Tell me your creative applications of the Sennheiser MD 441

[sears]

That reminds me, we just used it on kick and it was just fine.

Also, look up Tom Petty's Live Aid performance and they're using it on OH for Stan's drumset.

[metanoiastudios]

I've always been intrigued by the 441, having only MD421s, and hearing greater things about the pattern rejection of the 441 as well as its condenser-like quality, all while being a dynamic.

I've always found the 421s to be rather "boxy" or "muddy" sounding, and seems to be one of those mics that sound good only after moderate amounts of EQ'ing (which seems to be what people with D112s end up doing as well). This never thrilled me. Sure, my experience may change overtime as my mic technique improves, but I have had better (and faster) results with other microphones on the same sources I would try a 421 on.

At the expense of comparing apples to oranges, has anyone experienced this sort of thing with the 441, or have you been able to get a sound that's relatively close to what you hear in your head without ridiculous amounts of EQ'ing/processing?

[Recycled_Brains]

At the expense of comparing apples to oranges, has anyone experienced this sort of thing with the 441, or have you been able to get a sound that's relatively close to what you hear in your head without ridiculous amounts of EQ'ing/processing?

I'll put it this way.... Pretty much everytime I've used a 421 on something, I thought it needed some help, and/or struggled to get a sound that I liked. I've had the opposite experience with 441s. With proper technique, application and placement, a 441 sounds fantastic as-is. It's the type of mic that, even when it's not the most ideal tool for the job, it is still totally useable.

[sears]

Handclaps. In my most recent project we did some claps with some LDCs and I can't use them. I'm recutting them with the 441 without the band's knowledge.

[accordion squeezist]

there's a youtube clip of Jimmy Smith Quintet - A Night in Tunisia with about 10 grand worth of 441 on that stage!

[accordion squeezist]

responding to metanoia's query- my 441 usually sounds stiff and dry (hypercardioid?) when I solo the track, but when mixing there's really nothing to fix...provided I didn't have the goddam tone switches backwards which is half the time.