Sennheiser - MD 421 II

I held the same opinion until recently. I've got 2x 421 ii's and 2x 421 u's. I'd only ever used the ii's on toms and was never really stoked, even given the reputation of the mic. I decided to finally try the u's on my last session and they are decidedly better in my opinion. Totally agree that they are big and clumsy, though!

421s for toms. Bad bleed rejection, clumsy and big, nothing special about the sound.

with you both on that. Was never happy with them on toms. Cool on kick drum though.

Not sure which model 421s I've used....I know the ones that I've mostly used are from the mid 1990s. Maybe that's a 421II? Anyway, what's the difference between a II and a U? And yeah, 421+fet47 is pretty darned good.

i love a 421 in and a fet47 style mic out on a kick. bonus points if its the 421u, but the IIs are honestly fine cause the bleed inside the kick isn't as bad, and the presence boost is just kinda what i'd do anyway. its not as scooped and sculpted as most other kick specific mics though, which gives the 421 the edge for me in the studio. it's also cool on it's own if you're going for a more vintage sound with out as much sub in the kick. they take EQ well on the low end, so you can put a big ole 60hz shelf into them to make them nice and fat, but they still feel tighter than some other mics that emphasize low end by design. \*i know i contradicted myself like 5 times there, i swear it makes sense in my head\*

Thanks for adding this even though it’s slightly off topic. I play flute, whistle, and sax with a loud fantasy metal/rock band. (I’m near St. Louis seeing your user name maybe you are too - how do we not know each other? lol) Currently using tomasi micro-cork for flute for better isolation (tone suffers a bit but effects cover it) and Sennheiser MD 421 vocal mic for whistles. Whistle mic has some bleed from cymbals but picks up lows well. I’ll have to compare it to the one you listed!

I can’t tell a difference in a live setting between a regular 421 and the compact. The only difference I see is the selection ring, the Kompakt does not have a low frequency cut off selection and is optimized for drum tone. So if you use the roll off function on a normal 421 the you will see a difference

You need an SM57 , an Audix OM5. You can do just about anything with that pair, vocals or single mic instrument. The next mic I'd consider is the MD421. It's the perfect compliment to the 57 on guitar cabs, records toms like nothing else & can really cover just about anything. Everyone gets the bug to get a large diameter condensor. They are amazing. Pretty useless unless you have a good space for them, though. Id wouldn't get too hung up on that, right away. But, keep your eyes open for a sure KSM32, on the used market. A great mic. Highly underrated

Sennheiser MD421. You really can't beat it for real world, full range sound, from a dynamic mic. You'll need a little patience & practice, plus a good pop filter, for vocals. But, it's a great mic for just about anything

At home a dynamic mic works best for me. Audix OM5 is my choice right now. I've also used an Electric Voice PL76. However, they are a bit obscure & problematic. & It's a condenser. More expensive choices are out there. M88 TG by Beyerdynamic is a great mic. I've used an MD421 but, it's a bit "poppy". Depends on what & how you are using it for. I love the old standards Shure SM57 & SM58 but they can be a bit flat sound for recording vocals.

I have a black one. NEVER connected with its sound, and I’ve had one for 25 years. BUT the original beige ones are very nice.

421 with a good sounding drum and preamp I think sounds great on a tom, but those sound best an amp paired with a ribbon. Re20 sounds good on a kick, great on a floor tom, particular vocal, or bass cab. Sm7b through a dbx160 makes all the difference. SM58 as a talkback drum mic squashed can sound great. I’ve made a lot of records and those mics are work horses for a reason.

* TLM1xx would be on my list too - I think they sound "cheap in an expensive way", if that makes sense. * The SM57/58, largely because it *cannot* be as versatile as people ascribe. I still have people regularly tell me "you can track a whole album with it!" when you could do that with any mic. And there are other dynamics I like more, just as durable and sometimes even cheaper (though usually not, I'd always take an m201 over a 57 for instance). * On that same sacrilegious note, I don't like the U87 much, either (Ai or original flavor). I'm not going to say it is a *bad* mic, and I've owned three over time, but there's a reason I don't own one anymore. Like the 103 (which I actively despise rather then merely dislike), there is something about them that sounds like a stripper driving a Bentley to me (weird analogy, but I think it gets the point across). * RE-20 is too big and can be hard to get to sound right. Don't love or hate it, and I do have one, but people are way too attached to it. * Same goes for SM7, with the caveat that it *only applies for VO*. For music the SM7 can be great, I'd usually grab one over a 58 or RE20, but it is a tricky bugger for VO. * Neumann pencil mics (KM8x/18x) are just not that great compared to a lot of modern versions. It isn't a tech with "vintage prestige", the manufacturing has improved, so the KM184 in particular just comes off as overpriced, even compared to the *actual* industry standard SDC's these days in Schoeps, DPA, and Earthworks (and so on). I prefer either pure or colored SDC's, and the Neumann doesn't do either. * I have never understood the appeal of the MD421. One of the few mics I refuse to own/stock because of its idiotic mounting clip, and I just think other similar mics are better at doing what it says it does. * Pretty much every "unobtainium" mic is overrated, to me - yes, a great U47 or 251 is a really cool thing and piece of history, but you can get similar results with other mics. But I'm something of a "vintage-is-better" iconoclast... I'm sure there are more, and I know it sounds like I'm picking on Sennheiser/Neumann, but really every "hyped" mic has been a disappointment to me and those happen to be the ones people strive for so are more prone to being overrated.

Is it, though? It is fine. I've used one a few times. I personally don't think it is more "amazing" than the similar PR-30 or Beyer m88, which both are far more convenient to work with and robust. 65 years ago when it was introduced there weren't too many large-diaphragm dynamics available, and it has stuck around as a "classic", but that doesn't mean that the weird design decisions made in 1960 shouldn't have been improved. That mic clip is just a bad piece of design, and it is hardly a unique sounding mic! I feel much the same way about the Coles ribbons, specifically about the 4038. Great sounding - and in that case, more unique - but the weird hoops you have to jump through just make it not worth the effort. But I'd use a 4038 before a MD421, since I don't even really like the way the 421 sounds! FWIW, on guitar cabs, my go-to mics are PR-30, m201, m160, KSM313, and OC818, sometimes a Schoeps for clean tones.

Personally, I can't stand using 421's on toms - that's how I was taught, too! Once I started using other options - specifically LDC's, though my go-to setup right now is Earthworks SDC's on goosenecks, though I really want to try the newer Lautens - I never looked back. Don't get me started on how awful that 421 bleed sounds on toms... But also, to be honest, I generally avoid dynamic mics (other than ribbons) these days, on most things. Aesthetic choice, I suppose. I have a good-sounding room, and I find better results on most things with less colored mics (ie, condensers) - especially when bleed comes into play, which it often does for me doing live-in-room stuff.