Sennheiser has been in the industry since the end of the Second World War. I can only imagine that in a slowly recovering world from a terrible loss of life and property, a little sprinkle of entertainment is much appreciated. The small business boomed into the market giant that is Sennheiser today. With more people making their content rather than waiting for their favorite television shows, there is a need for excellent and honest microphone reviews. For this review, I’ll be reviewing two of their best models with a side of a lesson on how microphones work.
Pros and Cons
The pros of the E935 are:
- Mostly glowing reviews online.
- Inclusion of a clamp in the purchase.
The cons are:
- I found some complaints about customer service.
- Other complaints include the sound being omnidirectional instead of unidirectional, which wouldn’t jive in a live setting.
Pros and Cons
The pros of E945 are:
- More reviews to base my decision on
- Lack of 1-star reviews
- Inclusion of clamp on the purchase
The cons, on the other hand, are:
- Complaints about a stronger tendency to create feedback
- Not recommended for use on live stages, as compared to the E935
Common Features
Both microphones are made by Sennheiser, a leading brand based in Germany. Aside from microphones, Sennheiser also produces headphones and soundbars.
The microphone’s metal is rugged and reliable, with a shock-mounted capsule for low sensitivity and noise handling. Its coil reduces electrical interference. It is made from a neodymium ferrous magnet with boron to keep it stable regardless of environment and weather conditions. They also have a standard frequency range of 40 to 18000 Hz. Each microphone has a typical impedance of 350 ohms and a minimum terminal impedance of 1000 ohms.
The microphone has a rigid blue-black wire mesh atop a smooth black body tapering from the head. The Sennheiser logo and the product number are stamped near the bottom in white. The connector is XLR-3. Sennheiser offers a warranty for their products for two years from the date of purchase.
An ideal microphone for film, television, and stage use is a cardioid or unidirectional microphone. Cardioid is one of the three classifications of microphones according to polar response, which is how a microphone picks up sound.
Omnidirectional picks up sounds from all around the microphone. Bidirectional microphones are sensitive at the front and the back. The unidirectional or cardioid microphones pick up sound from one direction and reverberate it at the end. Cardioid is further divided into four classifications, namely cardioid, hyper-cardioid, super-cardioid, and shotgun. In this review, we will be reviewing cardioid and super-cardioid microphones.
Cardioid vs. Supercardioid
To understand what these words meant, I looked at this blog named My New Microphone. To my comprehension, sounds coming from one direction travel through the microphone system and make the sound compact. To achieve this, there should be a null point where the sound is canceled out, making it more concentrated. I found it hard to understand, but I tried, and that is how I understood it.
Now, cardioid and super-cardioid are different because they have another image when it comes to diagrams. Cardioid looks like an elongated and round heart, while super-cardioid has more of a rounded mushroom shape. These diagrams show the null points of each type. Cardioid microphones have one null point at 180 degrees without any lobes. Supercardioid, on the other hand, has two weak points at 109.5 and 250.5 degrees.
This sounds like nonsense, but it is crucial to choose microphones when it comes to studio use. Logically, it makes sense since you’d want a fair and concentrated sound when you are recording in a soundproof room instead of open areas such as film or television sets. According to the blog, super-cardioid microphones are better in the latter situation rather than the former, and with good reason. Acoustics play a big part in studio recordings. There isn’t much noise to be canceled out; hence the null points of a super-cardioid microphone aren’t needed much in that situation.
Conclusion
This is a hard one to compare since they are so similar. I’m also someone who doesn’t know anything about microphones except how to use them. However, I have to make a decision, and I would have to choose E935.
In my opinion, it is only practical to choose a cardioid over a super-cardioid, especially if it isn’t for public use. Feedback is an issue for me since I have sensitive ears. I don’t like the sound of feedback, and I don’t think anyone does, for that matter. So for this review, I am picking E935 over E945.
FAQ: Frequent questions
? Which is the best?
Sennheiser E935 vs E945 Mics
? How did we test them?
We tested 2 products, researched 12 sources, evaluated 63 reviews and spent 9+ hours on our guide.
? What should you look at before buying?
When choosing it’s best to make a decision based on the price/quality, functionality and compatibility with other devices/technologies.
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