Sennheiser MD 441-U vs Neumann U87Ai
Sennheiser oggi è la proprietaria della Neumann. Non lo era nel 1966 quando ha realizzato questo microfono, rimasto letteralmente immutato nel tempo e ancora in vendita!
Questo è un microfono dinamico, dalle caratteristiche eccezionali e dalla incredibile robustezza.
Non è un microfono da studio anche se era il microfono per eccellenza nelle emitenti radiofoniche degli anni 70 e 80. Ci si facevano gli spot, la conduzione, le interviste.
Ancora oggi lo vedi sui palchi, lo usano giornalisti, ospiti in TV. Ha una qualità costruttiva incredibile, una resa sonora eccezionale. D'altra parte il 1966 è stata un'annata notevole! :)
Ok, parlando seriamente il microfono lo puoi vedere attivo in mille applicazioni dal vivo e anche in studio per musica e musicisti, qui a fianco Elton dal vivo! Ma non è il top di gamma per registrare la voce in studio. Certo, se impari a usarlo anche questo fa la sua porca figura, ma se devi acquistare un microfono per il VO, no.
Rispetto all'U87 e ad ogni microfono a condensatore si porta dietro anche un maggiore rumore di fondo ed è più sordo, ma se la cava egregiamente!
Qui è usato flat, nella sua posizione più calda (M) e senza filtri.
Il costo di questo microfono varia dai 400 ai 1200 euro dichiarati sul sito ufficiale.
U87AI
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Sennheiser MD 441-U
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Commenti pubblicati originariamente sul video YouTube collegato a questo articolo.
Great video, and a proper comparison, it sounds to me the U87 is a bit warmer sounding perhaps, a bit more full.
Which does not mean it sounds better, the MD441 sounds more realistic which I like better, both are great though, thanks!
You are welcome. Very different microphones, but the old Sennheiser still remain rock!
Yes, both are great. I think that the U87 in a mix could be a bit better heared.
This makes me very glad i own a 441. Is the High frequency lift/low cut off on all takes?
Yes it is
I like your voice through both of the mics. Neumann sure better, but the Sennheiser holds its own against the U 87 with a more „vintage“, midrangy sound. I
Thank you
U87 Is good for all Range, 441 is good for Mid range (Voice range)
Thank you!
Thanks Paolo! Good test.
You're welcome! Thank you!
Very interesting comparison.
Listening on studio monitors in a quiet room, the most striking difference is the noise. The Sennheiser 441 has a much higher noise floor. This is probably from the higher gain required from the preamp. Not sure about the self noise of the 441 but the U87AI is 12db(A). Sennheiser doesn't have this info posted on their website.
Thanks for posting!
It is a dynamic mic, got more self noise. But is amazing mic. Thank you!
Appreciate the comparison. I also own a 441U and this helps me decide to use it more for voice work. I sometimes run it with with a Cloudlifter for a little more punch, but I find the sound quality very clean for my low voice and the equalization feature, especially useful for adjustments. Thank you, so much. Had been looking for a quality comparison for some time, then I found your video. What do you use as a preamp for both? Just curious, though it still sounds superior to the U87 through my studio monitors. Durable too.
Hello Michael, thank you so much! Yes, if you have a great black deep voice (oh Lord give me a little bit!), it sounds very well. I use directly inside to a Focusrite Saffire 56. Just pay attention to stay far one hand from capsule, inside to a proper room indeed. :)
I can't explain the source of the voice, Paolo. Guess it's from my grandfather's side of the family. Heard he was a preacher so I guess it's heredity, along with my male cousins. Good advice for mic distance. I run it through a DBX 286 preamp that's coupled with a handy Ashly Audio 31 band EQ that's inserted right after the preamp. Allows me to give it just the right amount of boost, sometimes, when it's not going into my Focusrite iTrack that I use with the Cloudlifter. https://soundcloud.com/mikeyhill/michael-c-hill-demo-092516
441 is noisy
It is a vinage dynamic mic! Yes it is. Thank you! ;)
Milo Aukerman hair
Rock! ;)
In addition to the (already mentioned) hiss, the 441 is picking up what sounds like RF noise.
Apples and oranges. The 441 has relatively low output (1.8mv/Pa vs. U87 28mv/Pa) so much of what you're hearing could be preamp noise. In addition, 441 is hypercardioid pattern and the U87 is probably being used in the cardioid pattern and a very loose cardioid at that. The room sound from the U87 is bound to be greater. I love the 441 for acoustic guitar and voice at about 6". The U87 is a wonderful mic, as well... but it costs about 4X as much as the 441.
Definately preamp noise. I don't believe what was used was listed. I always use a Triton Audio Fethead when using my ElectroVoice RE-20 or the times I have used the 441 with a quiet source such as like this voiceover. The Fethead works a charm and is WAY less expensive than a Cloudlifter. With rock vocals preamp noise has never been a problem.
Thank you very much! Levels do not seem to be matched.
You're welcome. Levels screen http://bit.ly/2ovhS7u
Also, you can download the wave files from here: https://www.paolobalestri.com/blog/test-microfoni/ in middle page. Ciao!
the spectrum analysis, would indicate that the 441 has less volume.
John Finkas on my website you can download the wav files 48/24 for better analysis. The 3rd one in this page: https://www.paolobalestri.com/blog/test-microfoni/
Thank you friend
Also this may help: https://youtu.be/a9Zn9q7q-LY
it seems to me that the levels were not matched to 0.5 db.
Thank you so much for sharing
mmmh... may be. I usually made a normalize but you know... here you can find the wave pcm 48/24 files https://www.paolobalestri.com/blog/test-microfoni/
The U87 is fucking gorgeous. Ugh.. Want one so badly.
It would be cool, if you would also speak in English.
But your Italiano sounds nice. =)
I'm not sure on my English! May sound hilarious, so... subtitles! Also not so Oxford style, but... works fine! :)
@PaoloBalestri Italian is such a beautiful language, and it's the sound we're comparing here, not the language, so forget the English!
Great video, very interesting. Thank you for posting. Now this is entirely subjective, but I have to say that to my ear, and in this specific recording, I prefer the U87 for your voice. It seems smoother, flatter, with quite a bit more clarity in the mids and highs. The 441 is also a beautiful sounding mic, and I can see how it would be preferred for instrumental mic'ing, say a sax, acoustic guitar, perhaps a grand piano. It seems to have more coloration, a bump in the low mids, and more of it's own personality. I'll take one of each, please :-)
Btw, I listened to this clip with my Sennheiser HD650 headphones.
DocBaron1 Yes, it is. It have a small capsule very strong and without the phantom, so is much insensitive and loose lot of details than the U87. As per its insensitivity it works fine on instruments or in in live situations. Anyway this "Tank" still sounds great also in studio and for voiceover! In fact most of us used it in radio stations. One of the best for that usage. To me it is an amazing peace of gear! Thank you
MD441 great sound but it seems having a noise floor is much higher and audible than the one of the U87
Yes it is. It is a dynamic mic. One of the best in the market.
I think it's one of the best ever ... together with the more recent SM7B
That is preamp noise and not the mic.
@Not-Only-Reaper-Tutorials electrovoice re20
@Not-Only-Reaper-Tutorials electrovoice re20
Great comparison/recording!
I love the U87 sound, but this is the first time I've heard a 441 Dynamic, and it stacks up very well against a very reputable FET LDC ... ! Mind you, it's not a cheap dynamic ... ;) Would you say it's the best dynamic you have tried?
You have a great voice, BTW!
Mille grazie! :D
I know there are many great Dynamics, the SM7B, ElectroVoice RE20... I bought this un early '90 and still got it.
The nice thing about the 441 is that it doesn't get as much booth sound as the 87.
Neumann is clearly the winner here. Why does Sennheiser have so much background noise? It's impossible to listen.
WH1T3 it is a dynamic mic with more self noise.
Paolo, were the preamps set at the same gain? Surely not else there would be much less noise on the 441 line.
i want to buy a smooth high end dynamic mic... i am thinking about MD441... but as i hear now...it is noisy !
@Use Affiliate Links In Description i thought it is not so "gain hungry" mic. at list not so gain hungry as shure sm7b is. Have you ever used a md441? my room is big but not proffesionally treated, i noticed that i can make better recordings with dynamic mics. ok sometimes i use condensers too...if i will buy a condenser i will buy the se electronics se4400a... but as i see the at3035 has also a smooth top end-flat response, but unfortunately it is discontinued
@Use Affiliate Links In Description i have a rode nt1 but never use it...its sibilant and harsh on top end. I dont like modern mics...i prefer vintage flat microphones even for vocals. Se4400a is smooth-flat but i am thinking to go with dynamic. Electrovoice re20 is gain hungry too?
About the noisier 441, it is not the microphone because dynamic mics have no self noise. It is the preamp noise that is heard in this video. If the person using got closer to the 441 would have a warmer sound due to the proximity effect that a 441 exhibits.
Yes, I will try soon! Thank you 😊
Thanks!
What mic pre are you using? sounds great.
Jonathan Black Hi Jonathan, in this video a Focusrite Saffire 56. Channels not 1&2.
Va bene per voci femminili molto potenti.... bisogna considerare che se una ditta riuscisse a fare un gelato da palco pulito come un microfono da studio sarebbe un miracolo.... Quindi il 441 per come e dove va usato è ottimo.... Inoltre la circuitazione dello stadio di ingresso microfonico ottimale per il 441 è diversa da quelle moderne perciò è impensabile collegarlo per esempio ad una scheda focusrite e sperare di ottenere un buon risultato.... Per usare quei microfoni servirebbe un pre apposito scelto con cura e poi entrare in line.... Inoltre i microfoni dinamici sentono moltissimo la qualità e la lunghezza del cavo perciò bisogna fare molta attenzione al cavo che sia di qualità assoluta.... I microfoni a 48volt invece sentono pochissimo la qualità del cavo di collegamento e per sentire qualcosa di notevole dev'essere proprio un cavaccio schifoso.... Altro fatto il 441 suona anche se lo infili in bocca mentre i microfoni a condensatore già a 5 cm cominciano a soffrire.
Altra considerazione va fatta che con soli 441 si potrebbe microfonare una intera orchestra live strumento per strumento cosa molto difficile con 1 solo tipo di microfono.... Se costa 1000 euro dopo 50 anni vuol dire che qualche motivo c'è perché mica tutto il mondo è scemo!
Credo che sia la versatilità e non la timbrica il punto di forza del suo successo.
Bruno Bassi Grazie grazie mille! Userò le tue parole! Se posso.
Out of all the mics you have compared to the U87ai, which one performed the best in your opinion?
K. Watts Aston Spirit and Atlantic Phonic.
I don't have the U87 so the closest I have to my 441 I suppose would be AKG c414b/uls. I have to say though that for one male vocalist I much prefer the the 441. Much more controlled on sibilance and plosives and just a good balance sound. Want to try soon on female voice - I know Stevie Nicks likes it so will see....
I used it with a FetHead and it sounds fantastic also in modern soundcard.
Biggest difference I hear is in the directionality. The ambient pick up of the booth seems less on the 441 than the 87.....
Chuck Kirkpatrick Yes, less sensitive but still good. I will try again with a Fet-Head, should became more detailed but still good. In some next video. Thank you 😊
Wow che voce
whats the conclusione?
Different mics, nothing else.
Great comparison. The 441 actually sounds a little clearer to me, but a bit "harder" around the edges than the U87. This may be good for broadcast, but I'd probably prefer the U87 for music recordings for the slightly "prettier" sound -- if I can even use that word for a U87, lol.
MD 441-U is The closest it gets to a condenser but it's still clearly a dynamic , lovely sound tho
The 441 just has a more commanding presence.
Great comparison and great radio voice. And Italian sounds wonderful.
There is something I like a lot with the 441... frankly I think neutral mics like the U87 pleasant but a bit boring... the 441 has character.
For my ears , the 441 sounds alot better. The U87 has sum meat in the lowmids that masks the normal voice tone and on top it has sum.brittle sounding sharp S sounds
The 441 is just round , and smooth with alot of Charakter.
I orderd one , curios how it will behave on death metal vox and 1176 slamming compression
👍
Thank you for this video, you have a FANTASTIC voice. I want to make two notes that I noticed;
Firstly, the 441 is hypercardioid, so speaking off axis the way you do in this video, will Color the sound a better to speak directly from the front. And second, the capsule sits quite far back in the chassis compared to the U87, so you don’t need to keep the same distance to the grille as you would with a U87, technically in this video the capsule of the MD441 is much further away in this video. It would be interesting (if you still have both microphones available) to see a comparison on your FANTASTIC voice where you speak into the MD441 more directly :)
Greetings from Germany
Trovato! Bello!
io il 441 lo uso in studio per doppiaggio sia parlato che cantato, va bene anche per lo studio secondo me. contando anche che è un pezzo di storia...
In effetti è un capolavoro d’ingegneria sia per la sua robustezza che per la qualità delle riprese sulla voce. Con le schede audio e i pre moderni tra l’altro si sfrutta molto bene.
@PaoloBalestri esatto, è per questo che lo adoro, bel video comunque👍
Those who have tested the Sennheiser Supercardioid Dynamic MD 441-U from a distance of 2-10 cm with a suitable preamplifier know that this microphone delivers high-frequency clarity and condenser-like smoothness that rivals or exceeds condenser microphones costing thousands of dollars, such as the U87. Those who know how to use dynamic microphones speak directly in front of the person and from a distance of 2 - 5 cm. Supercadiod microphones pick up sounds from the full mix. What you're doing here is no different than racing an off-road vehicle against a Formula 1 car on the highway and saying, "Look, it's slow."
This video isn't a guide on optimizing each mic—it’s an identical A/B test in the exact same setup so viewers can hear the raw baseline differences. That's the whole point.
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