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THE HISTORY OF THE C 414
How a legendary product evolved
1962
The introduction of the C 12 A, the fore-
runner of the now-classic C 414 design.
The C 12 A had a Nuvistor tube in its
preamp section and its miniaturized
housing became a trademark of AKG’s
large-diaphragm microphones. This
model was marketed until 1976.
1971
The launch of the first C 414 model, the
C 414 comb. This model had a special
module with a permanently-attached
cable, but was a solid-state design that
allowed upgrades as technology im-
proved and also permitted phantom
powering instead of requiring an exter-
nal supply.
1976
In response to the emergence of 3-pin
XLR-type connectors as the world stan-
dard, AKG introduces the
C 414 EB with
this connector integrated into the micro-
phone. The integral connector elimi-
nates the need for the cable module so
the microphone can be easily used with
different cables to meet application
requirements.
1980
The launch of the C 414 EB-P48, the
first model with a black housing.
This model featured certain technical
improvements that lowered self-noise
and improved sensitivity and headroom
made possible by standardizing on 48 V
phantom power, which was the becom-
ing standard, especially in the U.S.
1986
Introduction of the C 414 B-ULS, a
model that combined several mile-
stones in the development of the C 414:
1. ULS technology in its electronic cir-
cuitry that achieved maximum signal
linearity.
2. The
C 414 B-TL, the first transform-
erless version of the C 414. These
pioneering technologies made the
C 414 B-ULS the most popular,
longest-lived C 414 model.
1993
The C 414 B-TL II, the first sonic alter-
native to the C 414 B-ULS, was intro-
duced. This microphone was designed
to meet customer demands for a micro-
phone with more “presence” to its
sound. Its capsule was developed with
the sonic signature of the original cap-
sules used from the 1950s to the 1970s.
The enhanced presence of the C 414
B-TL II means that solo voices and instru-
ments can be placed in a dense mix while
still retaining their original character.
The C 414 B-TL II is also useful in distant-
micing vocal or instrument applications
where some of the sonic timbre is lost as
high frequencies propagate in air.
AKG became the world’s first manu-
facturer of freely-vibrating, edge-ter-
minated one-inch diaphragms more
than 50 years ago.
4 www.akg.com