Audio-Technica AT 4053B

So good

Best mic I’ve ever had! Great self-noise, very rich sound, never had any problems with it, really great. Comes with an hold-arm and a windshield, which is nice. Can’t name any downsides!

Very good for indoor dialog recording !!!

Very good for indoor dialog recording !!! After I found why my shotgun mic did not do well for indoor dialog recording and I can use this one instead.

I selected AT4053b after saw and read many review and I agree with them. It built sturdy, nice craft. It captures full body sound, solid low and clear mid-high and affrordable. I love this mic.

High quality without being crazy expensive

I think this is a great hypercardioid for someone who wants super results without stepping up to the ultra expensive Sennheisers and Schoeps. It doesn't have the same RF shielding and SNR as the expensive counterparts, but it still comes with a DB cut and HPF. The case and packaging are quite nice, not too large. I'm likely replacing my Deity S Mic 2S, which is a very short shotgun.

An excellent choice for voice in a smaller studio

Much as I would love to own a large diaphragm valve microphone, frankly the AT-4053B is a MUCH more sensible option for voice in my small (8m x 8m) studio where I need to allow for my less than perfect mic positioning options and less than perfect sound proofing. The AT4053B works perfectly positioned just overhead and pointed at my throat and combined with the Zoom H8N provides a very high quality and likeable end result without popping or sibilance. I've not yet used it for anything but voice but I see no reason why it would not perform well for recording a guitar or keyboard amp should the need arise. Feels robust and well made. If buying with or for a mic stand make sure you purchase the right adapter!

Why pay more?

I'm using this for video audio recording indoors in a semi-dampened room, on a Roycotte table shockmount going into a camera-mounted Sony K2M. The shotgun that came with the K2M was sounding too wet.

Great value mic - nice sound, low noise. I listened to the Sennheiser MKH 8050, Schoeps CMC641 and this on youtube ( honestly preferred the sound of this. Sure, I'd much prefer the beautiful wooden case of the Schoeps, to the cheap vinyl case this comes in - but if it doesn't sound better to my ear, I can't really justify the extra. I'd love to try them all with my own voice, but didn't have time & couldn't find this mic for sale in the UK anyway.

To be honest, it sounds a lot better closer to the talent, than I have it. I don't know if the Schoeps or Sennheiser would solve that problem, but it's definitely good enough for now.

Nice that you can change the capsules too if you need a different pickup pattern, just a shame that cardioid and omni are the only options - I'd really like a super cardioid...