Sennheiser MD421 II Dynamic Mic Review / Test
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- Опубліковано 20 лип 2024
- Today we look at a classic microphone from Sennheiser, the MD421-ii, to see how it works for podcasts, vocals, and guitar. The microphones has a very full sound, with a 5kHz presence boost, with plenty of clarity and open sound. The mic does do a very bad job with plosives, and the mic clip is very easy to mistakenly hit the release button.
Buy the Sennheiser MD421 II (Amazon)
Global: geni.us/md421ii
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00:00 - Intro
00:34 - Disclaimers / Price / Setup
00:49 - What’s in the Box
01:07 - Build Quality
01:46 - Specifications
02:00 - High Pass Filter Test
02:35 - Polar Pattern Test
02:17 - Handling Noise Test
02:56 - Background Noise Test
03:05 - Proximity Effect / Distance Test
03:30 - Plosive Rejection Test
03:41 - Music Test
04:18 - Pros & Cons
05:12 - Overall thoughts
06:50 - Conclusion / Recommendation
07:41 - Outro
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Personal Twitter: / bandrewsays - Наука та технологія
👏👏 mic review 👏👏
DJ TLH hes doing his part
DJ TLH *meme review
Thank you I have a 421 that is several years old. Love it for voice over. Thanks for the demo :)
I have used it at a few radio stations and think it is NICE.
Great review. I just bought 2 because I found them on super sale. Setting up and testing and I didn't really know what the high pass settings were so I came to YT. Your review gave me more tips than I bargained for. Thank you!
PSA: This mic is currently on sale in most stores in the US for $199.95 (if you can find one in stock). - October 2, 2020
BUT....hard to find. COVID and price drop?
@@ccr508 THEN a ten dollar condenser mount to avoid that world class shitty stock mount.
That is when I purchased the mic. That 50% off made waiting for it take months and months but worth it.
It's 400 now :/
I use this as my gigging mic. Saturday night live used this mic in the 90, and you see it a lot in music performances.
Who knew that I could binge watch microphone reviews.
Love the channel man, scandalous that you don't have way more subs.
You, my friend, are far too kind. I really appreciate that.
@@Podcastage Your welcome, as a newcomer, found the channel extremely informative, entertaining, and just a general good time, look forward to more 🙂
Hey man I just wanted to say thanks for helping me choose my new mic for VO work, ended up going with the NT1 and can't wait till it gets here tomorrow 😁
My absolute pleasure. Hope you enjoy the mic and make some great work! Have fun!
Still a great mic. I used this microfoon 35 years for Voice-over work. In the sixties i was a singer in a rock 'n' roll band and even then i had the MD 421. The better first series. Lots of bands used the MD 421 at that time.
Prince's engineer in the Purple Rain to Sign O The Times days has just revealed that she always mic'd his guitar with the 421
We used this microphone at the local television station for interviews for a couple of years (we didn't have anything better at the time) and during a music festival we actually attracted the attention from the sound engineer from a band that at first didn't wanted to give us an interview and took a picture of us using it.
When the interview we were doing at that moment was done he was like "Oh I am sooo going to tell the guys about this, I have never seen people ever using it in modern times for interviews since like the beginning of the 90's and if it's on a stage somewhere, it's usually used for electric guitars or the basedrum....This is so cool....wait here..." and we ended up being able to interview a band that at first didn't feel like giving one just because of the microphone.
The drummer actually asked if he could see the serial tag and was slightly disappointed to see it was the make 2 version, because in his opinion the first one was even better :P.
Interesting story that shows how many of us can be obsessed with microphones.
That's basically why I want to get it, it's so odd to use as a vocal microphone that the fact it sounds great on more than one setting is so cool for such a strange mic (not strange if used for instruments).
Cool story!
Love this story. It's accepted by audio engineers that the original version is better than the new version.
@@theothertoday When my dads workplace was moving to a new building they had an auction of all kinds of stuff among the employees, and two MD421's of the first make were some of the items left behind.
My dad took those home, and even though they both were stored in a room from someone who smoked a lot (and had a habit of doing that on his workplace as well) they still sound very good, though I wonder if they could sound better if cleaned.
The outside of the one I use is already incredibly more gray than it used to be, since it was well...almost yellow from all the tar and nicotine residue...
I'll never ever forget that we managed to get an interview just because of the microphone we used and that basically a whole band thought that particular thing was so awesome their whole attitude changed :P.
I just bought the new md421 II version microphone which is coming today. Look forward to using it. Your video was very helpful especially describing all the features. I have used the older model many times before including mic’ing up Chuck Berry’s guitar cabinets of which he had two fender showman amps and cabinets. The sound this microphone produced was fat and natural sounding.
Bro... you do the best reviews!! Love it!!
This is one of the best mic demos I've ever seen! Great job.
Agreed!
Really. This mic sounds like U 87ai.
Hi Bandrew, bucket loads of radio stations use this as their on-air mic and have done so for 50 plus years. But as you say the plosives are very pronounced. 45 degree offset with a foam shield will help. I love this mic for spoken word.
Great review as always!
This is a great, comprehensive review. Thankyou so much bro.
You're very welcome.
Coming from your Super 55 video to this video, the reason it's the go-to mic for crisp guitar recording is apparent. Insta-subscribed.
You make me get the rode procaster and now the MD421-II and Kingrbee, great work men, i can trust yours reviews...
I've only had mine for about a billion years. It's been sitting in a closet and I'm having trouble with my current favorite mic on a vocal application. I'll have to give it a shot and see if it can do any better.
Thanks for reviewing this classic Mic for podcasting and spoken word.
My pleasure.
Podcastage is king for mics. My go to always
The originals used to be my favorite mic for electric guitar cabs during my time as a tracking engineer.
Hi ! Could you do a review on the MD 21-u ?
It's an amazing dynamic mic that has made long years of radio, famous against the wind, handling noise and pop ...
So it's would be nice to listen your tests on it
Dude you are the mic review KING!!! I like what you doobliado! 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
i always get right in my vocal mic and back when needed; i ALSO worked min major market radio and this was the mic all top stations choose
I've always wanted one of these in white.
You did this very well. Thank you.
Lately, I've been watching clips of Paul Lynde during his time on Hollywood Squares and wondered what mic he was using. So, I searched for "Microphone used on Hollywood Squares" and found it. What were the chances of there being a review of the 421-ii? Apparently, pretty good ones! Ya just gotta love the Internet!
PAUL IS DA BOMB!!
NICE vocal microphone! Dang, might spring for one and get a condenser mount.
Why is it that everybody hates the clip? I’ve owned two of these for about 35 years and never had a problem. Except that the foam in the boxes completely disintegrated many years ago. It was a different box back then, though, and the foam was dark turquoise.
I sell a retainer for the mic clip that makes it rock solid, on reverb. $10. Love your reviews! DetaIled & fun. MD421 is one of the great mics ever made.
Thanks a lot! U have very good content, greetings from Chile!
doing your part 👏👏
Good sounding classic mic. This mic has been used for VO a lot. Especially for saturday morning cartoons in 70' to 90's. Shows like Disneys Rescue Rangers and original TMNT. Now it's all Neumanns... :)
Really!? I had no idea this was used on shows like that! They may all be Neumann's but Neumann is owned by Sennheiser, so they're all still kind of Sennheiser. =) The Sennheiser VO age rages on!
There is a Rescue rangers behind the scenes video here on youtube. And if you google ”TMNT 1987 voice cast recording session” you can find a picture of them in a studio.
And yeah, the Sennheiser-Neumann empire still rules the world... ;)
Nice. One of the best metal band mics.
Bandrew do a review of the Alvoxcon usb condenser mic. That thing has a lot of good reviews in Amazon and is actually listed in Amazon's choice. I'm kinda hooked on it but I don't think I'm brave enough to pull the cash trigger without hearing your take on it.
Hello I Have This Microphone Connect To A Behringer Xenyx X1204USB 12-Input Mixer w/ FX & USB
But Just Wondering About The switch / button on the sehringer md 421 i using the microphone for radio presenter
Sound engineers have hated that mic clip for over 50 years 😎 It's still one of my favourite kick drum mics.
Glad I’m not alone in my criticism of the clip. Haha.
Ha! No, not at all 🤘 Many people will use crazy glue and glue the clip to the mic because the slot gets beat up over time and will no longer accept the clip. Plus the clip is hellishly expensive to replace. I love the mic but hate the clip.
Rob Burgess Hello Rob! For drum kick what switch do you use to record it ? 1-5? (When 1 is S and 5 is M) cheers
@@Podcastage
Noone likes the clip.
Hey, I'm sure you get this a lot but which vocal mic do you think is best? Do you think the MD421 II is a better microphone than the SM58 for vocals? Thanks!
it's a good mic if you are recording vocals in a room with some unwanted background noise beyond you control. just use a pop filter, and practice some scales before hand to avoid blame.
I use a 320. Put a foam boot over it and a pop stopper in the boot....then turn it at a slight angle.
Found one of these in a drawer at the radio station and deciding what/if we would use it for. Hrm.
Great review
Great review Bandrew. Even I could hear how bad this mic is with the plosives.
Sennheiser + $$$ = great product
This mic was used by Greg Lake on live performances back in the late 70s.
That and the MD 441. Sounded great on either, of course:)
This mic has been used snd is still used in Australian radio stations for over 50 years.
Love it We dig it!
Hi, is it good to record upright bass ? I just bought it for that, now, I'm not sure anymore ! thank you
Hallo !
Hast du auch das Sennheiser MD21 zum Testen da ?
Mit einer omni/Kugelcharakteristik.
Zuerst kam das MD21, dann das MD421 dann das MD441 von Labor W / Sennheiser. W heißt Wennebostel
Viele Grüße Stephan
why my m audio m track duo phantom power doesn't have enough power while using MD 421 II, but getting louder when I set to level 10.. huff
It would be really easy to mistake that for a side-address mic. I'm surprised that thick band across the grill doesn't interfere with the sound.
Yeah it’s a bit of an odd design. PS: thank you so much for becoming a member!
I wonder the comparison would be for the Shure SM7B
Csn you do s review on the mxl v69 mogami edition mic?
great review
This mike is really good for drums toms.
how does it work with sibilance?
I have been able to lock the clip release with a small 4 or 3 inch long zip tie. Just slide it through an opening between the button and edge of the clip next to the button. There is a small opening on either side of the button that runs parallel to the button and the clip end that attaches to the mic. It will prevent the button from depressing and unlocking the mic from the clip. You don't have to actually tie it. Gravity will hold it in place. A straightened out twist tie will work too. Black zip ties and twist ties are virtually invisible at any normal viewing distance. I do this on stage use when I mic congas with one. It's great. Sennheiser should put this in their instruction sheet.
Thank you very much for this recommendation, this is great! I'll have to give this a shot.
I've seen this (or a similar looking mic) used on brass instruments and it sonded good.
I can imagine it sounding good because of the smooth low end.
I would like to see a review of the Arcano-AM-1 mic. It's a USB microphone from Brazil, and I have one of these. I think it sounds great, but it'd be much better to see a review coming from you
Doesn't look like it's available in the states.
One of my all time favorites on toms, bass and guitars. IMO if you use this on kick drum, label/mark it as this is one of the mics where I feel that a kick drum will kind of batter the element and it loses definition in time.
For voice if you have any overtones or grittiness, this mic will amplify them. I have a 4.5kHz whistle on sibilant peaks and this mic really makes a mess of it requiring a de-esser. I have a heavy baritone voice and this mic needs a lot of cutting in the 140sh range to clean it up.
The first click from wide open is nice on voice and a large clown nose wind screen is pretty much necessary for any close talking at all, the plosives are terrible with this mic. In post I can get this mic to sound very nice, but I use 4-6 filters in a parametric to get it there. It takes enough carving that it's right on the edge of sounding too artificial when I get it balanced.
Can I use a syba sound card with bm 8000.
Omg. 9 yr olds now gonna blow this channel up. Bandrew has gone nuclear
I doubt that. I’m just a 9 year old doing my part to try and keep UA-cam’s #1 independent and not some corporation.
hopefully they buy better mics because they all sound like theyre talking through cans
Seeing as the EV RE320 and RE20, and this Sennheiser 421 II can be used as a kick drum and vocal mics, which one would you chose for podcasting?
Of those three I'd probably go RE20. I prefer the less boosted presence and treble region.
👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻 Fums up (of course) Fanx For Askin . Will you do your next vid without a hat on??? Go onnnn.
Bonus mic review please
I completely missed the opportunity for that.
Can I hook it up to a laptop through an USB adapter?
eh this was the best mic test I have ever seen PERIOD. Finaly someone who DID NOT LEAVE OUT WHAT THAT DIAL THINGY AT THE BOTTOM DID.... its a 5 way high pass!! Thankyou ... and I have to say that is the best 421 to cab sound ..... Senn should be paying you ..... unreal!
Hey Podcastage! Im currently using the Samson Q2U USB. Ive currently been having some issues with it because ive abused it and have had it over a year, and overall is been great but I want to change. What would you recommend for me to get that wouldn't break the wallet too bad?
Andrew said exactly what I would suggest.
Thanks You!!
I love your channel
I love my md421 for micing my Bass Cab live.
Greetings, Earthlings.
He didn’t say it so I will.
He should get really crude and say GREETINGS AFTER BIRTHLINGS!
Do they still sell this in grey?
Strange design choice on the casing. Wonder how many use this as a side-address by mistake...
Probably a lot. Ha. It definitely could confuse a lot of folks.
There is a version 2 of this microphone, anyone??
my first radio job, these were the studio mics. one MILLION years later, my current job, these are the studio mics. super durable, last forever, sound good but... the only on-air dynamics I have ever used that absolutely require a heavy duty windscreen no matter how good you are at controlling your plosives. PLOSIVES!!
Not only the sound that plosives cause is annoying, you are possibly launching saliwa particles straight into the screen around the element or (in large diaphragm microphones) directly into the element, damaging it in the end.
@@Dutch3DMaster Because he has no vocal training or skills in using his voice. Weird cat. Unless you have good pipes you really aren't qualified to test microphones. I'd throw his butt on the street if he was in my studio.
Will they EVER fix the mic clip problem? It's been forever.
If you look in the back of Tape Op Magazine, there's somebody who sells a product that locks the mic to the clip. I think it's like $15.
Hey dude, thanks for all these helpful reviews and tutorials 😍
I really need your help ..
I want to buy a mic but i am really confused , and i can't choose between these two mics :
1- A bundle of :
Neewer NW-7000 condenser mic + BEHRINGER Audio Interface, Black, 1-Channel (UM2) + AmazonBasics XLR Male to Female Microphone Cable - 10 Feet
it will cost me about 106 $ due to customs and shipping fees ( as i'm from Egypt )
2- CAD GXL2400 USB MIC
this will cost me about 98 $
so which one do you recommend?
and do you have any other recommendations "a mic and its stuff 😅" (up to 65$ in amazon US) ?
please answer me , i need urgent help :(
I recommend the first one with the NW7000, interface, XLR cable, and a mic stand. It will give you a better upgrade path down the road if you want to change mics or anything.
@@Podcastage thank you so much for your help 😍😍
I already have a stand , it is not basically for a mic 😅 " it was for a light lamp " but i think i can edit it to fit the mic 😅
it is the same as the mic stand but it lacks one thing "the adapter in the photo"
imgur.com/a/EKsuB7f
Do you know where can i buy this adapter alone or what should i type when i search ?
Great review again bandrew 👍
Normally German build quality look like decent..
Thank you very much Nico. Appreciate ya.
3:26 “What do you do with a drunken sailor”... “ One foot away from the microphone“ Lololol
Ohhh I just found a set of an MD21 and MD421 for sale used, and they are an old kit from the Finnish state radio YLE or Yleisradio. Both of them have a kind of old soviet green/yellow colour with YLEISRADIO text on them and they are beat up to hell and back, and I want them so bad 😂 I don't know how old they are, but they still have this old screw on connector with non-round prongs, don't even know what those are. I think I'm lucky I don't have enough disposable income or I'd be picking up the phone right now!
Hey Bandrew, Wanted to ask about your opinion on these 2 interfaces,and which preamp you prefer out of both of them (and if the umc 202hd and umc22 use the same preamp or not)
this is a pretty important question,I need your honest opinion
There's the Focusrite Scarlett Solo (108$) and the Behringer UMC 202HD (75-90$) and i listened to a video and they sound about the same,my question is,Which one is better in your opinion,and what's the difference between Behringer UMC 202HD and UMC22? cause i can't see much info on the amazon page..Besides the fact that the umc202hd has 2 mic inputs. Does it have a better pre amp Or is it the same? (if it's the same and i only use 1 microphone i think the umc22 would be a no brainer) ( i know both use the midas preamp but i don't know if there are different midas versions or some shit) ? And which do you prefer between focusrite scarlett solo and the behringer umc 202HD (or ill take the umc22 if they're the same but umc22 is with less inputs and features) cause some people say focusrite is top selling cause its overhyped,some say it's way better,some say they sound the same.. and i don't know shit
the um22 uses a xenyx preamp which people dislike,however the midas preamp seems to be better so ill go for the umc22 and not the um22,but most importantly,which do u prefer.. the midas or focusrite preamp? and do the umc22 and umc 202HD produce the same quality of sound? or are they using different versions of the midas preamp
Considering i will most likely use the microphone whilst having ingame sound playing,i do not think there will be a noticeable difference between a behringer xm8500 (like you recommended) in comparison to a 100$ microphone.. maybe it will, I got time to think about it... but for the price the xm8500 seems really good
The UMC22 and the UMC202HD have the same preamp from behringer: Midas Preamps. The first difference is the 2nd microphone preamp on the 202HD. The second difference is the A/D Converter (analog-to-digital converter). The UMC22 does not record HD audio.
Between the Focusrite and the Behringer, if you're using windows, I'd go with the behringer because the focusrite has been known to have issues with that OS. The preamps are close enough that you should focus on an interface that offers the more stable use.
@@Podcastage I apologize if i am getting annoying (and perhaps sound stupid in some cases)
Okay so ill need to pick between umc 202hd and umc22 now...
I will be using one microphone so i will not need the 2 mic inputs,however i do not understand the following... on the behringer umc22 it says it has 48kHz A/D resolution and the umc 202hd has 24-bit/192kHz A/D Resolution , I tried to do research on this, and in somebody's opinion you don't need 192kHz , what is the difference anyways? And umm I know what HD means but,the umc22 not recording in HD does that mean it won't sound good?
I thought the amount of inputs would be the only difference,so i thought i could easily decide on the umc22,but i do not quite understand some of these things ..
Considering i plan on using this to talk,podcast,commentate,and perhaps occasionally make a song for fun or something,does the A/D resolution on the umc202hd and the HD audio outperform the umc22 by a lot? If not,then i think ill decide on the umc22 for 50$ + behringer Xm8500 or blue encore 100/200
I found this post and a guy said :
The sample rate refers to how many 24--bit samples are recorded every second. 96 kHz recording have 96,000 24-bit samples recorded each second. 192 kHz has 192,000. Keep in mind that a commercial CD has a resolution of 44.1, 16-bit. There are many, many, MANY arguments and papers over which is "better," with one side arguing that capturing as many frequencies as possible with higher sample rates yields better recordings because is a more realistic simulation of reality, while others contend that 44.1 is more than adequate since you can't hear anything above 20 kHz anyway.
I doubt that you will be able to tell any differences between 96 and 192 on the gear you mentioned...unless you record bats or dolphins.
If that's the case,then i should just go for the umc22 :D
@@Podcastage That's weird. I just bought a UMC202HD and have had some driver issues with Windows 10. Judging by the Behringer forums I'm not alone.
@@Podcastage Gave my kid the UMC22 and upgraded. It is okay at that price point but NOT great. Scarlett or M-Audio would be a better call. Sorry Bandrew, wasn't trying to step on your pee pee here. lol
I have an M Audio Air, it seems okay, but would like a nice juicy preamp to go with my main play RE 320.
ES UN BUEN MICROFONOS SOBRE TODO.PARA LOS QUE TIENEN VOCES GRAVES,DEBIDO A SU SONIDO CLARITO
Can you do a video comparing the Rode NT1 and AT4040?
Perhaps I should. Hmmmm.
@@Podcastage Thanks I'll be grateful
10/10 intro.
Thank you very much. 9 Year Olds UNITE!
He walked into that one...lol
@@larryhinze537 True, true.
Remember, this mic was made for broadcast in the 60's, which was AM radio.
what do u suggest for a gamer looking for a mic less than 200$
There's a lot of options. If you want to save a bunch of money, you could go Behringer XM8500, USB Audio Interface, Microphone Boom Arm, Pop FIlter, and XlR to XLR cable.
Hey bandrew Can you review a microphone that 8-bitryan uses
Hey Bub. If it's the microphone he is using in this video: ua-cam.com/video/LCADtAjVljw/v-deo.html .... then I have already done a review of that microphone, it's the SM7b: ua-cam.com/video/qKcyINVNmkI/v-deo.html
how does this compare to the shure sm57?
Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh BETTER.
Great
I felt that on a spiritual level like Ned Flanders at 0:47 when he said "doobly do what I diddly did"
Ned Flanders I about to sing his hit White Wine Spritzer!
This thing sounds great for a Dynamic mic. Put a pop filter on it and I'm sure you could use it for vocals with a decent pop filter.
@Nelson Giles Yeah I can imagine. 421 MKII is a Ferrari and the SM 58 is more of a Truck.
can you do more budget microphones reviews????
I will eventually get back into those. I just got a bit burned out on them because so many sounded the same, and a lot of them were just the rebranded NW700, NW800, NW1500 style microphones...there wasn't anything unique about them. I will get back to them eventually though.
@@Podcastage oh ok thank you very match for ryplin hahahah nice intro btw
i recall S for speech M for music
Nice reference lmfao made me laugh 😂
I'm doing my part.
Podcastage, remember me?
Reducing this microphone to just being usable on drums and sh*t is a big mistake. It does a great job on Vocals too.
e.g. it was the Standard in the german Bundestag in the 70/80's Area, lotsa radio stations and so on... and for a reason.
I go as far as considering it the german SM7 (not B!), but with more clarity in the upper region of the frequency spectrum.
Thats the Sennheiser style of doing it, and for me its easier to EQ down a bit of too much than trying to boost frequencies that do not exist at all.
In the right hands, this is still a great and very versatile tool to have in your studio.
You looked slightly unhappy at the outset of the vid, but warmed up soon afterward. Everything ok?
Everything's great. I was intentionally looking a bit out of it intentionally, going for the thousand yard stare kind of thing. I don't know why. I thought it'd be funny. Haha. I guess I missed the mark there.
Podcastage Oh,...ok. As long as everything's ok.
Remember, we love you no matter what! 😍
Sounds pretty good with instruments though...
It has five adjustments if I am correct...
Thumbs Up!
It looks like a something I'd shave with.
It's nickname (in the Netherlands) is 'Scheerapparaat' (which means something like razor or electric razor ;)
@@weeardguy LOL Really?
@@TVperson1 Not joking ;) My dad worked in the AV-industry for about a decade. That's where I got my vintage MD421 from as the company at some point ceased to exist and the inventory was sold to the people who'd worked there or (in case of no interest) was put on second-hand websites.
My dad was (and still is) interested in old news broadcasts as well. The Dutch Polygoon Journaal (a newsbroadcast that originally was made for cinemas) used these mics very frequently and as far as we know, they called it the razor as well.
This was made for AM radio. So the "S" actually sounds really good for AM radio with the reduced high end and keeps the low end from mudding up the sound. It was also designed to used with the big screen to use for speaking. Only instruments remove the wind screen. The SM7 build in the windscreen with the design of the mic and the MD421 was their direct competition at the time.