Audio-Technica AT8441

Shockmounts are pretty necessary in the studio. They isolate the microphone from the stand, creating a buffer that the vibrations can dissipate through. This allows the microphone to avoid picking up the noise of the room’s vibrations, be it foot-stomps, drum-kits, anything. It all gets dispersed through the elastic.

That said, there are different kinds of shockmounts, and different kinds of ways they are designed for a microphone to be mounted on them. There are the ever-reliable proprietary shockmounts that come with the microphone or are designed specifically for them. These shockmounts usually involve screwing the microphone into the base. The makes them extremely reliable in terms of holding the microphone up.

There are also shockmounts designed to clamp down on a microphone. These are also quite reliable. They aren’t quite as sturdy as the screw-on ones, but they get the job done well-enough. These are wonderful, because they work with a wide variety of microphones.

Then there is the kind of shockmount that this is. This doesn’t involve screwing on the microphone. This doesn’t involve a night, tight, clamp. The AT8441 has two elastic bands that hold the microphone in place. Does that scare you? Me too. The isolation of the AT8441 is actually quite phenomenal, but unfortunately, it doesn’t exactly hold it in there very well. The only reason it works is because it contours around the protruding Audio-Technica logo on my AT4033. Because of this, I would advise against using it with any other brand of microphone even more.


OVERALL OPINION

And don't even think about turning it upside down. I've had many, many, many close calls with my precious AT4033 because of the rather badly-thought out design of the AT8441. Do yourself a favor and only use this shockmount if you have no other option. I'd recommend buying a separate clamp shockmount entirely.

It isolates well, but what good is that if you're living in constant fear of losing a several hundred-dollar microphone in about half a second? Be very careful.

The Audio-Technica AT 8441 is a shock mount that is designed for use with a few different microphones. I've used it primarily with the Audio Technica AT 4050 microphone, which comes with the AT 8441. However, there are a variety of other microphones that this will work well with - both Audio Technica mics and otherwise. On a few different occasions I can recall using this shock mount with other non Audio Technica microphones for lack of a proper shock mount.

OVERALL OPINION

I didn't buy the Audio-Technica AT 8441 on it's own, but I believe that is sold separately from a microphone if you want to buy it on it's own. Of course it comes with a few different Audio Technica microphones as well, which is where I would imagine most people will be getting it from. I can't remember exactly what other microphones I've used the AT 8441 in terms of non Audio Technica microphones, but the way that it is built makes it easy to adapt similar sized microphones to it. I wouldn't buy it for use with an unapproved microphone, but it's definitely something that you should know if you've got the AT 8441. It's a sturdily built shock mount, as the elastic strings make it so that you're microphone won't be affected by any movement on the floor or any rumbling, which can affect what the microphone picks up. I don't know what kind of price this would command if you wanted to buy it without a microphone, but again I'd only recommend doing this if you've got an Audio Technica 4050 or another microphone that is designed specifically for this shock mount. Overall, the AT 8441 is a nice shock mount to have around for it's versatility, but again I wouldn't recommend it unless you have Audio Technica mic to use it with.