The U87 has that lower midrange punch and radio excitement..the 4060 sounds like a shelf EQ on the top. I'd have to De-ess this more often. Keep in mind that the voice is off axis from the capsule and they are not aligned either. And of course one mic may mate with the preamp used in the test better. It's still fun to hear the consistent differences. Thank you for posting this! :)
Both microphones are fine. Buy them both and you will be happy. I have AT 4060 made hundreds of records on it. It sounds great. I've also worked with the N U87, it's also great but they're a bit different. Both of these microphones are in the TOP 5. In general, there are not many microphones.
No they are not in the Top 5. Listen to a good C12, M49, ELAM 251, U47 or U67 and tell me that they sound less emotionally engaging than the AT-4060 and I bet you will question your own words.
interesting. on the male voice, I had no preference. on the female voice, I heard a much bigger difference... maybe I preferred the 4060 there? though I felt each mic had strengths and weaknesses on the female voice. IDK
Low end is nice on both, maybe more open on the 4060, but listen to "shh" sounds on the AT4060... Not harsh, but less smooth than the silk of the Neumann.
For an AMTRAK read, they're both fine. Good enough for government work. And in that case, I'll take whichever one is most expensive, and impossible to repair, as long as I get my 10% for the Big Guy.
Thanks for this. I have an AT4060 and there's a certain reedy-ness in the high mids, and as someone else noted, it is possible for it to sound harsh in certain types of singing/singers. I dont think these mics sound similar at all.
Now Neumann has out a new mic called the 89i guaranteed to kick ass on the old 87ai. Better sell yours soon before every store slashes it's price and you have so much less to brag about. 4060's the way to go but they now make a 4060A.
They almost sound the same thanks for doing this comparison. The AT is 50% cheaper than the neumann. Neumann sounds a tad bit better as expected for a $3k mic. Only Reason why I can hear tiny frequency coming from AT4060. I'm listening to this with studio headphones on.
Virtually identical. AT had a small sibilant issue and ever so slightly boomier in the bottom end, which would frankly be shelved out in practical usage. However, if you didn't know the mics were being switched you would not notice the difference.
Ньюмен 87 просто божественный звук который очень мягко срезает все свистящие звуки в голосе, сибилянты у ноймана напорядок лучше и приятнее на слух сам голос чем у аудиотехники паршивой.
U87 waaaaay better, 4060 has that nasty 2D grain in the 1k to 7k (which you cant eq out btw unless you squash it with compression hard) that the at4040 and the at4050
That is the frequency area where microphones will start to break up indeed. Many mics just don't capture the response and resolution of those higher frequencies well. Small diaphram mics do better in this area. Schoeps microphones have gorgeous upper detail.
+Jason Grady We just finished recording a voiceover demo of a female talent (who is tremendously smooth) and the bottom end of the 4060 worked extremely well on her voice. The 87 only was used on 2 of her spots over all as it didn’t quite work well enough with her. So that’s. plus one in our book.
Wow! I have owned the U87 and the 4050 not the 4060 and used the avalon 737, BAE 1073, API with them. I heard a very slight difference on the 4060 in the high frequencies. I am about to buy a 4060. I am listening on Focal Solo 6Be monitors through the D-Box by Dangerous Music. From my experience, if money is a concern, buy the 4060 and get a Neumann later on down the line. Don't let the gear prices stop you from making music. As you become a better engineer and performer, you can get better equipment. 4060 FTW!
4060 is a nice mic. Take a look at the Townsend Labs Sphere L22 also for its versatility. It sounds great on its own and its emulations are very good (listening on Neumann KH310's).
@@voscripts I purchased the 4060 since we last talked and it does an amazing job! Just did an acoustic project using that mic on all tracks except for the back of a cajon. I will check out the L22.
+Lariviere Rock Band We find that the 4060 is really easy to eq when needed. It’s nice that the high end isn’t so shrill which allows us to boost the air without issues. Thanks for listening!
