Topic: Sennheiser MKH8040

[John Willett]

I've always wondered why so few tapers use the Senn 8040s since they are modular, compact, have a good reputation, and seem to be appropriate for concert taping purposes.

I always say the same about MBHO's

Actually - on the MKH 8000 series the complete mic. is in the head - the bottom bit is just an XLR adaptor with no internal electronics.

Shame that MBHO are not better known - they are excellent mics at a very reasonable price. 

[landshark]

I too have a pair of the MKH8040's, and think they're great, both in terms of sound as well as convenience.  For me, they work particularly well in larger, open venues where the lows can get lost.  I find I can pull a "fuller" sounding recording with these than with my 481's or 483's when taping at a distance, they have good low freq. sensitivity.  That's a double-edged sword, however - if you also record in close quarters in boomy rooms, be sure to get some attenuators.  I have the matching pad/roll-offs made by Senn and they work well, but you can also save some $$$ and just get some generic barrel pads, they work well too.  -10db or -20db if it's really boomy and you'll be fine.

Without the pads, in small venues with a lot of bass, the signal from the 8040's would clip my MixPre, which, considering its generally bulletproof input stage, is insane. 

[jbell]

Do the 8040s have active cables?

[NOLAfishwater]

yes.

[John Willett]

Do the 8040s have active cables?

No - they don't need them.

The head of the MKH 8000 series is the complete microphone, the XLR module is only a passive adaptor to convert the screw connector to XLR and it has no electronics inside at all.

Yes - the series has remote cables and extension tubes - but these are, in effect, just balanced cables.

Only Schoeps have "active cables" with active electronics in the cables.  They need this as the Schoeps heads are just capsules, rather than complete microphones.

In fact the Sennheiser remote cables and extension tubes are all stereo enabled - so, with a Y-cable - you can run a pair of heads down a single cable.

The pictures below show my stereo rig with MKH 8020 heads (though I *do* have 8040 heads as well):-

[newplanet7]

That last shot is sexy.
Dig the nextel-ishy finish on the mics and stereo bar.
What stereo t-bar is that John?
-todd

[John Willett]

That last shot is sexy.
Dig the nextel-ishy finish on the mics and stereo bar.
What stereo t-bar is that John?

The stereo bar is a custom one.

A friend had a few made for his hire company to go with Schoeps mics.

But some came out a little too dark - so I bought one of the dark ones from him as it perfectly matched the dark Nextel of the MKH 8000 series.

So it's not on general sale - sorry.

[cashandkerouac]

the 8040s arrived a couple of days ago.  i knew they were small, but they are even smaller than i expected.  if everything comes together as planned they will have their "maiden voyage" on April 4.   

[F.O.Bean]

the 8040s arrived a couple of days ago.  i knew they were small, but they are even smaller than i expected.  if everything comes together as planned they will have their "maiden voyage" on April 4.   

Congrats and best of luck

[AB52]

What would be the best windscreen/ windsock for these mics for outdoor recording.
I really want to get rid of the wind problem.
THANKS,
AB

[hi and lo]

The pictures below show my stereo rig with MKH 8020 heads

[F.O.Bean]

What would be the best windscreen/ windsock for these mics for outdoor recording.
I really want to get rid of the wind problem.
THANKS,
AB

Shure A81WS bigass shures They will handle your problems w/ wind

[cashandkerouac]

the 8040s arrived a couple of days ago.  i knew they were small, but they are even smaller than i expected.  if everything comes together as planned they will have their "maiden voyage" on April 4.   

well, the stars didn't align on 04/04, so now i'm hoping that i can put these new mics to use on 04/07.  quick question for those who have experience with the 8040s... would you recommend an X-Y, NOS/DIN or AB configuration for these mics?  i recorded some home samples over the weekend and found the NOS/DIN configurations better than X-Y.  however, i was surprised to find that the AB setup also worked very well (despite the fact that these are cards not omnis).  granted, my samples were made under circumstances that do not match with a concert environment, but its the only live test data i have to inform my decision for the first run.  if there is no clear consensus i'll probably go with NOS/DIN.  thanks in advance.

[notlance]

There is no simple answer to your question.  Whether to use X-Y, NOS, DIN, ORTF, AB etc. does not depend so much on the particular mics, but on the particular situation.  If the mics are close to the performers, I've found the wider spaced configurations (NOS, AB30, AB60, AB120) have that "hole-in-the-middle" sound, at least to my ears.  On the other hand, if you are far away, XY can sound almost mono.  Don't be surprised that the AB technique works with cardioids; AB works with any microphone polar pattern, and you can use the polar pattern to reduce unwanted noise or reverberation.

It seems that you are considering NOS and DIN the same technique.  DIN has 90 degree mics spaced 20 cm apart, whereas NOS has the mics space 30 cm apart.  That 10 cm does make a difference, particularly if you a close to the performers.

Don't worry about what technique to use at first.  Tape as much as you can, take notes (mic configuration, distance from stage, width of performers, hall size, etc) and/or take pictures, listen, and then revise.  After a while you'll be able to listen to the performers in a room and know what technique will probably give you the sound you want.

[cashandkerouac]

There is no simple answer to your question.  Whether to use X-Y, NOS, DIN, ORTF, AB etc. does not depend so much on the particular mics, but on the particular situation.  If the mics are close to the performers, I've found the wider spaced configurations (NOS, AB30, AB60, AB120) have that "hole-in-the-middle" sound, at least to my ears.  On the other hand, if you are far away, XY can sound almost mono.  Don't be surprised that the AB technique works with cardioids; AB works with any microphone polar pattern, and you can use the polar pattern to reduce unwanted noise or reverberation.

It seems that you are considering NOS and DIN the same technique.  DIN has 90 degree mics spaced 20 cm apart, whereas NOS has the mics space 30 cm apart.  That 10 cm does make a difference, particularly if you a close to the performers.

Don't worry about what technique to use at first.  Tape as much as you can, take notes (mic configuration, distance from stage, width of performers, hall size, etc) and/or take pictures, listen, and then revise.  After a while you'll be able to listen to the performers in a room and know what technique will probably give you the sound you want.

"notlance":  thanks for the thoughtful, comprehensive, and very clear response.  it's easy to forget about all the variables that factor into a setup for any particular night.... hall size, indoor/outdoor, distance from stage, stage size/height/band spacing, etc.  i suppose your absolutely right... regardless of the mic, there is no "best" setup or "one size fits all" solution, so thanks for reminding me of that.  your advice is prudent and i will take it seriously. 

i think that similar to real estate a lot of the end result is largely a function of "location, location, location".  if you're in the sweet spot of a venue, slight errors or misjudgement in setup are somewhat forgiven.  due to my background as a musician (amateur, that is), some formal training in sound recording, and good ears i think my best taping skill/assett is knowing where to set up so that i have the best chance of getting a good recording.  now that i have good equipment i'm trying to maximize the benefit of good quality mics/preamps/recorders at my disposal.  nevertheless, there is still a lot of trial and error that will have to happen, and a lot of knowledge and experience that i have yet to obtain.  taping live shows is far different than recording in a controlled studio environment, and more challenging in my opinion.  but it's alot of fun! 

i've greatly benefitted over the years from the wonderful recordings of others - there are few things that i appreciate more than live music - and i want to be able to give back by sharing good quality recordings of my own.  perhaps that's a tad bit corny, but it's the truth.  thanks again for the advice.  cheers!