# Sennheiser MKE 1 vs. DPA4060



## bessel24 (Feb 12, 2010)

Hi,
as i need to buy mikes for a musical theater i would love to heare if any one has ever tried the mke1 vs. dpa4060 and has a opinion to those microphones.
I will use 16 of them simultaneously with sennheiser ew550 recievers.

Like to discuss pro and contra.

thanks


----------



## Cameron (Feb 12, 2010)

I really cannot see how you could go wrong with either mic. 

The MKE 1 is SMALL. Truly amazing how thin the cable is too. As an A2, that makes my job so much easier. However, I've had trouble coloring MKE 1 as easyily as coloring the 4060. The 4060 also comes in more colors to start coloring with.

Both mics have high-boost caps which can be extremely helpful in situations, but I haven't sat down and compared the response of both caps against each other.

The 4060 has a Microdot connector regardless of the chosen transmitter. Personally, I don't want to deal with another connection/adapter every show.

The only way you can tell is to sit down(with someone else) and listen to one of each and see what sound you like better. Again, neither is the wrong mic. 
Good Luck.


----------



## Dionysus (Feb 12, 2010)

I've used the MKE 1 and liked it, however never used the DPA4060. Another mic that I really like is the Countryman B3 (or B6 which is even smaller). The great thing about the Countryman mics is they'll sell them with any connector you need, and they come in a couple of colours which can be of course tweaked in the usual fashion.

Don't like the description that the DPA4060 only ships with one connector type, if you are not using that particular connector it'd be a pain to use.

Really it comes down to personal preference, price, availability, etc.

If you can, get one of each and try them out, make your decision from there.
You can always keep the other one around if needed, as an emergency spare.


----------



## bessel24 (Feb 13, 2010)

hi,
so i´ve allready orderd one mke1 to compare to the dpa.
Has anyone of you had problems with those really tiny cables of the mke1?
Are the sennheiser really that tough against sweating. I had some MKE 2 that sounded muffled because they where wet when the artist was sweating a lot.

Thanks


----------



## Chris15 (Feb 13, 2010)

I'm sorry folks, but give me a Microdot plus an adapter over say a TA4F any day of the week and I'd suggest also over a 3.5mm plug. I have not ever seen a failed microdot, but the others failing is a regular occurrence. Solid adapters are rarely problematic either. So I'm with DPA on this. Besides, if you can afford DPA, you can afford the adapters...


----------



## Cameron (Feb 14, 2010)

bessel24 said:


> Has anyone of you had problems with those really tiny cables of the mke1?


In my experience they seem to be more "slippery" than the MKE2s(or 4060s) and the coloring paint wears off quickly, but I doubt that is due to the diameter. Other than that there has been no difference in my experience.


bessel24 said:


> Are the sennheiser really that tough against sweating. I had some MKE 2 that sounded muffled because they where wet when the artist was sweating a lot.


No, but it's a cost of doing business. 4060s are the same way; if the actor is especially sweaty, no difference in mic choice will fix that.(other than a boom, 4066) Make sure someone backstage has compressed air and can blow out any moisture during the show.

Enjoy.


----------



## Anonymous067 (Feb 14, 2010)

Cameron said:


> In my experience they seem to be more "slippery" than the MKE2s(or 4060s) and the coloring paint wears off quickly, but I doubt that is due to the diameter. Other than that there has been no difference in my experience.
> 
> 
> No, but it's a cost of doing business. 4060s are the same way; if the actor is especially sweaty, no difference in mic choice will fix that.(other than a boom, 4066) Make sure someone backstage has compressed air and can blow out any moisture during the show.
> ...



Wouldn't compressed air be just as bad for the mic due to the moisture of the compressed air?


----------



## Cameron (Feb 15, 2010)

Blah067 said:


> Wouldn't compressed air be just as bad for the mic due to the moisture of the compressed air?


Simply, no.

I do not know the humidity level of the compressed air(cans) I've used in the past, and couldn't find it online but will assume it is 30%-60%. The point of the compressed air is to clean out the sweat that has gotten into the capsule(and possibly touching the diaphragm). In this case the moisture should really be called liquid, sorry for the confusion. It'll be more like a few mL of liquid rather than some condensation(but that can be problematic, too). A 4060 has a 5.4mm diaphragm and other than piercing it with a needle or smashing it with a hammer, there is little tonal/sonic damage you can do to it, while liquid will play games with the frequency response. Don't be afraid to blast out the liquid, and the muffled sound will disappear.


----------



## Dillon (Feb 20, 2010)

I'll chime in-- both are very high quality mics. You can't go wrong with either.

The MKE1 is truly amazing at how tiny the whole thing is but how robust it really is. There's a strand of Kevlar in the cable to keep it from breaking due to it's tiny size. The reason so many people have trouble coloring it is because the cable jacket it teflon-coated... nothing that I've found sticks to it. Rumors are Sennheiser will be releasing a brown-colored model soon, if they haven't already.


----------



## Cameron (Feb 21, 2010)

Dillon said:


> Rumors are Sennheiser will be releasing a brown-colored model soon, if they haven't already.


Black, Beige, White and Brown. 

And, ugh, the teflon.


----------



## bessel24 (Feb 25, 2010)

so as i mentioned bevore i had both miks ordered to try them. 
As it comes to sound none of them preformed better than the other.
I bought now 20 of the MKE1 because i´ve got a great support of sennheiser during my testing. At the moment i´m doing a show with only 4 of them but it´s a good place to give them a go bevore the show with all 16 gets started.

so thanks again for some good replys.


----------

