For many years now I’ve recorded everything on my workhorse Audio Technica AT-4033 microphone. This includes work that is running on PBS (2 documentaries in the last year) and lots of other places. But, thanks to my friend Willie Edwards, who put me in touch with our now mutual friend John Weeks, I’ve just added the Sennheiser MHK416P48 microphone to my studio.
Using a piece of Mattel audition copy I received some weeks ago, and recording with both microphones at the same time on separate channels of my Pro Tools workstation, here’s an opportunity for you to compare the sound of the two microphones.
First the AT-4033…
And then the MHK416…
[audio:https://bobsouer.com/pix/BobSouer_MHK416.mp3]Aside from the fact that these are MP3 audio files, there is no audio processing. Just my dry voice. Keep in mind, which ever sound you like better, this is an example that really only applies to my voice in my studio. Your mileage will vary depending on a host of factors, including the unique characteristics of your voice, your recording space and so on. But, I hope this will be at least a little bit useful as you think about your own microphone choices.
(Update: Willie Edwards was nice enough to post his thoughts and comments about this test on his VO Mic Test blog.)