The Transom Mic Shootout: The Answer Key

August 16th, 2006

	Mic	Details	Strengths	Weaknesses
A	Electrovoice RE-50	Dynamic Omni link average street price $150	Easy to use, resistant to wind, plosives and handling noise. No phantom power required.	Relatively low output, picks up more room noise than more directional mics.
B	Rode NT-3	Condenser Hypercardioid link average street price $200	Big, vivid sound, inexpensive. Can use internal 9-volt battery for phantom power.	Very succeptible to wind, plosives and handling noise.
C	AKG C-900	Condenser Cardioid link average street price $100-150	Warm, tight sound, durable.	Hard to find, requires phantom power from recorder or external supply.
D	Beyer MCE58	Condenser Omni link average street price $250	Forgiving omni pick-up pattern, relatively resistant to wind, plosives and handling noise. Louder output than most dynamic omni mics. Long handle.	Can sound thin and edgy on some sources.
E	AKG C-1000	Condenser Hypercardioid link average street price $220	Big, vivid sound, inexpensive. Can use internal 9-volt battery for phantom power.	Succeptible to wind, plosives and handling noise.
F	Sennheiser K6/ME66	Condenser Shotgun (modular) link average street price $500 (for K6 and ME66 together)	Very directional, blocks extraneous sound well. Very light. Mic preamp and capsule are modular, so other capsules, providing different pick-up patterns, can be swapped-out for versatilty	Succeptible to wind, plosives and handling noise.
G	Shure SM58	Dynamic Cardioid link average street price $100	Super-durable, no phantom power required, inexpensive.	Can sound boomy or dull if not positioned correctly. Somewhat succeptible to plosives.
H	Electrovoice 635A	Dynamic Omni link average street price $100	Super-durable, resistant to wind plosives and handling noise (although not quite as much as the similar RE50) very affordable.	Low output, can sound thin, not as isolated from wind or vibration as the RE50.
There are, of course, many more mics to choose from, and we’ll discuss those in Tools Talk Return to Transom Handheld Mic Shootout article.