Neumann KMS105 vs Earthworks SR314 - La Mascaras!

Two high-end mics with a bit of 'a sound'. One more than the other...

[@coyoteserranoband]

I fall asleep to your videos with comfort.

[@AntonBrowne]

Wonderful! I love comfort and sleep... and also activity, but when activity is done, so precious is comfort and sleep. Keep well.

[@coyoteserranoband]

@@AntonBrowne thanks for responding anton! As you can see I've been in the battle with finding a decent mic. Checkout my videos and you'll see why. I'm a baritone bass, would love to find something that might help my voice. Any advice?

[@kc-ug6gu]

anton browne i just wanna tell u this ur so amazing i like ur review and channel so much and i wish u a good health and have a nice day man

[@AntonBrowne]

Many thanks, and the same for you.

[@Leonidas909]

Your vids are hypnotizing, subscribed haha

[@AntonBrowne]

Glad you like them!

[@jimilove7773]

You are the best at what you do!

[@dirface]

Seems everything EW sounds absolutely stellar for the price. Bit worried abt the sibliance tho. Great video!

[@AntonBrowne]

Unless your voice is prone to sibilance, I haven't found it an issue on either mic, because they are 'sweet' at the top.

[@ZdrobaPatrikHivatalos]

Please do a compare with: DPA facto-Neumann kms105 - shure ksm9

[@eljest3553]

Best and most informative microphone review I’ve seen to date. Very much appreciated! 🙌🏻 Now, how does these two higher end handheld condensers compare to for example the Røde M2 or Shure SM87a? What’s the main differences/advantages other than cost according to you? 🙏🏻

[@basmeyer22]

Almost everything a good review/shootout (well, not exactly, luckily, multiple flavours apply here) should contain, but there is one major thing, sorry to mention it despite your very helpful contribution to choosing mics, this comparison (better word) is missing, and that is a high pass filtering match between the mics. In the KMS105 this is done by an additional filter to the the build in electronic pre-amp, which the SR314 obviously (and very much fortunately) does not have. And then (addressed other readers), I mean this filter, it always has a pre-amp like all condensers have. But it is inevitable in the comparison to have this because you basically would not use the mic as a handheld without for the obvious reasons (plosive/uncontrollable low-end/feedback filtering). I mean it does not necessarily has to match the hilly KMS105 slope or affect the low-end in your voice that you are just looking for to reproduce, but some sort of HPF is rather mandatory here, to my humble opinion. Other than that, and anyhow, a big thump up from me! By the way, to add some comments about the mics, the KMS105 has a thin "blanket" covering the sound, something that the SR314 does not have at all. And because the SR314 possesses such an extended frequency response and sounds reasonably flat (cannot tell for sure now, judged by what I hear) its use is not limited as a handheld alone and allows instrument miking as well. So for a (home) studio or a live sound company with a limited microphone collection the higher investment could be legitimate. I own a lot of mics as a studio and live sound engineer, but this definitely could be a next addition, even as a capsule head combined with a wireless Sennheiser G4 body. This or the (with multiple capsule choices!) DPA d:facto 4018.

[@AntonBrowne]

Thanks for your suggestion, I will endeavour to remember to include samples with 100 Hz cut switched in on the desk.

[@MrRioso-ry1hb]

The Earthworks is fantastic. But in a life situation, you`ll need a unbelievable good PA and playing setting to really hear it.

[@paulblack5329]

Great stuff as always Anton :) Love to hear ur op on the SE V7 vs a 58. In a home test we preferred the 58 (the SE seemed more sibilant) tho live we much preferred the SE (smoother richer mid range)

[@paulblack5329]

J M Billie Eilish too 😊 kzbin.info/www/bejne/kKuxpqqgeteMoqc

[@JaredSchumaier]

The v7 for sure!

[@YyPee78]

Hellou! could you do a review about the Lewitt MTP940CM? it claims to have flat frequency response for natural sound

[@12ealDealOfficial]

I second this. I've found Lewitt mics to be in line with Shure quality for drum recording, though less characteristically voiced and more detailed. Would love to know their quality on vocals.

[@basmeyer22]

We currently have 4 of those in our rig and as a user and reseller I can confirm they are reasonably flat with only a tiny "thing" at about 10 kHz that sometimes need a bit of attention. As the frequency response goes extremely low they also require proper attention on the low-end so it is mandatory to check the HPF settings, either on the mic itself or on the preamp of the input. This makes this mic differ from more plug-and-play mics the KMS105 and SM58's (as an rather non-comparable example) are. There are multiple great things about them but as a summary I could say: they are extremely, and I mean REALLY EXTREMELY versatile 1" true condensers. I did not come across anything they could not be used for yet. They feature build in pad, HPF filter roll-off and even directional switches for wide cardioid, cardioid and super cardioid shapes thanks to the double terminated true condenser capsule. On the outside there are very tiny lighted dots that reflect the settings of there switches, which you could even turn off by a fourth switch. Pad switch does not add a condenser component in series with the capsule but lower the condenser voltage by a fraction: the proper way. The clip movement can be tightened by hand (instead of a screwdriver), among a lot of sophisticated details. Vocalists love them. Feel at home on very large stages as well. Extremely difficult to get into feedback (do better than Neumann in this).

[@SteadyRolling]

Looking at the retail listings in America, they are both $699.00.

[@bryanakcasu]

Anton, what is that elastic-banded mic clip you are using for the sv33?

[@AntonBrowne]

Hi, it's just a standard radio mic clip with a couple of err hair bands. I take the mic off the stand frequently and the Earthworks 'clip' requires unscrewing. This makes it quicker and easier, but because the 33 only just fits the radio mic clip, the hair bands are there to prevent it falling, should I knock it.

[@dannykihoalu]

No comparison. Both Earthworks capture far more depth.

[@AntonBrowne]

I think so too.

[@iomoonshack]

what about your headphones? I'm look for good studio one but not expensive....

[@12ealDealOfficial]

You've probably found some by now, but the lowest end Sennheisers for thirty bucks or so are fine. I check all my mixes with them before I render.

[@basmeyer22]

Anton is using a Beyerdynamic DT-770 which is one of the industry standard closed headphones to use in a studio but another good choice is the Audio Technica ATH-M50X which even produces a tiny bit more sound pressure and sounds extremely flat. By my experience they are more flat than the DT-770. Definitely a good choice for a drummer but they do well for an engineer as well. In another price league you could think of the DT-1770 Pro or the ATH-M70X. When you pick a Beyerdynamic you have the choice among various impedances. Familiarise yourself with the differences in impedance and if the match to your gear is a good one. Audio Technica offers only low impedances (which is anyway a good thing for high outputs if that is what you are looking for).

[@xxxxxxxyyyyyyy]

Earthworks sounds better than Rode. It's more clear.

[@AntonBrowne]

Clear, it is.

[@basmeyer22]

Other than that, to my experience a lot of Røde mics sound thin and brittle. Nonetheless there are fans of this sound. There should be, the company already lasts for years.

[@user-ic9nd8wb7y]

Ка как всегда все супер.

[@AntonBrowne]

Спасибо за ваш комментарий.

[@CleversonCristianoLopes]

You could leave your favorite recommendations of microphones in the comments... I'm from Brazil! Thank you!

[@basmeyer22]

This cannot be answered by not knowing a few things, like the voice or even general purpose it will be used for and budget. If you view the comparisons of Anton recommending which is best is not that simple...

[@vinigretzky97]

20:35 20:56 21:07