AKG D112 vs Shure Beta52

hmmmmm....I like the Beta 52 over the D112. It has a little fatter, none direct sound which seems to give the kick a more round feeling. Pretty much all the AKG stuff has a sort of metallic sound it for some reason.

But the D112 is okay for a budget kick mic. So is the Beta 52. You are going to have to try them both out and see which one delivers the type of sound that agrees with you more.

If you are wanting to really step up, try the EV RE 27 n/d, but prepared for the $800+ price tag also... :D But certainly a big time sounding kick drum mic and is killer for sax, radio type voice overs, overly high and bright horns, and is even pretty cool for lead guitars where you want to smooth out transients.

Ed
 
I didn't say it was my prefered bass drum mic, but prefer it over the Beta 52. In fact, I just sold my D112 (will be shipped-out tomorrow) because it doesn't get much use. I prefer my Audio Technica ATM25 over the D112. And my RTT VM100 or HOPPROD PZM work wonders as the bass drum mic in a 3-mic drum set-up.

I've used, but don't own, E/V RE 20s before and love 'em. Haven't heard a 27 yet, but I'd imagine it sits just above a 20? I'll probably buy a 27 sometime the future because they're such a damn nice, versetile mic. But most likely not anytime soon.
 
Hey RE, wasn't stirring anything up there. Just showing that two professional engineers can prefer totally different mics in that price range is all... :)

Yeah, the RE 27 uses the ndyne element. Has a hotter output and recreates transients a whole lot better. I don't think it is a huge difference, but noticable. If you get a chance to use one even for a day, you will lust it though, so watch out... :D

I agree, I would rather use a AT Pro25 for kick over a D 112. The Pro25 is an often overlooked mic for toms, kick, bass cabinet micing, etc....I think it is a mic that shows the consistency of the AT product line of mics for recording purposes. It seems that AKG is a better bought brand, even over AT, and I am not sure why. Usually the AT's cost a bit less for comparable mics, and they always (almost always) sound better to my ears. It would seem that the 414 is about the only AKG that really shines. Gotta get 2 of those. One to use, and one for me to just stare at while I am working... :D

Ed
 
Didn't think anything of it. Just wanted to make sure Coz understood what we both were trying to tell him. I wanted to clear it up after you posted you prefer the Beta 52 over the D112 so that Coz didn't think one is "better" than the other or "best" for him based on our opinions. They're both to consider, along with a few others, when looking at budgetable bass drum mics.

"If you get a chance to use one even for a day, you will lust it though, so watch out..."

Ahhh!!! You know me well enough to know my weak spot! My keyboard just took a shot just reading over you saying I will lust it.

414s? Oh so beautiful mics. Oh...Um... They sound beautiful too. Was going to buy a matched-pair of 4050s (no longer available?) as my large diaphragm stereo work-horses. They were beat-out by a matched-pair of C414B/TLIIs. Those were beat-out by the two C414B/ULS' from the same lot. I ended-up with a factory matched-pair of Neumann TLM103s.

Just trying to show it sure pays to do audio comparisons. Dealers will doing anything for you before they make a sale. Ofcourse problems are created when there are only a few or less dealers all over the world. Any product and/or dealer you should consider will have a reasonable return policy. After you get it, the quest is on to find somthing in your price range that beats it.
 
I didn't think that 4050's "morphed" as well as 414's. The 414 has a tendency to sound like so many other mics, just a little better... :D But the 4050 is a killer mic for sure. In some cases I didn't care for the increased mids (300-about 800Hz) but all in all they are a jump jaw type of sound for the money. I have not seen them advertised much anymore. Did they discontinue them? That would have been a shame as there really isn't much in that price range that compares too well with them. Plus the way the AT's handle mic distortion is so pleasing to my ears.

Ed
 
My 2c ...

I had the opportunity to try a bunch of kick drum mics before I bought one. Here is a brief overview of my impressions:

:) D112 - OK mic. Fat but kindof peaky in the 2K range but dull above 5K.
:) Beta52 - Again, an OK mic. Somewhat hyped low end but an unpleasant "thwacky" sound that was hard to EQ out. (This is a nitpicky thing, but one thing I didn't like was that if you remove the grill, the capsule is not much larger than an SM57. I felt like I was being duped by this huge mic body.)
:) Audix D4 - Not bad, but a little thin. More extended upper range. Overall pretty natural sounding (can be bad or good depending on the sound you want)
:) ATM25 - Good sounding mic. It falls somewhere between the D112 and E604 in naturalness vs. processed sound. Overall, I liked it.
:D EV 868 - Killer sound. Pre-processed sound from the mic needs little EQ'ing. Sounds almost like it's going through a compressor (in a good way)
:D Sennheiser E602 - Wow! Killer, CD ready sound! Very pre-processed sound. It makes most any kick sound good.

All comments are MHO, so don't get your panties in too big of a wad if you don't agree. When I say "pre-processed", I mean mid-reduction with low end enhancement.

I play and record mostly rock stuff, so my taste in a kick drum sound is a contemporary, rock thump with scooped out mids (-5 db between 250 Hz to 2000 KHz). My kick is a 16"X22" (depth X diameter) Tama with Evans EQ3 heads front and back - no hole in the front head with a towel folded in the bottom touching both heads.

I went with the EV 868 and am very happy. I have recorded several different drum sets and it sounds great every time! That's a real plus if the kick drum you are recording is less than a "drum doctor" prepared monster!

Depending on the type of music you plan on recording, different mics might work better that others. Also, I don't think the EV or Sennheiser would work as well on other instruments (like bass guitars) because of the significant mid reduction.
 
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