Audio-Technica
Introduction
Audio-Technica is a company that has produced some of the world’s finest professional audio products since 1962. Based in Japan, Audio-Technica started as a company that produced turntables, but by the 1990s, the company was producing excellent microphones, headphones and commercial audio products, as well. Their products are known for their amazing sound quality, tremendous engineering and design and their unmatched versatility. Audio-Technica produces a fabulous microphone for every facet of the production of great music and multimedia content creation.
Which products from Audio-Technica that were used by the great engineers and recording studio facilities of the past would be a great fit for the educational space?
I do have to say that as an assistant engineer, I often used Audio-Technica microphones—two models, in particular, the 4033a and the 4050. I have seen legendary recording studio engineers use these two models on drum overheads, piano, acoustic guitar and even vocals. But, Audio-Technica has other fine microphone models including the ATM-350 which is an incredibly versatile microphone, the AT 4041 pencil condenser, the fabulous 5040 and 5045 models and the ATM230 and ATM 250 microphones which are excellent for drums and percussion. I have the Audio-Technica 2040 as a podcast or content creation microphone here at home and it is a terrific microphone model, as is the BP40 which is a great microphone for radio broadcasting.
Image: The Audio-Technica 4033a
Image courtesy-- Audio-Technica
Image: The Audio-Technica 4050
Image courtesy-- Audio-Technica
Image: The Audio-Technica ATM-350
Image courtesy-- Audio-Technica
Image: The Audio-Technica 4041
Image courtesy-- Audio-Technica
Image: The Audio-Technica 5040
Image courtesy-- Audio-Technica
Image: The Audio-Technica 5045
Image courtesy-- Audio-Technica
Image: The Audio-Technica 2040
Image courtesy-- Audio-Technica
Image: The Audio-Technica ATM230
Image courtesy-- Audio-Technica
Image: The Audio-Technica ATM250
Image courtesy-- Audio-Technica
Image: The Audio-Technica BP40
Image courtesy-- Audio-Technica
Audio-Technica 4033a
The Audio-Technica 4033a is one of the very best large diaphragm condenser microphones on the market today. It is a cardiod-only microphone, but it truly does sound great on every source that you might put in front of it. It is an extremely versatile microphone and I have seen great engineers from the past use it on acoustic guitar and vocals— though it would also sound great on other sources, as well. It would be an excellent microphone for the educational space.
Audio-Technica 4050
Much like its smaller sibling the Audio-Technica 4033a, the 4050 is an extremely versatile large diaphragm condenser microphone. The 4050 features three pick-up or polar patterns— cardiod, figure of eight and omni— making it even more versatile than the 4033a, plus, it is an excellent microphone, as well, in terms of sounding great on every source you put in front of it. As I noted above, it is an extremely versatile microphone and I have seen it used on the following sources: acoustic guitar, piano, drum overheads and vocals. Just like the 4033a, the 4050 would be an excellent microphone for the educational space.
Audio-Technica ATM-350
As versatile as the Audio-Technica 4033a and 4050 are— so is the ATM-350, a small diaphragm condenser microphone that features a variety of mounts, so that it can be used to great effect on a wide array of musical sources. Do not let its diminuitive size fool you, this microphone sounds amazing and with its mounting devices can be secured easily to those sources— including: piano, woodwinds, strings, brass, percussion, guitars and even accordions. This microphone would be an excellent choice for an educational space.
Audio-Technica 4041
The Audio-Technica 4041 is a pencil condenser, which means that it is a small diaphragm condenser microphone that can be used on a variety of sources, including percussion and acoustic guitar. This microphone is easy to place on sources, is very durable and sounds fantastic. It would be an excellent choice for an educational space.
Audio-Technica 5040
Though it is a cardiod-only large diaphragm condenser microphone, the Audio-Technica 5040 excels in a wide variety of applications. It is an exceptional vocal microphone and was built for the purpose of recording great music, too. This microphone would also excel on such sources as acoustic guitars, strings and piano. It is a very natural-sounding microphone and extremely smooth. It would be an excellent microphone for an educational space.
Audio-Technica 5045
The long and slender sibling to the Audio-Technica 5040, the 5045 is a remarkable and natural-sounding large diaphragm condenser microphone that can also be used on a wide variety of sources— including drum overheads, percussion, piano, acoustic guitar and strings. It is an extremely versatile microphone that because of its size can be used in a wide variety of recording applications. It is another microphone from Audio-Technica that would be great for an educational space.
Audio-Technica 2040
I have the Audio-Technica 2040 microphone here at home and use it for both podcasting and content creation. It sounds great on any voice and has a very tight cardiod pick-up pattern, so it rejects unwanted noise quite well. I live on a very busy street and have been able to easily work during the day on multimedia projects using this microphone despite the outside noise. It is an excellent microphone for the educational space.
Audio-Technica ATM230
This diminuitive microphone would be an excellent choice for recording percussion tracks. It would be a good fit for recording such instruments as a snare drum or the toms on a drum kit. It is a great dynamic microphone that can take tons of sound pressure— and still sound fantastic. This microphone would be a great choice for an educational space.
Audio-Technica ATM250
The Audio Technica ATM250 would be an excellent choice for a kick drum, bass guitar amp, percussion or even for recording brass instruments. It is also a great dynamic microphone that can withstand tremendous sound pressure levels and still sound fantastic. This microphone would also be an outstanding choice for an educational institution.
Audio-Technica BP40
This great microphone would be an excellent dynamic microphone for a wide variety of applications— including podcasting, radio broadcasting and multimedia content creation. It would also be a great public address microphone and sounds great on any voice. It is extremely versatile and an excellent microphone for an educational institution.
Why should an educational institution invest in products from Audio-Technica?
There is no doubt that Audio-Technica makes some of the finest products in the world of professional music recording. But, the company makes an excellent microphone that can be used for any component of the recording process. Their microphones are known for their natural sound, versatility and dependability. The microphones from Audio-Technica are almost like Swiss Army knives in terms of their versatility as great tools for recording a variety of musical sources— especially the 4033a and the 4050. The microphones made by Audio-Technica are incredibly dependable and will last a lifetime for any institution that makes the decision to invest in them. Their microphones are excellent tools for the educational space. Add to that, Audio-Technica has excellent customer service and will bend over backward quite literally to make sure that you have a great experience with their products.
If you would like more information about Audio-Technica and the amazing products that were discussed in this article, please use the following links which are listed below.
The following link will take you to the Audio-Technica website where you can learn more about this legendary corporation and also, find an authorized dealer for their fabulous products in your area.
Special Note: Each of the images in this article appear through the courtesy and generosity of the wonderful people at Audio-Technica.
Special Thanks— At The Recording Session Vault Educational Website Project, we would like to take a moment to express our thanks and appreciation to Peter Baker at Audio-Technica for his time and assistance with this article.