A Legend Streamlined: Sennheiser Unveils MD 421 Kompakt

Sennheiser is looking to the future with advanced wireless microphone technologies. But the German microphone manufacturer is also looking to its past for inspiration and to maintain its products competitive in today's market. The new MD 421 Kompakt is an appropriately named, compact version of one of its most legendary microphones, the Sennheiser MD 421. This redesign doesn't compromise on the performance of its large-diaphragm capsule, making the MD 421 Kompakt an even more versatile dynamic microphone.

Experienced audio engineers, particularly in live sound situations, know how valuable and how much of a time-saver a specialized microphone can be. That is why manufacturers offer microphone kits that combine the best options for specific applications. And no area is more explored than drum sound. Earthworks is a recognized name in microphones for studio and stage but never offered a model specifically targeted for the critical kick drum sound. Now, it launched the DM6 SeisMic.

Unveiled at NAMM 2023, the new Audix PDX720 professional dynamic studio microphone is an important expansion for the company's catalog, adding a flagship studio microphone. The PDX720 is designed for the most demanding studio recording applications in commercial and project studios, but could see valuable use in professional podcasting and voiceovers. According to Audix, the PDX720 excels on vocals, drums and musical instruments capture.

With its wide variety of UniMount mounting systems and capacity for handling extreme SPLs, the new Audio-Technica ATM350a cardioid condenser microphone was purposely designed to answer the needs of musicians and audio engineers dealing with capturing of musical instruments. The microphone’s cardioid polar pattern protects against feedback by reducing side and rear pickup, while the switchable 80 Hz hi-pass filter on the in-line power module helps control undesired ambient noise.