Sennheiser e609

I've been recording in my home studio for 2 years. I record basically alternative hard rock. I use a Digi001 as DAW, Sytek MPX-4AII as my mic pre, MAudio SP-5b as my monitors. I also have a MXL V69, MXL 990, SP B1, and SM57.

It's a very simple mic as the other reviewers have it covered.
I'm using this mic primarily for close amp miking and I love it! It sounds great! Very nice clarity with no harshness of the uppermids of the SM57. I was considering other guitar mics possibly the MXL 2001 or 2003 as well as the M421 because i wanted to get a better guitar sound instead of SM57 and it works great alone or together with the SM57!

For my purpose I don't see any area that this mic falls short...this mic was design for close amp miking and toms and that's where it excels at!

I would highly recommend this mic for anybody that wants to get great guitar sounds out of their recording! It's affortable and it more importantly it sounds wonderful!!

I've been building, using, and upgrading my project studio for about 25 years.

For the past 10 years or so, I've been able to add pro-quality gear to my studio here and there; mics have been a big focal point. Currently I'm using a Millennia HV3 preamp and a good selection of mics from Neumann, AKG, Earthworks, and others. The recording medium is a PC-DAW running Sonar; the interface is a Tascam FW-1884.

The e609 is a small dynamic mic designed for close-mic'ing guitar cabinets. It's also sold as a tom mic'ing tool but I was unable to test that claim.

Since Sennheiser made such specific claims for it as an amp mic, I thought I'd see if it beat my other mics for that purpose. I don't recall the exact price but I think the mic is pretty affordable.

I played a simple rhythm verse on my Telecaster through a Fender Cyber Deluxe amp and recorded it with the e609 about 8" from the grille. I repeated this step with a Shure SM57, AT4060 tube mic, Beyer M260 ribbon, Electrovoice RE20, and some others. I also took a Direct Out (including speaker emulation) from the amp. I did the best I could to ensure that the playing dynamics and tone were consistent from one take to the next. After recording, I balanced the volume on all the tracks.

The result? The EV RE20 was the winner and one or two others were close behind. The Sennheiser e609 was "one of the pack" but did not stand out. To my ears the e609 sounded closest to the Direct Out track. You decide whether that's a good thing or bad.

I didn't try every imaginable mic placement nor did I change the amp settings to "match" the mics' characteristics. This was a fairly unscientific test but it approximated my normal recording methods.

The upshot is, I returned the mic to the store. If I was shopping for my first guitar cab mic and didn't have some of the others I own, the e609 would be a contender. It seems more detailed than the industry-standard Shure SM-57. Note: not all stores will accept mics for return. Don't assume you can try this mic and take it back if things don't work out.

Been in the industry for 11 years now - been making music for about 15 years of my life. Have significant recording background now running a project studio, and been involved in major label recording atmospheres with lots of fun, expensive toys at my disposal.

Now I am recording to a Lexicon Omega A/D (4 lines in, 2 out) and using the Pro Tracks Plus software, which is like the Big Lots version of Pro Tools.

Monitoring through AKG240DF headphones and a pair of M-Audio SP5B active studio monitors.

I also use this mic live through a Mackie 1604 VLZ Pro, Mackie SRM450 tops, and Mackie SRS1800 subwoofer.

General Description

The e 609 has an excellent transient response. Its laterally mounted capsule has been specially developed for miking guitar cabs face on and extremely close to the signal source. The e 609 is also suitable for drum miking, particularly toms, where the microphone's profile allows the capsule to be positioned close to the drum skin. Sound inlet basket: refined steel.

Features
* Exceptional full-size sound quality
* Very high sound pressure handling capability
* Super-cardioid pick-up pattern provides isolation from other
on-stage signals
* Hum compensating coil

Ok - now that that crap's out of the way, I'll tell you what I don't like: for some reason, this bugger has such a high output gain on it - I think good gain should be a lot lower on there. I have to put the trim on my board at about 11:30 for this thing to be effective. A flawed mic? Who knows. Anyway, this is my review so I'll be blunt.

The best application I have for this mic has been with electric guitar amplifiers and toms, although I have managed some success using it as a trumpet mic.

Overall, with a name like Sennheiser, it's got to be good!!!