In Use:

For this review, two computers were used for testing.

Test machine #1 is a Desktop computer, comprised of an Intel Core2Quad Q9550 2.83GHz processor, 4GB DDR2-6400 memory, GeForce 9800GT 1GB video card, Creative E-MU 1212 PCI sound card, Peavey XR600 400W mixer, and two Peavey PV-115 studio speakers. The operating sSystem is Windows XP Professional, with Service Pack #3 installed.

Test machine #2 is an Acer Aspire 5520 laptop, comprised of an AMD Turion64x2 1.8GHz processor, 3GB DDR2-5300 memory, GeForce 7100 256MB graphics, a Creative E-MU 404 USB sound card, plugged into a 30,000W club sound system at the Colorado Café. The computer runs Windows Vista Home Premium, with Service Pack #1 installed.

Setting the Samson C01U on its stand might boggle your mind at first. You’ll need to unscrew the bottom of the microphone, insert it into the ring, and then screw the bottom back on. Also, the ring won’t attach to the stand as packaged, as there is a threaded insert for attaching to standard microphone stands. After solving the glitch with the stand, I plugged the standard USB Cable into the microphone base, then into a port on my PC. It’s true you don’t need to install the software to use the Samson C01U – just plug it in and Windows will install it. The C01U works fine with basic stuff such as Skype conversations, and Windows Sound Recorder, with clear, crisp tones from my voice. The included software – Sonar LE – only works with Cakewalk file extensions, but that is no surprise since it is a MIDI recorder/editor. Since I had no compatible instruments, the software could not be fully tested.



Since the included software was unable to be fully tested, Syntrillium Software’s Cool Edit Pro 2.1 (now known as Adobe Audition – a professional audio editor) was used for the next trial. I decided to try the professional roots of the Samson C01U with blending my own singing voice onto a song (think of the experiment as ‘Controlled Karaoke’) with no vocals. Being a Country DJ, I chose a few personal favorites – George Strait’s "How ‘Bout Them Cowgirls", Brad Paisley’s "Ticks", and Brooks & Dunn’s "My Maria". In each of the instances, any imperfections in my voice (warble, for example) were easily detected. The microphone, while uni-directional, will pick up background noises in certain cases – such as the fans on my three Folding@Home drones located 10 feet behind me.



As an interesting test, I decided to take the Samson C01U with me on my regular Saturday night DJ gig at the Colorado Café. Since I normally DJ with MP3 music on my laptop hooked into the club sound system, all I needed to do was plug the C01U into an available USB port on my laptop. After tweaking the settings on the DJ mixing board, the C01U performed admirably, with clear, crisp tones and no feedback or ground humming. In fact, it sounded just as good as the wired house microphone, which is an expensive brand of very good quality.