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Published on 06/26/11 at 02:36Shockmounts 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.
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.