what music stuff are the sennheiser line of microphones good for?

[GSO]

I have the sennheiser e815s. I like it but every time I record things with it(violin,vocals,Guitar etc.) I get a plethora of white noise along with the sound. is there something I could do to reduce the white noise without a room remodel? would a mic isolator + filter do the trick? or would I need a new room? any suggestions?

[Andy P]

Care to post a small snippet of the white noise in question?

[GSO]

here it is:

http://soundcloud.com/caitrin7/violin

[Magellanic]

Sounds like typical noise you get when recording. By the looks of it, its a Dynamic mic which means it excels on high SPL (sound levels) So if you record something acoustic, like a violin etc, its not really the loudest which means you'll hear the white-noise (sound floor).

For example, an electric guitar is often recorded at extermely loud levels which means you really won't here the noise-floor (white-noise). Same goes for a vocalist really. Boy can some people sing LOUD!

If you're happy to just get another mic for the purpose, then look into some condensor microphones. You'll need to have either an interface with phantom power or pre-amp with it.

Edit: If you can get a good healthy level on your violin (or whatever else) you could remedy the problem with a noise gate

[GSO]

so is there anything else I can use my sennheiser e815s for? I'd much rather not throw 70-80 bucks away.

[Darangen]

It looks like they're mainly used for vocals. Seeing that it's dynamic and not a condenser mic, it's probably best for live performance - not recording. That's not to say it can't be used for recording though.

A lot of times noise is accumulated in the room itself, not by the mic. Sound treatment helps a bit, but there is usually always some noise.

Try different mic placements too, sometimes it's just a matter of setting it up properly to reduce the amount of noise you're getting. With dynamic mics it's pretty regular to put them right up to the instrument/mouth. Just make sure your levels are good and you're not clipping and record it as hot as possible so you're getting mostly the instrument instead of the background noise.

[dannthr]

It's a dynamic microphone, you've probably had to pump the crap out of the gain just to get decent signal boosting your noise floor (as mentioned before).

It's good for live because it won't pick up every little detail on stage, but it's power comes from the sound pressure levels themselves actually actuating the diaphragm and sending signal, so they're better for louder instruments or instruments that project sound well (vocals, brass, drums).

(Not violin)

This has nothing to do with it being a Sennheiser brand mic.

I would suggest a Large Diaphragm Condenser microphone if you're going to do a lot of vocal, guitar, and violin recording at home/home-studio/studio.

The Prosumer/lower-end Sennheiser brand LDC would be the MK4:

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/MK4/

A friend of mine who does pro Violin recording in his home has a pair of Shure KSM42s or KSM44s (can't remember which), but I would hire him for a top tier violin recording any day.

At Pinnacle, we have an AKG C414, I really like it for all of those things (guitar, voilin, voice), though I prefer to pair it with a ribbon mic for warmth.