The AKG D20 for Recording: History, Sound and How to Use It
Updated: 2 days ago
The AKG D20 is a cardioid dynamic microphone built by AKG in Vienna from the mid-1950s. It is the studio version of the famous D12, and it is best known as the kick drum mic Geoff Emerick put inside Ringo Starr's bass drum on The Beatles' Revolver. So is the AKG D20 good for recording? Yes. It is still one of the best-sounding microphones you can put on a kick drum, a bass cabinet or low brass, and it makes a surprisingly characterful vocal mic too. This guide covers its history, how it sounds, how to use it, how it compares with the D12, D112 and D12 VR, and what to check before you buy one.
AKG D20 quick facts
Type: dynamic microphone, no phantom power needed.
Maker: AKG Acoustics, Vienna, Austria.
Era: mid-1950s into the 1960s. Radiomuseum lists a 1956 build.
Polar pattern: cardioid.
Frequency response: roughly 30 Hz to 15-16 kHz.
Impedance: 200 ohms, with a built-in output transformer.
Bass attenuation switch: 0, -7 and -12 dB at 50 Hz.
Weight: about 0.7 kg.
Famous for: kick drum on Beatles records at Abbey Road, bass cabinets, tuba and trombone.
What is the AKG D20?
In the 1950s AKG built a family of large dynamic microphones around one motor, the element found in the D12. The D12 was the rugged one with a bass resonance chamber that lifts the 60 to 120 Hz range. The D20 took the same element into the studio: a flatter low end, a switchable bass cut, a hum compensation coil and an output transformer that makes it behave consistently across different preamps.
AKG's own literature sold it as "the world's standard microphone for bass drum and bass instrument pick-up", and pointed at the mellow sound of trombone, tuba and flugelhorn. You can read the original spec sheet in AKG's D20 PDF. The rest of the brand's history is in our posts on AKG microphones in the recording studio and vintage AKG microphones.
The AKG D20 and the Beatles' Revolver kick drum
EMI had rules about how far a microphone should sit from a bass drum, around 18 inches. During the Revolver sessions in 1966, Geoff Emerick broke them. He took the front skin off Ringo's bass drum, put an AKG D20 inside, a few inches from the beater, and stuffed a wool sweater into the drum to damp it and protect the mic. He needed special permission from EMI management to do it, and only on Beatles sessions. The result is the close, heavy kick on songs like "Tomorrow Never Knows", and a technique almost every rock engineer still uses.
We love that story, and not because of the microphone. The D20 was already sitting in the Abbey Road cupboard. What made the sound was an engineer deciding the rule was wrong and committing to something new. That is the actual lesson for anyone recording drums today. More on that studio in the untold secrets of Abbey Road Studios.
What does the AKG D20 sound like?
Big, round and dark. The low end is full without the exaggerated hump of a D12, and the top end is soft, rolling away well before the harsh frequencies that make a modern kick mic click. On a kick drum you get the body and the push of the drum rather than the beater. On a bass cab you get the note and the weight. Because it is a dynamic mic, it takes huge sound pressure without complaint.
The bass switch is more useful than it looks. At 0 dB the D20 is at its fullest. At -7 dB it tightens up and sits better in a dense mix. At -12 dB it thins out enough to work on sources that do not need the low end at all, such as a guitar amp or a voice up close.
How to use the AKG D20 when recording
AKG D20 on kick drum
Start where Emerick did: inside the drum, a few inches off the beater, with something soft in the shell. Move it towards the shell wall for less attack and more boom. For a looser, more open sound, put it just outside the resonant head or at the port and let the drum breathe. Pair it with a room mic and blend to taste. Our guide to drum recording, the smack, phase and analog weight goes further, and room and ambient mics for recording covers the other half of the drum sound.
AKG D20 on bass cabinet
A D20 a hand's width from the speaker cone gives you a warm, old-school bass tone that a DI alone never has. Record the DI too, then line the two up in time before you blend, or the low end will fight itself. The divided bass: phase alignment and acoustic delay explains why.
AKG D20 on guitar amps
On a loud guitar cab the D20 gives a darker, thicker picture than the usual SM57. Try the -7 dB setting and aim slightly off the centre of the cone. It works well blended with a brighter mic, as long as you check the phase. See what microphones should I use to record guitars and taming harsh guitars and SM57 phase issues.
AKG D20 on horns and low brass
AKG designed it for exactly this job. Tuba, trombone, baritone sax and flugelhorn come out mellow and full, without the brittle top a condenser can add. Keep it a little back from the bell.
AKG D20 on vocals
Not the obvious choice, and that is the point. Sung close with the bass switch at -7 or -12, a D20 gives a dark, slightly boxy, very present vocal that suits post-punk, garage and anything that should feel like a room rather than a magazine cover. It will not flatter a singer. It will make them sound like a person in front of a microphone, which is often better.
AKG D20 vs D12, D19, D112 and D12 VR
AKG D20 vs D12: same basic element. The D12 has a bass resonance chamber with a 60 to 120 Hz lift and no bass switch. The D20 is flatter, adds the three-position bass cut and an output transformer.
AKG D20 vs D19: the D19 is a smaller-diaphragm dynamic from the 1960s with its own bass roll-off, famous as a drum overhead at Abbey Road. Different job, different sound.
AKG D20 vs D112: the D112 arrived in 1986 with a presence peak around 4 kHz for the clicky attack of 80s kick drums. More beater, less body.
AKG D20 vs D12 VR: the D12 VR is AKG's modern tribute to the D12, with switchable active filters that need phantom power. The closest thing to the old sound you can buy new.
Buying a vintage AKG D20: what to check
Condition first. Many D20s spent decades inside kick drums. A dented grille is cosmetic, a damaged diaphragm is not.
Test the bass switch. All three positions should work and sound different.
Listen for rattles and weak output. Compare it with a known-good dynamic mic at the same gain.
Ask about servicing. A D20 serviced by a specialist costs more and is usually worth it.
Know the market. Prices swing a lot with condition and provenance, but a D20 costs a fraction of the tube condensers in our guide to rare vintage microphones that shaped recording history.
Our post on buying vintage microphones at flea markets or thrift stores has more on hunting for old mics.
Is the AKG D20 still worth it?
If you find a healthy one at a fair price, yes. It gives a kick drum a round, heavy, human sound that most modern kick mics are designed to avoid, and it is a genuinely useful second opinion on bass, amps and voices. But be honest about where the sound comes from. The drum, the tuning, the player and the room make the kick. The microphone decides how much of that you keep. A D112 or a D12 VR in the right spot gets you most of the way, and no microphone rescues a drum that sounds bad in the room. Why live room acoustics matter more than your plugin folder makes that case in full.
AKG D20 FAQ
Is the AKG D20 good for kick drum?
Yes. It is one of the classic kick drum microphones, used on Beatles records at Abbey Road. It gives a round, full low end with a soft top, rather than the clicky attack of later kick mics like the D112.
What is the difference between the AKG D20 and D12?
They share the same basic element. The D12 has a bass resonance chamber that boosts 60 to 120 Hz. The D20 has a flatter low end, a three-position bass cut switch (0, -7 and -12 dB at 50 Hz) and an output transformer.
Did the Beatles use the AKG D20?
Yes. Geoff Emerick placed an AKG D20 inside Ringo Starr's bass drum during the 1966 Revolver sessions, a few inches from the beater, with a sweater inside the drum to damp it.
Does the AKG D20 need phantom power?
No. The AKG D20 is a passive dynamic microphone. Phantom power is not needed, and a normal mic preamp drives it fine.
Is the AKG D20 good for vocals?
It can be. With the bass switch engaged and the singer close, it gives a dark, present, slightly raw vocal that suits post-punk, garage and lo-fi records better than a polished condenser does.
Keep reading
Got drums that sound like a real kit in a real room? We mix indie rock, post-punk and shoegaze records for artists everywhere, and we keep the weight and the feel instead of turning the kick into a sample. Send us the rough mix.
