Personal View site logo
Make sure to join PV on Telegram or Facebook! Perfect to keep up with community on your smartphone.
Please, support PV!
It allows to keep PV going, with more focus towards AI, but keeping be one of the few truly independent places.
MKH 50 for indoor and outdoor ?
  • What’s the con to use MKH50 outdoor comparing to MKH 416 P48 ?

  • 5 Replies sorted by
  • Rejection of ambient sound depends quite a bit on the the nature and direction of the sound. A hypercardioid or supercardioid can have a longer reach if the back of the capsule faces away from any sound, like in a big space, you can point the back up in the air. In a small studio that also works if you point it at the soundproofing. There's a million things that affect what the mic picks up, rumble hissing, etc, they all have different characteristics. Best thing is always to try first. I don't see a lot of 50s in the field, but that doesn't mean it is or isn't the right mic for you. Theoretically, the 416 should reach farther than the 50, but I still prefer the Schoeps MK41 to either.

  • A professional say to me that mkh 416 is better indoor than mkh 50 because it can reject more reverb. But I read the opposite everywhere. I don’t have mkh50 so I can’t verify. . I will record à dialogue with my mkh416 indoor and will try to remove reverb in postproduction (never tried) before buying something.

    Finally, If possible, I would like to use MKH416 indoor and outdoor.

  • I prefer the sound of the Schoeps to the Sanken--actually, I prefer the MKH41 to almost any mic. If I don't need the reach, the MKH40 is warmer, but you really can't go far wrong with the 41. But sometimes you really need a shotgun, of course.
    I will say that I see a lot of 41s in all sorts of places, but that doesn't mean it's great, it's just used a lot. But there could be a reason it is used a lot. It has surprising good reach for a supercardioid. It really depends on what you are recording and what you want the final sound to be. Most of the stuff I see is kind of dry and scrapey sounding, but that is a sort of standard, some clients expect that. For almost any kind of music the 41 is superb. For interviews I tend to prefer a fatter sound, but if ambient noise is an issue, that's the overriding factor. I've also regretted using the 40 instead of the 41 a few times, it is a bit more tricky to place.

  • Nothing?

    BUT.... usually it is noisier outdoors than indoors, and cameramen tend to also go for wider shoots outdoors as well.

    And you'll be wishing soon you're using a shotgun instead.

    But if you can always keep within 6 inches outdoors, then for sure, you could only use the MKH50 instead.

    (just remember to get proper wind protection for it)

    If you're wanting simply the smallest/lightest mic you can swing outdoors with still good rejection, then get yourself a Sanken CSM1.

    https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1404643-REG/sanken_cs_m1_super_cardioid_short.html

    The Sanken CS-M1 was the hottest new product in the professional shotgun category for 2018/2019. Lots of buzz generated by it, am seriously considering getting one myself this year if the year goes well.

  • The MKH40 is the best. If you need a narrower pattern go with the Schoeps 41.