Aston Microphones

The making of Stealth - The Aston 33 and the blind testing process The Aston 33 (so named after the original members) is now a panel of more than 120 top producers, engineers and artists who work with Aston on new product development to ensure every mic is best in class before it is released to the market. They perform blind listening tests on a range of possible versions of each new mic, plus  ‘industry standard’ models from key manufacturers and vote on performance on a variety of sources (vocals, guitars and so on). In tests the panel do not know which mics they are listening to, so the resultant votes can’t be affected by brand reputation, or an expectation of how a certain microphone should sound. Some surprising results arose from the Stealth project testing. For example the prototype Stealth voicing that consistently came top in the voting for female vocal takes came off worst for male vocals and vice versa, regardless of the pitch of the singer! Furthermore a different voicing came top for ALL guitar sources, from finger picked acoustic through to mic’d distorted guitar cabs. These discoveries, derived from more than 9000 data samples, were the catalyst for the Aston team to set about reimagining the microphone from the ground up. Stealth truly excels at capturing professional quality audio in almost every situation, and masters them all. With 4 switchable voices delivering unparalleled performance in almost any situation, a Class A built in mic preamp with autodetect 48V Phantom power (a world’s first!) and featuring a unique Sorbothane internal shock mount system and Aston’s legendary build quality, we reckon Stealth is the world’s most versatile microphone. Stealth was developed in partnership with 92 top engineers, producers and artists (the Aston 33 development panel) who participated in a series of blind listening tests designed to create the best possible sound… the resulting four voice settings, Vocal 1, Vocal 2, Guitar and Dark, offer a range of world class sounds to suit almost every application.

The Starlight features a 20 mm cardioid capsule hand-picked by a panel of more than 70 top producers (Aston 33) in double blind listening tests conducted during 2016. Starlight showcases a host of innovations, including laser targeting, multiple voices (Vintage, Modern & Hybrid), and near perfectly linear off-axis response, which have seen the mic win a host of international awards, and a nomination for 2018 NAMM TEC, the ‘Oscars’ of the music technology industry. The Starlight is, like all of our products, packed full of technical innovation and sounds truly stunning. Nominated for the prestigious NAMM TEC Award in 2018 it represents the very pinnacle of pencil mic technology with its multiple voicing options, laser targeting and near perfectly linear off axis response. Beautiful, and outrageously good.

The Aston Spirit is a high-performance, switchable pattern, large diaphragm condenser microphone utilising a 1” gold evaporated capsule. A switch on the mic body selects from Omni, Cardioid or Figure-of-Eight polar patterns. It is versatile enough to use with most instruments and excels on acoustic guitar and vocals. Its Aston 33 panel selected capsule is teamed with high-end transformer balanced circuitry using only the best components. The Spirit is designed to deliver a beautifully open sound with sparkling harmonics. This highly accurate microphone gives a stunningly natural and transparent recording, capturing all the detail in the high range but without adding the harshness that some condenser microphones seem to. The Spirit represents one of the biggest engineering advancements in the microphone industry in decades. Nominated for the prestigious NAMM TEC Award in 2017 and universally acclaimed as one of the best mics on the market today at any price, it achieves a level of technical excellence and performance never before seen at this price point. Accessories Aston has become synonymous for innovative and emotive design. Our microphones are not only exceptional recording tools and multiple award-winning products, delivering vocal and instrument recording to rival the very best in the world, but works of engineering art. If you already own an Aston mic, you’ve already experienced the exquisite attention to detail throughout, as well as the incredible performance. As standard every Spirit comes with a built in pop filter and internal shock mounting system which elevates the performance bar compared to other mics. In many applications you can use the Spirit just as it is, but if you want to get the best results possible, and style your mic to look the mutts nuts in your studio environment, then the Aston SwiftShield takes things to a whole new performance level. The Aston Swift shock mount, is not only elegant, and designed specifically to show off your mic in all its glory with its open-fronted design, but boasts the fastest mic mounting system in the world. Combined with Aston’s internal shock absorbing system, the Swift gives supreme performance in seconds. The Shield SM, clips on and off the Swift mount quickly and easily when switching between vocal and instrument applications. Utilising Aston’s Hextech perforation acid etching process, the Shield gives excellent plosive (pop) control without affecting the tone of your recordings at all. The SwiftShield combo is the perfect partner for getting the ultimate performance from your Spirit (and it looks awesome too!).

The Aston Origin is a high-performance cardioid condenser microphone utilising a one inch (1″) gold evaporated capsule. It's versatile enough to use with any instrument and, for singer-songwriters, excels on acoustic guitar and vocals. Its hand-selected capsule is paired with high-end transformerless circuitry using only the finest components. The Origin is designed to deliver direct, smooth and intimate sound… for a supremely natural and transparent recording. The Origin was our first design, the start of it all, and represents the fundamental essence of the Aston brand. Beautiful, superb engineering, a sound to rival some of the very best mics in the world… the Origin is the first mic ever made which brings this level of technical excellence and performance to the project studio market. Accessories Aston has become synonymous for innovative and emotive design. Our microphones are not only exceptional recording tools and multiple award-winning products, delivering vocal and instrument recording to rival the very best in the world, but works of engineering art. If you already own an Aston mic, you’ve already experienced the exquisite attention to detail throughout, as well as the incredible performance. As standard every Origin comes with a built in pop filter and internal shock mounting system which elevates the performance bar compared to other mics. In many applications you can use the Origin just as it is, but if you want to get the best results possible, and style your mic to look the mutts nuts in your studio environment, then the Aston SwiftShield takes things to a whole new performance level. The Aston Swift shock mount, is not only elegant, and designed specifically to show off your mic in all its glory with its open-fronted design, but boasts the fastest mic mounting system in the world. Combined with Aston’s internal shock absorbing system, the Swift gives supreme performance in seconds. The Shield SM, clips on and off the Swift mount quickly and easily when switching between vocal and instrument applications. Utilising Aston’s Hextech perforation acid etching process, the Shield gives excellent plosive (pop) control without affecting the tone of your recordings at all. The SwiftShield combo is the perfect partner for getting the ultimate performance from your Origin (and it looks awesome too!).