IS YOUR SHOTGUN MIC GOOD ENOUGH? SENNHEISER MKH 416 VS MKH 50 REVIEW

[@jeffarballo1881]

I have several mics. but I noticed at one time I started to go to the 50 almost every time. The sound is a little hotter to me, in other words seems good for action. but the honest truth is it's so small and easy to transport whenI'm traveling that it became my go to mic. and even works great in the blimp, just easy to use.

[@kipling1957]

Interesting. I went in the other direction and purchased the mkh 50 first, a few years back, always planning to get the 416 at some point. Love this mic and how it grabs the voice. Never did get the 416 or any other shotgun for that matter. I find the the directionality and OA rejection excellent indoors and outdoors and have a small Rycote blimp for windy days. I also pair it with a mkh 30 for superb M/S stereo for live acoustic work. I’m sure 416 must have the edge for certain very noisy outdoor scenarios. But it never seems a priority when the cash come available. I end up buying a new LED light or something else.

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

The 50 is a great mic!

[@wcsdiaries]

@@TheUnMarketingGroup mkh 50 or 8050?

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

@@wcsdiaries I have only used the 8050 once and it was provided with a special shock mount, fit for the small size and handling characteristics. It sounded fantastic. I have heard it is prone to handling noise although because of the special shock mount I didn't experience this problem. That said I now own two MKH 50's as I wanted two indoor interview mics that match without having to match them in post. If you can, rent/try them both as it is a very personal preference.

[@wcsdiaries]

@@TheUnMarketingGroup which shock mount did you use for it?

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

@@wcsdiaries If you're referring to the 8050 I'm not 100% sure as it came along with the mic but I believe it was just a standard Rycote Invision with the two clips (not the one big one). For my 50's I use the supplied shock mount by Sennheiser.

[@matthiaskrause1155]

I think the interference tube of the 416 causes some unpleasant effects in the lower frequencies - a typical issue with shotgun mics when used indoors.

[@VM-oi3dk]

I have both. They are almost indistinguishable with the bass roll off on on the 50. The 416 is sharper and less forgiving of “s’s” and transients. It also blocks out extraneous noises better than the 416. You can barely notice it, but it has smoother creamier sound.

[@sebedelonge]

I would totally prefer the Mkh50 for interior dialogue. Thanks for the Review Norm!

[@VM-oi3dk]

I’ve got both. I love my MKH 50, it’s almost indistinguishable from MKH 416 IF, IF you put the roll off filter on the 50, only it doesn’t have the same siblances. However, blow on it and it’s an explosion

[@MarkVO]

The 416 has ever so slightly more bass reverberation, at least to my ears, but it's really close. I'm not sure it's worth the difference in price but your room isn't at all bad acoustically. It might be worth hearing the difference in a completely untreated room such as someone's kitchen or even a toilet to illustrate the difference in extremities.

[@Oggification]

The MKH 50 sounds smoother to my ears. It's my personal choice for an interior boom mic.

[@budgetsmartgear1167]

Thank you for the comparison! In my opinion and no surprise there the 50 was emphasizing the mid mid low frequencies and and 416 was more natural and rich with that typical presence boost. In this situation i do prefer the 416 but for complicated interiors the 50 will be better because of that hyper cardio pattern.

[@filmkreation]

A comparison between these two in a real world scenario (background noises or some room reverb) would be really great! We currently use the ME66 and want to invest into a better interview mic. It's a close call between the 50 and 416. The sound characteristic is personal preference at this (price) point, so we're trying to find out which mic will perform better in difficult/uncontrolled environments. From what I understand the 416 is better in isolating the voice in a noisy environment and better for using outside because of the more directional pattern. The 50 is also good at isolating the voice indoors. Are those the main differences?

[@shingAMarie]

Not enough of a sound difference to have an additional mic. The mkh 416 by itself can do both indoor and outdoor fine.

[@arhon888]

The 416 was slightly crisper on the top end. I personally prefer this. However, the main differences are their intended purpose. To quote Sennheiser, the 50 is designed for use as a soloist's or spot microphone for applications requiring a high degree of side-borne sound muting and feedback rejection, while the 416 Short shotgun mic is primarily designed for film, television and outside applications. Choosing between the two based on sound can be a subjective decision, but if superior sound rejection is required then it is an easy decision.

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

Excellent points. Thank you for the reply.

[@gregoryhodges1079]

I cant tell a massive difference in the sound between the two mics. I feel like the biggest difference is in the use of application and that maybe the design of the mics for there intended use is attributing to some sound differences. 🤷‍♂

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

Hi Gregory. Yes, you're 100% correct. Since putting these mics to the test over two years ago I have come to appreciate that it is an "it depends" just as you say. On average, the 50 seems to work great both indoors and outside (with wind protection) when you don't need to reduce interfering sounds from the side and want to focus the pickup more precisely. The 416 indoors as well again when you need to reduce sound from the sides, but as long as that sound isn't the talent's voice reverberating. It's, in that case, I really hear the difference between the two and the 50 sounds much cleaner. I don't subscribe to the theory that the 416 is the outdoor mic and the 50 is the indoor mic. As you say, it really depends. Thank you for your considered comment.

[@JamesClark1991]

03:49 to skip to the comparison.

[@wangmedia]

Great comparison. Too few of these professional comparisons on KZbin, simple and direct. I can hear that there is a difference but I can't say which is better. Both mics sounds fantastic. I'm using Sennheiser HD380 Pro and Sound Devices USBPre2 soundcard. I have the 416 and I believe for my use cases this is more flexible and the difference don't motivate two mics in this price range.

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

Thanks for the comment. Yes, both have similar acoustic profiles and sound good when used together if you need to mic two subjects. I do find less off-axis colouration with the 50 when you’re in a reverberant room. Nice playback setup too!

[@wangmedia]

Norm Clare yes, the 416 is very directional which also is its strength. I replaced an Apogee Duet 2 with the Sound Devices USBPre 2 and the Apogee is a toy compared to the SD. It sounds very good but the build quality and the software is not good.

[@annekedebruyn7797]

The MKH50 sounds so natural and pleasing. I disagree with a few comments saying the MKH416 sounds neutral. It's anything but neutral (which isn't a bad thing.)

[@VM-oi3dk]

The 50 sounds better with the high pass filter on. You can hardly tell it apart from the 416.

[@benjaminpittsmedia]

Thanks for this review. The MKH 50 sounds much brighter in this environment. It would be my preference for indoor dialogue.

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

Thanks Benjamin. Couldn't agree more! Thanks for watching and commenting. Much appreciated.

[@xaratemplate]

@@TheUnMarketingGroup Would a dynamic mic like Electrovoice be better for rejecting noise for indoor dialogue or would the MK50 or 416 be better choice?

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

Well now that’s a great question. I think in this use case it might if you don’t mind seeing it is the frame as I understand dynamic mics like the RE20 or SM7b perform best when positioned relatively close to the talent’s mouth.

[@wcsdiaries]

@@TheUnMarketingGroup mkh50 or 8050?

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

@@wcsdiaries Great question - I've never had the pleasure of using the 8050 unfortunately so I honestly can't say.

[@helloianzakharov]

Great review. Wish to hear 8060 there. I bet it is in the middle between 416 and 50 in sound character respect.

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

Yes, also heard good things about the 8060. Maybe Sennheiser will send me one to test? 😉

[@Chasjazzez]

The MKH50 has more emphasis on higher mids... The MKH416 still wins due to the more neutral presentation. But it's a close call.

[@Slipsch]

You put the MKH50 to far away, I know you are trying to match where the capsule sits on the MKH416 but that's not real life scenario. In real life you'll try to boom just outside of the frame, so technically the MKH50 capsule can be closer to the sound source which improves the sound even more.

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

Thanks for your feedback!

[@The_Daliban]

Great video!Thank you🙏🏻

[@daltonrandall4348]

Nice test, but what are your thoughts? There's zero analysis here. You didn't even tell us if you kept the mic.

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

Hi Dalton. Yea, you're right - didn't actually say much myself did I. Yes, I have both the 416 and 50 and I use them both frequently. The 416 is my workhorse and is almost always on the boom pole in a blimp. But I prefer the 50 when recording in smaller quiet rooms. I find the off-axis sound rejection of the 416 slightly colours the sound when there is reverb from walls close by. But the 50 is incredibly clean in these situations. I do find the 50 is susceptible to handling noise so the built in low-cut is helpful. I also find that it needs a tad of EQ on harsher sibilant voices to just pull down the upper mids a bit. You also need to be mindful of where it's pointed - too high up and you get a lot of breath noise. But like my children - I love them both.

[@daltonrandall4348]

@@TheUnMarketingGroup thanks. That kind of insight would be helpful in future videos. 👍

[@protoman247]

HD 598s in black on the desk?

[@ThisHandleIsInteresting]

Solid state microphones are the BEST kind build wise.

[@VM-oi3dk]

It’s hard to tell in such a reverberant room

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

Good comment. Thank you.

[@astralaudio101]

Why the huge price difference between the 416 & 50?

[@TheUnMarketingGroup]

Is $200 a huge difference? If so, I really can't say why. For my use I found I needed both as they are each optimized for different use. In my opinion, the 416 is a solid choice if you need a mic that is going to do a better job at a isolating dialog from noise from the sides. And the 50 is a generally a better indoor dialog mic.

[@MARZILLI]

I have both the 416 and the 50 and together they are real a great team. I recently picked up a DPA 4017 which is great for BOTH interior and exterior and WOW that is a single mic that BLOWS MY MIND. It’s around $1799 at B&H but it’s worth it... I still have and use my sennheiser 416 and 50 because these companies are very different and when the DPA just doesn’t sound right on a specific voice the sennheiser’s are right there to do job... if you ever decide to add to your Boom/indoor collection take a look at the DPA 4017 and 4018 collection.

[@VM-oi3dk]

Boomy boxy acoustics

[@deivivargas9247]

Mkh50 for voice

[@John-e4p1x]

L E G E N D.

[@John-e4p1x]

50 sounds pro. The End.

[@ThisHandleIsInteresting]

Solid state microphones are the BEST kind build wise.