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Used mkh60 or new 416?


JRL

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Hi all,

I'm a relative newbie and am looking to purchase my first boom mic, either a used mkh60 or new 416, to replace the me66 that a good friend lends me. I do corporates, no TV or film and don't see that changing anytime soon. I also do post mixing so would be using the mic for the occasional bit of foley recording.

I've done some research here but always appreciate any further advice/comments.

I know some don't seem to like the mkh60. I have limited access to both mic's for auditioning tests.

What would you say are the pro & cons of either that I should be aware off. Obviously either will be a step up from the me66, which to be honest has been perfectly fine for the type of work that I do and my clients.

I was going to just buy the new 416 but then the used mkh60 has turned up as an option as it's basically the same price and comes from a good and trusted home.

As above, any thoughts and comments appreciated.

JRL

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Thanks to everyone for your thoughts. I've taken onboard that the 416 is definitely the favoured option so will probably be heading in that direction, but will do my best to try and have a listen to both first.

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I don't know guys...

 

If the OP was never going to purchase any other shotgun (in other words, if you could only have one) I'd think the MKH60 might be a better choice due to it's weight, versatility (attenuation & presence switches), etc.  I understand (for whatever reason) that the '60 is THE mic of choice that Trew Audio sends out in it's "standard" ENG sound packages.

 

Tom

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If I had the choice between 416 and 60 only, I'd opt for the 60 for fictional work, and the 416 for ENG/corporate/documentary.

In relatively controlled fictional shoot surroundings, the off-axis coloration of the 416 is too obvious to me - especially in smaller rooms or outdoors when city background or a river is audible. The 60, and even more the 70, has a very clean off-axis response and will allow my boom op more versatility.

The same strong off-axis coloration makes the 416 a very good mic for ENG purposes where it's about getting dialog over loudish surroundings, not caring about coloration of those surroundings. You can grab out the person you want to hear from a crowd much better than with a mic that doesn't muffle the surrounding sounds.

 

However, you can get good results with both mics in both worlds as long as you know how your mic behaves and work it accordingly.

Buying new has the warranty advantage.

When you start getting more fictional work, you'll probably want to add different mics for int/ext/wide anyway. I started out with just a 416, and now have (and regularly use) two KMR81, a KM185, a MKH816, my old 416, and a few special purpose mics - and an assortment of differently sized and colored lavs.

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Another point in favor of the 416 is that there are very few failures with this mic, it is very rugged and practically indestructible. So once bought, few of us ever get rid of this mic even as we move to better mics with the time, as the 416 is a backup that never fails, as opposed to many more expensive and technically better mics.

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i really like them both.

and agree with peter k and tom b. 

the 60 is very quiet, light and has no handling noise (you can hand hold it if you need to), the switches make it versatile (slightly less so in a modular rycote).

the 416 is great for rain/eng/doc etc. as is the sanken cs3e (which i replaced my 60 with and worth considering imho).

 

dan

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More great comments thank you. It's good to have the reasons for the differing opinions.

Really I just need to, as always suspected, get a hold of each and play/listen to them and make a judgement on what my ears prefer. Currently that's the 60, based on the link that Johnny provide above. While a YouTube clip is not the best source for critical listening, it was a good starting point for me.

Also the lower noise is of benefit to me as I'll also use it for foley recording.

Hopefully I'll have the 60 to experiment with next week.

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sorry, I'm late,  had a weekend gig...

there are other excellent choices,and even as you have already narrowed it down to these two, I suspect you have a favorite already, and are expecting us to confirm it; well, they are both excellent mic's, with excellent sound, excellent reliability, and the subjective, personal choice is yours, not ours.  The good news, there is no incorrect choice!

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Just keep in mind that he's asking about a new 416, with warranty and an assurance of being... well... new, or a used 60 with no warranty, and no assurance of how gently it has been used.

So given that these are both good mics, with many people actually preferring a 416, I think the wise choice is to buy the new mic.

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