Selector 2 on the microphone rear panel (refer to fig. 2) lets you increase the headroom by
6 dB, 12 dB, or 18 dB for distortion-free close-in recording. The preattenuation pads pre-
vent the microphone's output level, particularly at low frequencies, from overloading the
miniature transformers used in mixer input stages, etc.
*) Note:
• To keep noise levels in the microphone input stage as low as possible, the entire trans-
ducer section uses extremely high-impedance circuitry. Therefore, the selected
(changed) polar pattern or preattenuation setting will take about 10 to 15 seconds to
become fully active.
3 Bass Cut Selector
Selector 3 on the microphone rear panel (refer to fig. 3) reduces low-end distortion caused
by footfall or wind noise, etc. The filter slope is more than 12 dB/octave at the 40 Hz and 80
Hz settings and 6 dB/octave at the 160 Hz setting. The 160 Hz setting minimizes the prox-
imity effect that may arise when close-in miking from less than 6 inches.
Overload Indication with Peak Hold Function
The polar pattern indicator LEDs also provide an overload indication.
With conventional peak indicators, overload peaks lasting only for a fraction of a second may
easily escape your attention. The new peak hold function of the C 414 XLS and C 414 XLII,
however, makes sure you will notice even the shortest overload peak: If the output level of
the microphone equals or exceeds a value of approximately 2 dB below the overload limit,
the currently active polar pattern LED will change to red for about 3 seconds. If this happens,
we recommend increasing the preattenuation by one or more "notches" using Selector 2.
The C 414 XLII has been designed as a sonic alternative to the standard C 414 XLS, and
closely approximates the sound of the legendary AKG C 12. It is identical to the C 414 XLS
with the exception of a completely different acoustic resistor that provides a slight high-fre-
quency rise at 3 kHz and above. This HF boost enhances the presence of vocals, so we
specifically recommend the C 414 XLII for miking up solo voices or solo instruments (see also
sections 4.5 and 4.6). In addition, it is an excellent choice for distant miking, e.g. suspended
from a concert hall ceiling.
Realistic stereo recordings require microphones with outstanding performance and excellent
quality. They also require consistent performance and accurate localization throughout the
entire frequency range from the pair of microphones.
Therefore, every factory-matched pair of C 414s is created from thousands of individual mi-
crophones selected by AKG's sophisticated computer-aided matching method.
The C 414 XLS and C 414 XLII matched stereo pairs thus provide the highest possible corre-
lation over the microphones' entire frequency range and virtually identical sensitivity for
stunning, three-dimensional recordings.
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