MXL 4000 Multi-Pattern FET Studio Condenser Microphone

A versatile vintage-sounding mic with clarity and tons of character.

The MXL 4000 Multi-Pattern is a condenser microphone designed around a Class-A discrete FET mic amp specially chosen to match its large diaphragm capsule. The capsule itself has been sized and tuned to provide a silky and airy top end with a full, warm midrange reminiscent of vintage microphones. Hand selected internal components create a sound that enhances both vocal and instrument performances.

Using the polar patterns
To take advantage of the versatility of the MXL 4000’s polar patterns, here are some miking tricks of the pros.

Figure-8
Figure-8 mics pick up sound equally well from front and rear. So, if you’re looking for a rich vocal sound with the added ambience of room tone to add depth and spaciousness, use the figure-8 pattern and have your vocalist sing into one side while the other picks up the reflections of the room. Only do this if you have a good-sounding room. You can also use the figure-8 pattern for isolation from other instruments. For example, if you’re miking drums and want to give the hi-hat it’s own track, position the MXL 4000 so that the side of the figure-8, where rejection is greatest, is pointing towards the snare while the front or rear of the mix faces the hat. Do the same if you’re recording a singer-guitarist who’s playing an acoustic while singing. You need two figure-8 mics for this one. Position the vocal mic so that the side is facing the guitar, and the guitar mic so that the side of the figure-8 points towards the singer’s mouth. Now both singer and guitar are isolated. Again, make sure you do this in a room that sounds good, because the back side of the mic will be picking up the room.

Omni
In many cases, the least used, but best-sounding of all the polar patterns. Omni has very little off-axis coloration, which means that sounds entering the sides of the mic sound just as good as sounds entering the front. If you have a great-sounding room, by all means, try omni before anything else. Omni gives your recordings the impression of being in the room with the sound. It also works very well as the “mid” mic in Mid-Side stereo recording.

Cardioid
This is the most used pattern. It’s basically point and shoot, but keep in mind that you can use it’s rear-rejection to your advantage, or by turning the mic slightly away from the source, you can use it’s off-axis response to tame sharp transients. Aside from straight-ahead recording, most people us the cardioid pattern is the “mid” mic in Mid-Side stereo recording.

Requires phantom power.