a question that is difficult to answer on any level
depends: room, artist, content, specific performance, etc.
they are both reasonable mics though the AT runs about $50 more
the ksm44 in cardioid has a slightly more pronounced bass response (even with roll off) and slightly more mid presence (in my opinion) depending on how close vocalist stands, their vocal range, the specific content, humidity and barometric pressure, whether they drank coffee in the morning this can be beneficial
I've used 44 successfully on female vocals but it is not typically first mic I reach for I have a couple of ribbons I like on altos and sopranos and a custom mic with K47 capsule that is great on sopranos (generally speaking) even though in upscale studios I frequently opted to use or rent U87 on female vocals (as opposed to U47)
either mic would make a great work horse mic and if either is only choice in particular situation I wouldn't 'not' use it on females, just cause they are female
In some ways, perhaps because I have a lot more experience with it I prefer the AT4050 over AT4049 but off top of my head I could not even tell you what the technical differences are
Oh, and while some characterize it as 'brittle' I've had reasonable success with AKG C414 (though of current models I'd have to do some digging to figure which I might recommend) on the most recent CD I recorded that was released in Jan I did most of the back up (solo & duo on one mic) female vocals with C414 and most of the lead female vocals with modified ribbon . . . lead was also performing back up so used different mic just cause
but if budget is not an issued I'd probably check out AKG C414 or Neumann U87 . . . you should notice different results with either but auditioning both should provide you with idea of what will work for you
