Great video, man. The D2 is great for the money. However, after hearing so many samples on RUclips and trying to dial in custom voiceover mic placement/presets for my clients -- I really don't like the D2 for voiceover specifically. On ALL voice types, it's always sounded too dull and like there's a thin towel over it. The 416, however, became popular for VO for a reason. It's got more body, clearer mid range, and a clean crisp top end that the D2 seriously lacks in. For BOOM micing, I don't find the D2 as blah. But for pro VO work, I've never been able to get the D2 to sound GREAT after endless mic positions and EQ tweaks. Thanks again for the great video and putting out honest feedback beyond "OMG, IT'S IDENTICAL TO THE 416 AND IT'S A 416 KILLER!!" Like many other content creators have. :) Take care!
It was pretty easy to pick which mic was which mic from the start. As for true condenser mics being resistant to humidity, that's not usually the case. The difference is that Sennheiser's line of MKH microphones are RF condenser microphone compared to the usual AF condenser microphones. RF condenser microphones are resistant to high humidity unlike AF condenser microphones. This is what makes the Sennheiser MKH line of microphones resistant to humidity.
I bought one, and returned it the same day I received it. I don't know if it's that they send a different mic to RUclipsrs to review than what they sell on Amazon, but the one I received was awful, all the components and the build looked very cheap, nowhere near the sound quality of my MKH416, and a horrible self noise. I was approached by Synco when I returned it to Amazon and left my honest review, and was offered the microphone for free in exchange for changing my review (1 star) to a 5 star review, which I declined. Why I left a 1 star review? Their dishonest business practices, and because the microphone is definitely not for professional use.
This is very interesting. Companies are known to hand out special versions to reviewers. Maybe they send out ones with better components and change the quality for the public. Your one may have been faulty that could have been the issue but for the company asking you to change the review for a free one seems very suspicious. MKH16 will always be the best and it has proven itself decade after decade.
Had the same issue with two separate ones bought directly from Synco. At that price the AT875R is a much better buy. It sounds fantastic, and it's has great rejection for something so small.
Surprisingly very close. I could tell with the 416 is the high end clarity. I really like the Synco a lot for the price. Thank You for video Sir and always keep your socks on.
'for the price' I can easily hear the difference listening on my phone speakers and the cost of the time to try and de-mush B would go beyond the price difference very quickly.
Yes, I got it right. The D2 is more forward and has a harsher top end. They are very similar, and with decent EQ you could probably make them sound much closer. There's just a slight harshness in the presence of the D2. That said, the price is pretty incredible. No complaints.
@FilmPromotor Sennheiser HD-600s and Dynaudio BM-15s with a Bryston amp, so not too shabby. My room isn't great though, but I'm familiar with it. I wasn't aware that I was supposed to assume the Sennheiser to be overly bright. I know it's an industry standard, but that's more of a video production microphone. I do exclusively music. I was debating getting one, since they are sometimes used for VO, and might work on some vocalists. Like maybe it would cut through the mix on more aggressive music.
@@icollided From my talks with a view voice actors and mixing engineers, they basically didn't suggest the Shotgun mics for anything other than situations where your recording space is narrow and you can't do much to treat the reflections as they tend to be a bad choice for indoor recording. That and when you want to afford yourself the ability to stand farther back without it affecting the tone of the recording much. KMS105 is something that's used as a sort of one size fits all because it has a rather narrow polar pattern as well but not as extreme as a shotgun mic.
Great video! I could not tell a difference between the two, but I’m not an audio engineer or audiophile…just looking for a halfway decent boom for RUclips videos and the occasional interview. I definitely cannot justify the price of the 416 regardless, but am interested in the D2. Glad to hear it seems to be pretty good!
With the microphones, the price and the name alone are an influencing factor for the psychoacoustic perception. The Mkh416 comes from a time when tape was still used for recording, where the sound became a little less high-pitched at the end. In addition to the intended use, the Mkh416 actually uses a thick windscreen (dead cat) for outdoor use anyway. Of course, this also takes away a lot of heights. That's why the mkh416 is so treble-heavy. The D2 can even be the better option for high voices when it comes to voice recordings without a windscreen. You can also see this with the Tlm103 and the u87, some people find the Tlm103 to be better than the U87 when it comes to voice recording, but like the mkh416 it is treble-heavy, the u87 (vintage) sounds almost boring raw, but that's exactly what it is makes it so good that it fits so many voices and you can then adapt it to the different voices. If you compare the Mkh416 with an MKh50, for example, you can see how different the sound can be. The D2 could be used for audio books because a softer sound is better than the in-your-face sound from the Mkh416. Some like to use the sm7b or the re20 for audio books, for example, because it's more comfortable for long listening. In the end it has to work for you. Neuman or, I think, Weissklang or Gefell microphones from my home country of Germany are great for the sound industry, not much needs to be done and they sound great. Oh, and by the way, the u47, for example, cost around €390 in the 20th century in the 50s and 60s with the M7 capsule. ;)
People using different mics for audio books is an odd choice. You can just apply a pretty standard voice over roll off and either a few bands of eq or a deesser and achieve the same results. Your audio has to be processed anyway.
Yes, I got it right! Mic B was SLIGHTLY flatter only by comparison to the MKH 416. I had to constantly hear the back and forth of words to hear the difference. I'm using Sony MDR-7506 headphones.
It's generally easy to pick the 416 in any comparison because it has a touch of "laser beam" in the articulation frequencies - less so with the windsock on but to me that's always its defining feature.
One thing you could do to improve the trust between you and customers is to send a mic that will reach customers rather than a curated sample for reviewers that shows it in a light that the end user won't experience on a consistent basis.
Yeah, someone starting out isn't going to buy the 416 and if they don't know how to EQ? If someone needs to, they could easily hire someone to EQ the D2 and pay extra for the screenshot of the chain and what the EQ settings were as well. Still well under the cost. Also considering right now on B&H it's $139 for the D2 right now, no brainer for voice over. Even if you send out the voice, the studio will be able to EQ it easily to fix any minimal issues.
Yeah. I'm listening on my phone and can hear a fairly noticeable difference between the 416 and the D2. The D2 has a bit more information in the mid-range than the 416. I turned the volume down to hear what each mic was bringing forward the most at a quiet playback. The D2 sounded less put together to my ear. I could more easily hear it than the 416 but the character of its sound reminded me of a USB mic. The 416 had to be turned up one notch more to bring out its clarity; however, its mids were more pleasing to my ear than the D2 when they were played back at the same volume. I'm favoring the 416 in this comparison.
Thanks for sharing. I did guess A as the 416. That extra level of detail on the high end was the man giveaway. That being said, I wonder if they could be made to sound near identical with a little EQ? I just listened to a similar comparison with the Sennheiser MKE 600 and the Synco D2 and the same was true only that time the extra top end detail was at the expense of a slightly higher noise floor.
The D2 is great for people who are streaming and need a little extra bass to sound balanced, so it's great for the ladies who are streaming. If you need reference audio and need to balance that bass naturally, it's best to go with the 416. I've got both, I actually prefer the 416 for everything except video conferencing, I'll use the D2 for that. I prefer to keep my stream / video conference setting to a minimum, I don't like using gating unless I absolutely have to, among other effects. I prefer natural sounding audio and using a shotgun mic, cuts out the noise outside of the pickup areas substantially. Mic A is a lot more balanced, which is great for voice over work.
I've got this mic (I picked it up for live streaming and occasional "on set" work) and here are my notes after a couple of years. 1) Yeah, that windscreen s**ks. 2) The pigtail XLR cable they include also s**ks. (I used it once because the colour matched the colour I had selected for the mic on my RCP2. That was a mistake! Yeesh, is that thing cheap.) 3) Yeah, that clip is nothing special, either. That said, it work's fine for my livestreaming setup (boomed above, out of frame) so I use it. I've got a much better shock mount for when it's (very occasionally) on the end of a boom pole 😁. On the plus side, it's a KILLER live streaming mic for folks like me who love to wave their hands about! And while I use better mics for voiceover (United's Twin87 and an Earthworks ETHOS) I wouldn't say it's a bad mic for a VO beginner. Sure, it's never gonna reach MKH416 level of quality, with a little attention in post it'll get you 80% of the way there. And if you're starting out on a platform like Fiverr, you'll be well placed to compete with other novices on the platform. Of course, no mic is gonna make up for poor/no acoustic treatment, bad editing and post processing, and lets not forget, bad performance.
I'm not an audiophile so I don't know the ins and outs but without looking, I could tell when each mic was being used. That being said, I didn't think one sounded better than the other, they both sounded good, just different.
Picked out mic b as the d2 because it had the electret sound common on mass produced mic clones. sounds a little stuffy and like it needs heavy eq to fix it. The windscreen section just sounds a little too muffled which is honestly impressive considering RE320's don't have that problem with the WS-PL2.
awesome video and breakdown man! Not gonna lie, I thought the senn was mic B. I actually really prefer mic B and felt like it picked up the lower range in your voice better, but I don't have a trained ear for this. I just thought your voice sounded better with mic B
I guessed the opposite, since I assumed Shure would over process their mic like they do with the SM 7B and give it more bass. BUT BOTH were close enough that it's not much of an issue.
I was listening while travelling on a tram. But headphones on. And I easily spotted the 416. But I wouldn't be able to hear it were the two not next to one another and alternating.
If you are using a shotgun mic for a professional purposse last thing you want is your mic acting like an rf antenna or not working because of humidity in the middle of the set... it's not just about how the mic capsule sounds.
I don’t think anyone disagrees that the 416 sounds better, the question is does it sound $750 better? Actually scratch that, the current price of the D2 is $170, so the question is is it $830 better ??? I absolutely love Sennheiser but come on.
For professional work, yeah the 416 is worth the extra money. If you're looking to spend $200 on a shotgun mic the AT875R is the only thing to consider. It's bright, but it has a detailed sound and great off axis rejection for a 6~ inch shotgun mic.
Hope you are feeling better. I got a booster and feel gross. Anyway, I have one and it's OK for the money in general usage. About that controversy . . . I don't pay attention to the noise until the dust clears . . . there is a big difference between "The company" doing something wrong and/or immoral and illegal, and some rogue marketing person being an idiot. I think we can all say we have been members of a group or company that had "bad actors." I'm also not giving them a pass, I just want to know the facts. It's a great mic in some sources in some environments. I assume you watched Booth Junkie's review? peace
5:20 Absolutely no difference whatsoever for an average viewer. I am trying, and even struggling to tell them apart. B has just slightly more base + B is also louder. So, I guess B is the expensive one!
I really wanted to buy the Synco Mic instead of the 416 but I felt bad deceiving my vo clients, telling them it's a 416. I mean, if you say you use a Synco, the client might say, "Who?" I do wonder about the reviews and the durability over time. So... I'll live and die with my 416 and not feel bad about it. One good VO job paid for it.
Well for some reason YT algo put this video in my feed and well...I just had to watch and comment. As @calosdavidlocutor did, I returned my Synco D2 mic literally within an hour of receiving it and testing it against my MKH416. Maybe it was part of a bad batch (yeah right). This was literally the worst sounding mic I've ever heard. My AT875r sounds better than this mic.
If you already own an MKH416...this is an absurd buy. In the real world, this thing doesn't even come close to the 416. However...for people that want the versatility of a shotgun mic...it still sounds better than the crappy entry level mics that are all the rage on Amazon these days. Again...not a high bar...
Great video, man. The D2 is great for the money. However, after hearing so many samples on RUclips and trying to dial in custom voiceover mic placement/presets for my clients -- I really don't like the D2 for voiceover specifically. On ALL voice types, it's always sounded too dull and like there's a thin towel over it. The 416, however, became popular for VO for a reason. It's got more body, clearer mid range, and a clean crisp top end that the D2 seriously lacks in. For BOOM micing, I don't find the D2 as blah. But for pro VO work, I've never been able to get the D2 to sound GREAT after endless mic positions and EQ tweaks. Thanks again for the great video and putting out honest feedback beyond "OMG, IT'S IDENTICAL TO THE 416 AND IT'S A 416 KILLER!!" Like many other content creators have. :) Take care!
It was pretty easy to pick which mic was which mic from the start. As for true condenser mics being resistant to humidity, that's not usually the case. The difference is that Sennheiser's line of MKH microphones are RF condenser microphone compared to the usual AF condenser microphones. RF condenser microphones are resistant to high humidity unlike AF condenser microphones. This is what makes the Sennheiser MKH line of microphones resistant to humidity.
Was just going to say similar - the humidity difference isn't electret vs condenser, it's electret/condenser vs RF condenser
I bought one, and returned it the same day I received it. I don't know if it's that they send a different mic to RUclipsrs to review than what they sell on Amazon, but the one I received was awful, all the components and the build looked very cheap, nowhere near the sound quality of my MKH416, and a horrible self noise. I was approached by Synco when I returned it to Amazon and left my honest review, and was offered the microphone for free in exchange for changing my review (1 star) to a 5 star review, which I declined.
Why I left a 1 star review? Their dishonest business practices, and because the microphone is definitely not for professional use.
This is very interesting. Companies are known to hand out special versions to reviewers. Maybe they send out ones with better components and change the quality for the public. Your one may have been faulty that could have been the issue but for the company asking you to change the review for a free one seems very suspicious. MKH16 will always be the best and it has proven itself decade after decade.
Had the same issue with two separate ones bought directly from Synco. At that price the AT875R is a much better buy. It sounds fantastic, and it's has great rejection for something so small.
Surprisingly very close. I could tell with the 416 is the high end clarity. I really like the Synco a lot for the price. Thank You for video Sir and always keep your socks on.
Indeed...gotta keep em warm
'for the price'
I can easily hear the difference listening on my phone speakers and the cost of the time to try and de-mush B would go beyond the price difference very quickly.
Yes, I got it right. The D2 is more forward and has a harsher top end. They are very similar, and with decent EQ you could probably make them sound much closer. There's just a slight harshness in the presence of the D2. That said, the price is pretty incredible. No complaints.
I thought that mic A had too much high end, and Mic B had a much nicer low-mid range. I was honestly expecting mic B to be the Sennheiser. Nice.
The high end is why the 416 is used for commercials. So it's easier to mix on top of music and other sound effects.
@FilmPromotor Sennheiser HD-600s and Dynaudio BM-15s with a Bryston amp, so not too shabby. My room isn't great though, but I'm familiar with it. I wasn't aware that I was supposed to assume the Sennheiser to be overly bright. I know it's an industry standard, but that's more of a video production microphone. I do exclusively music. I was debating getting one, since they are sometimes used for VO, and might work on some vocalists. Like maybe it would cut through the mix on more aggressive music.
@@icollided From my talks with a view voice actors and mixing engineers, they basically didn't suggest the Shotgun mics for anything other than situations where your recording space is narrow and you can't do much to treat the reflections as they tend to be a bad choice for indoor recording. That and when you want to afford yourself the ability to stand farther back without it affecting the tone of the recording much.
KMS105 is something that's used as a sort of one size fits all because it has a rather narrow polar pattern as well but not as extreme as a shotgun mic.
Great video! I could not tell a difference between the two, but I’m not an audio engineer or audiophile…just looking for a halfway decent boom for RUclips videos and the occasional interview. I definitely cannot justify the price of the 416 regardless, but am interested in the D2. Glad to hear it seems to be pretty good!
With the microphones, the price and the name alone are an influencing factor for the psychoacoustic perception.
The Mkh416 comes from a time when tape was still used for recording, where the sound became a little less high-pitched at the end. In addition to the intended use, the Mkh416 actually uses a thick windscreen (dead cat) for outdoor use anyway. Of course, this also takes away a lot of heights. That's why the mkh416 is so treble-heavy.
The D2 can even be the better option for high voices when it comes to voice recordings without a windscreen. You can also see this with the Tlm103 and the u87, some people find the Tlm103 to be better than the U87 when it comes to voice recording, but like the mkh416 it is treble-heavy, the u87 (vintage) sounds almost boring raw, but that's exactly what it is makes it so good that it fits so many voices and you can then adapt it to the different voices.
If you compare the Mkh416 with an MKh50, for example, you can see how different the sound can be.
The D2 could be used for audio books because a softer sound is better than the in-your-face sound from the Mkh416.
Some like to use the sm7b or the re20 for audio books, for example, because it's more comfortable for long listening.
In the end it has to work for you. Neuman or, I think, Weissklang or Gefell microphones from my home country of Germany are great for the sound industry, not much needs to be done and they sound great.
Oh, and by the way, the u47, for example, cost around €390 in the 20th century in the 50s and 60s with the M7 capsule. ;)
People using different mics for audio books is an odd choice. You can just apply a pretty standard voice over roll off and either a few bands of eq or a deesser and achieve the same results. Your audio has to be processed anyway.
Yes, I got it right! Mic B was SLIGHTLY flatter only by comparison to the MKH 416. I had to constantly hear the back and forth of words to hear the difference. I'm using Sony MDR-7506 headphones.
It's generally easy to pick the 416 in any comparison because it has a touch of "laser beam" in the articulation frequencies - less so with the windsock on but to me that's always its defining feature.
My guess was incorrect. Mic B sounded richer/ louder. Therefore, I had thought it was the more expensive mic.
Thank you for the amazing review👍We will keep moving!
One thing you could do to improve the trust between you and customers is to send a mic that will reach customers rather than a curated sample for reviewers that shows it in a light that the end user won't experience on a consistent basis.
Yeah, someone starting out isn't going to buy the 416 and if they don't know how to EQ? If someone needs to, they could easily hire someone to EQ the D2 and pay extra for the screenshot of the chain and what the EQ settings were as well. Still well under the cost.
Also considering right now on B&H it's $139 for the D2 right now, no brainer for voice over. Even if you send out the voice, the studio will be able to EQ it easily to fix any minimal issues.
Yeah. I'm listening on my phone and can hear a fairly noticeable difference between the 416 and the D2. The D2 has a bit more information in the mid-range than the 416. I turned the volume down to hear what each mic was bringing forward the most at a quiet playback. The D2 sounded less put together to my ear. I could more easily hear it than the 416 but the character of its sound reminded me of a USB mic. The 416 had to be turned up one notch more to bring out its clarity; however, its mids were more pleasing to my ear than the D2 when they were played back at the same volume. I'm favoring the 416 in this comparison.
Thanks for sharing. I did guess A as the 416. That extra level of detail on the high end was the man giveaway. That being said, I wonder if they could be made to sound near identical with a little EQ? I just listened to a similar comparison with the Sennheiser MKE 600 and the Synco D2 and the same was true only that time the extra top end detail was at the expense of a slightly higher noise floor.
The D2 is great for people who are streaming and need a little extra bass to sound balanced, so it's great for the ladies who are streaming. If you need reference audio and need to balance that bass naturally, it's best to go with the 416. I've got both, I actually prefer the 416 for everything except video conferencing, I'll use the D2 for that.
I prefer to keep my stream / video conference setting to a minimum, I don't like using gating unless I absolutely have to, among other effects. I prefer natural sounding audio and using a shotgun mic, cuts out the noise outside of the pickup areas substantially.
Mic A is a lot more balanced, which is great for voice over work.
I've got this mic (I picked it up for live streaming and occasional "on set" work) and here are my notes after a couple of years. 1) Yeah, that windscreen s**ks. 2) The pigtail XLR cable they include also s**ks. (I used it once because the colour matched the colour I had selected for the mic on my RCP2. That was a mistake! Yeesh, is that thing cheap.) 3) Yeah, that clip is nothing special, either. That said, it work's fine for my livestreaming setup (boomed above, out of frame) so I use it. I've got a much better shock mount for when it's (very occasionally) on the end of a boom pole 😁.
On the plus side, it's a KILLER live streaming mic for folks like me who love to wave their hands about! And while I use better mics for voiceover (United's Twin87 and an Earthworks ETHOS) I wouldn't say it's a bad mic for a VO beginner. Sure, it's never gonna reach MKH416 level of quality, with a little attention in post it'll get you 80% of the way there. And if you're starting out on a platform like Fiverr, you'll be well placed to compete with other novices on the platform. Of course, no mic is gonna make up for poor/no acoustic treatment, bad editing and post processing, and lets not forget, bad performance.
Excellent side by side test. I couldn't tell the difference with my headphones on.
Could easily pick the 416 with your voice because of the better detail. But I own the Synco and am happy with it.
I knew right from the beginning. The cynco d2 was muddy and had slightly muted highs. However, the d2 did quite well for the price.
I'm not an audiophile so I don't know the ins and outs but without looking, I could tell when each mic was being used. That being said, I didn't think one sounded better than the other, they both sounded good, just different.
Good info. Thanks! Your D2 enhances the low end a bit more, as does mine. I EQ that out but if I had the shekels I’d buy the 416.
I got it right, mic A just sounded great, but B had little artifacts that even I could hear. thanks, I would consider even though.
Picked out mic b as the d2 because it had the electret sound common on mass produced mic clones. sounds a little stuffy and like it needs heavy eq to fix it. The windscreen section just sounds a little too muffled which is honestly impressive considering RE320's don't have that problem with the WS-PL2.
Thank you. Great review
Cheers!
As a owner if the synco I spotted it straight away, the Sennheiser is far more spacial and airy, the synco is rolled off and duller.
awesome video and breakdown man! Not gonna lie, I thought the senn was mic B. I actually really prefer mic B and felt like it picked up the lower range in your voice better, but I don't have a trained ear for this. I just thought your voice sounded better with mic B
I guessed the opposite, since I assumed Shure would over process their mic like they do with the SM 7B and give it more bass. BUT BOTH were close enough that it's not much of an issue.
This wasn't a shure mic. The SM7B isn't processed either.
I was listening while travelling on a tram. But headphones on. And I easily spotted the 416. But I wouldn't be able to hear it were the two not next to one another and alternating.
If you are using a shotgun mic for a professional purposse last thing you want is your mic acting like an rf antenna or not working because of humidity in the middle of the set... it's not just about how the mic capsule sounds.
I would hazard a guess that most people who buy this aren't in that scenario
Boomed from above, I couldn't tell them apart. but for every other test the MKH416 was clearly better.
What do you do with all the microphones you review ? Do you sell them? Im interest 😊
No selling.
Most I keep for later comparisons
Ones I don't need I give away to my family and close friends
I don’t think anyone disagrees that the 416 sounds better, the question is does it sound $750 better? Actually scratch that, the current price of the D2 is $170, so the question is is it $830 better ??? I absolutely love Sennheiser but come on.
For professional work, yeah the 416 is worth the extra money. If you're looking to spend $200 on a shotgun mic the AT875R is the only thing to consider. It's bright, but it has a detailed sound and great off axis rejection for a 6~ inch shotgun mic.
I didn't try to guess, but Mic A did sound better to me.
I was wrong. 😬
Hope you are feeling better. I got a booster and feel gross. Anyway, I have one and it's OK for the money in general usage. About that controversy . . . I don't pay attention to the noise until the dust clears . . . there is a big difference between "The company" doing something wrong and/or immoral and illegal, and some rogue marketing person being an idiot. I think we can all say we have been members of a group or company that had "bad actors." I'm also not giving them a pass, I just want to know the facts. It's a great mic in some sources in some environments. I assume you watched Booth Junkie's review? peace
Yep...his was the first I saw
5:20 Absolutely no difference whatsoever for an average viewer. I am trying, and even struggling to tell them apart. B has just slightly more base + B is also louder. So, I guess B is the expensive one!
A mkh416 lets see if i was wrong
I really wanted to buy the Synco Mic instead of the 416 but I felt bad deceiving my vo clients, telling them it's a 416. I mean, if you say you use a Synco, the client might say, "Who?" I do wonder about the reviews and the durability over time. So... I'll live and die with my 416 and not feel bad about it. One good VO job paid for it.
Problem with that is...a good ear CAN hear the difference.
When working professionally...always good to be honest...else it might bite you bad
@@DarkCornerStudios Amen. And when it does bite you... It may just ruin your entire career.
Nope... Couldn't tell!
Synco is a great mic for $159.
48 seconds in and I bet the A is Senn, B is Syn.
5:34 into it... yay... I was right (for once)
A just lots of details, b sound nasal
Well for some reason YT algo put this video in my feed and well...I just had to watch and comment. As @calosdavidlocutor did, I returned my Synco D2 mic literally within an hour of receiving it and testing it against my MKH416. Maybe it was part of a bad batch (yeah right). This was literally the worst sounding mic I've ever heard. My AT875r sounds better than this mic.
If you already own an MKH416...this is an absurd buy.
In the real world, this thing doesn't even come close to the 416.
However...for people that want the versatility of a shotgun mic...it still sounds better than the crappy entry level mics that are all the rage on Amazon these days.
Again...not a high bar...