Audio-Technica AT875R Line + Gradient Condenser Microphone

These are great mics they are comparable to 416’s not quite as good as 416’s but pretty darn close

I have compared this microphone with much mor expensive Sennheiser mics and, it is extremely close in sound quality overall. The only difference with the Audio-Technical is a slight hiss when absolutely quiet, when nothing is heard with the Sennheiser - hence the high price for Sennheiser.

We have a lot of studio/location mics. This was a surprise - very good at this price point and frankly very good at any price point. This is not going to disappoint you.

I tested this in my semi-anechoic room, for basic quality on frontally presented speech alongside a Sennheiser MKH416 (£700), and found the sound virtually indistinguishable. What was noticeable though was the extreme quietness of the MKH416 in comparison. The Audio Technica is very quiet and I would have said it was silent until I listened to the comparison. Fine for most purposes, but the further away you go the more you will notice the noise compared to the MKH (which is a highly regarded industry standard, just about as good as it gets, and four times the price). Frequency response tests (frontal) for both mics were in good agreement with the manufacturer's specs (which surprised me as so many things fail critical testing). I haven't attempted to measure off axis performance as this is difficult to do meaningfully, and I would expect it to perform as well as can be expected for any shotgun mic (they inevitably give colouration to off axis sound and the importance and nature of the colouration depends very much on the situation you are using them in - expect less problems outside than indoors where room reflections tend to add colouratipn to the original sound as you move away.

Used in a Rode blimp for recording audio for my filmmaking. Very directional and can isolate sounds required very well.

When I first used and listened to the recordings back, I felt I had recorded in a studio with professionals. It is worth having it in your hands for different purposes.

Yes, it can be used as a podcast mic and it does a grand job of keeping the vocals isolated.

Performs well in the space and for the purpose I need. I like the simplicity and light weight.