Lauten Audio Clarion FC 357 Microphone Review

I've used this mic for about 15 months as of this review. It's the real deal. My first call vocal microphone!

[@LautenAudio]

Pershing, thank you so much for such a thorough video and for being a part of the family! Since you mentioned it, the timbre of the Clarion is loosely informed by what we love about a FET47 after it hits a console with a touch of EQ into a tape machine. To do that, we had to make a totally different microphone under the hood - no copies at Lauten😃. When you get a chance, try it on kick and bass. It's an absolute favorite for us there. Thanks Again!! - The Lauten Audio Family

[@sacalaitproductions7279]

Thanks for responding! I’m digging your work!

[@LautenAudio]

@@sacalaitproductions7279 We are so glad! 😄

[@lastsonofthewest2444]

I owned an Oceanus, so I do know and love the Lauten family of mics! Only use mine for live streams and other produced videos, so the ONLY reason I sold the Oceanus (tube) and my mini mic locker of Soyuz 17 and Mojave MA-300, was because they all occluded my face as side address mics! BUT, having suffered with a series of dynamics the past few years, I just ordered the Clarion, and will report back. I love the forward nature, and dark, pristine voicing. It is a warm mic, in the vein of my Mojave, which also was a bit syrupy and slow. Thing is, I have never heard such a warm FET, and I am tired of dealing with re-tubing, which for most mics means a trip back to the factory. Great review, subbed!

[@officialWWM]

Sounds like you need the LS208

[@jwhelan709]

I really like my fc357 too. Many times its the perfect vocal mic choice.

[@stephentheriot9948]

Very nice work on the review P. I can’t believe I watched the whole thing. I like that there were no distractions like goofy music in the background. Subscribed.

[@sacalaitproductions7279]

As the cat who loaned me the original, I appreciate it brother! Thanks for turning me on to this!

[@officialWWM]

Agreed mate! It’s so enlightening to just listed to a passionate, knowledgeable professional talk about a subject he clearly knows a lot about! Very helpful.

[@susanfelioprice7978]

Love this mic! Great review! 👍🎶❤️

[@MWilsonsGameShow]

Fantastic, down to earth interview!

[@jeffjacobs7352]

Hey man, great review, you paint a nice picture of the features of the mic. Very informative, i enjoyed it.

[@sacalaitproductions7279]

Thanks Jeff!

[@ScottSmithMusic]

Great review. I appreciate it.⚡️⚡️🙏🏼

[@mikeg4172]

Nice review. The only thing I wanted to comment on was, where you said, "less hyped in the heights are better because you can add later" I feel like it's better to cut a hyped high then boost later. Boosting always raises the noise floor and you will really hear the noise in the highs if you boost them. This is what's nice about the TLM 107, it's got plenty of highs and rich mids, but you can always cut the highs and then you are lowering the noise at the same time. This FC 357 does sound amazing in all the recordings I've heard from sweetwater so far.

[@sacalaitproductions7279]

That part could be subjective. The point I was trying to make is I’d rather have a flatter- not hyped- high frequency response in a microphone. The TLM103 against this mic is an example. But there’s no wrong way! Just more efficient and you also make that point. Thanks for your response.

[@officialWWM]

It sure looks cool!

[@elijahmant2855]

Would nice to experience a usage of a Microphone of this calibre.

[@jwyzebeatz]

Yeah, I like the TLM 103, but my problem/beef with it is how harsh it sounds when I get loud. I have a tenor male voice and it doesn't sound good on the TLM 103 when my vocals reach the high frequencies, so I know exactly what you mean by the high end being hyped. I had my eye on the Atlantis 387, but after finding out about the Clarion and hearing you mention that the Clarion is not hyped in the high end etc... like the 103, I'm starting to think the Clarion is all I need for now. Thank you for the review!

[@officialWWM]

I feel you! I have had the exact same issue. I end up having to Eq the hell out of my vocals to kill the harshness. I’ve found I keep going back to an SM7b but it doesn’t have the detail for the quieter stuff. I’m going to try one of these.

[@jwyzebeatz]

@@officialWWM Right, it's a hassle. I tried the SM7b and didn't like it as well. It was a boring a** mic to me compared to the TLM 103 lol

[@officialWWM]

@@jwyzebeatz the problem is, it starts getting pretty damn expensive when you’re looking around, trying to find the right mic :/

[@jwyzebeatz]

Right! It definitely does. I was looking at mics that I can't afford, thinking about getting one soon...but then I came to my senses later like "now you know d*mn well that's too expensive for you" lol...I'll be eating nothing but ramen noodles for a while trying to get one of those mics I was fantasizing about lol @@officialWWM

[@riloh58]

Would appreciate your thoughts. I am trying to decide between Neumann TLM103 and Lauten Clarion FC357. I am leaning strongly towards the Clarion but keep going back and thinking about the Neumann. Where I live there is currently a very good deal on the Clarion and the TLM103 does come in a bundle with a shock mount and a metal carry case so that kind of even things out in terms of what you get with the mic. I believe that is not an option in the US (no idea why). With that matched quipment set the Neumann has a 35% price premium over the Lauten (at current deal price). That also means that the Lauten pricing makes it more affordable than either the Warm Audio WA67, WA47 or WA251 (though they are close in price). I just think the Lauten seems like a very good and more flexible choice all things considered but that whole "Neuman sound" thing keeps gnawing at the back of my head and the more compact form factor of the Nuemann. It is for home studio and would record vocals, acoustic and electric guitar mostly and this is pretty much my limit for a condensor microphone budget. I would find it difficult to justify a more expensive option than the Neumann. I have other gear that is several thousands per unit so not against the idea of spending more but for the amount of use I am expecting from the mic, and current financial constraints that is about the limit for now.

[@sacalaitproductions7279]

The Clarion has some distinct advantages. It’s a dual-diaphragm design, multi-pattern, the -10dB pad AND +10 dB boost, and more flat frequency response. For me it’s a great microphone for vocals and is better suited for that task. The only thing I’d say the TLM gets a little edge is on acoustic guitar. But that’s not to say the Clarion isn’t anything but beautiful on acoustic. I understand the “I can only choose one mic at the moment” conundrum. However, I believe the Clarion will do everything as well as the TLM103 and excels at vocals. The lack of a high pass filter on the 103 is also a concern. But at the end of the day both are excellent options. Thanks for taking the time to write this and thanks for checking out the video.

[@riloh58]

@@sacalaitproductions7279 - Fantastic reply. Thank you so much for taking the time to respond in detail. It is a case of only one of these for now (in this price bracket), so I appreciate you outlining some additional points for each mic. With this info and some additional reading that I’ve done since I posted my original question, I think I know which way I will go. Thank you again.

[@davemasalov6979]

Thank you for sharing your experience with this microphone! I'm choosing between this Lauten Audio Clarion FC-357 and Neumann TLM 103 mainly for pop male and female vocals, but also maybe some acoustic guitar in a semi-treated home-studio (no mic preamps at the moment, just a Universal Audio Volt 476P interface). Which one of these would you recommend? I've seen your review on the Neumann as well so you obviously know the differences between these mics 🙂 Thank you!

[@sacalaitproductions7279]

The Lauten FC357 is a top notch microphone. So is the TLM103. My honest opinion, based on what you're looking to get done, is the Lauten will give you better results for about the same money. In your case, the Lauten would get my recommendation. Thanks for checking these reviews out!

[@davemasalov6979]

@@sacalaitproductions7279 Thanks a lot! I was kinda leaning towards Lauten, but hesitating because of the "Neumann sound" of the TLM 103 and the comments that Neumann vocals cut throught the mix well. I have little to none experience with vocal recordings, so the process of choosing a good professional microphone turned out to be very challenging but interesting at the same time as I learned a lot of new stuff about microphones in general. Thank you again and good luck with your channel!

[@ragebait988]

@@davemasalov6979 it’ll be much easier to buy and resell a used TLM103.

[@WilliamGil-bf1ht]

Great review! Can I drop the Lauten Audio Oceanus to you to review?

[@sacalaitproductions7279]

William! I'd love to brother but I haven't used that mic before. If you don't need it for a couple of weeks I'd be willing to check it out and share my thoughts!

[@keithwarm5776]

I’d love to hear a shoot-out between the two myself.

[@steverok67]

It is an impressive mic. Just wish it wasn't so big, bulky, and heavy.

[@officialWWM]

I wish I could buy it for $1000 here in Australia. It’s closer to $2000 here but I still think it’s worth the investment.

[@sacalaitproductions7279]

It’s definitely been a good mic for me. I bought it from Sweetwater here in the States when it was packaged with a studio stand. Glad I did because it’s a large and heavy mic too! It requires a sturdy stand!