Recording - October 2017 - 53

Compared to the AT5040, the
AT5047 boasts an even better dynamic
range. Audio-Technica claims that it's the
best of any mic they have ever made.

Sound

While I don't have an AT5040 on hand,
I pulled up some sessions cut when I had
it and compared them to new recordings
with the AT5047. The two, while similar in
depth/detail, are very differently weighted
in sound. Interestingly, their frequency plots
look similar; A-T says this is likely because
those are measured with sine waves rather
than complex, dynamic musical content.
Billed as a vocal mic, the AT5040 is really a thing of beauty on vocal cords, but it is
also one of those open, clean, and detailed
mics where everything that is good and
magical about it also makes it a tad persnickety. As I mentioned in that review, on
instruments it is best described as "fussy"; in
the wrong space on the wrong instrument,
it will probably be the wrong mic.
By contrast, the AT5047 exhibits a
very nice yet modern transformer weight.
And it is not just a touch more forgiving
than its sibling-it's a lot more forgiving!

Most noticeable is its low end/low
mids, which have a gentle satin-like
sheen that is gorgeous, combined with a
subtly smooth top end. I used the AT5047
to track a few pre-production demos of
acoustic guitar and female vocals; even
without any EQ or compression, the
artists and I were very impressed by the
sound, especially on the vocals, which
had a more saturated character than I
remember from the AT5040.
In session use, the AT5047 stacks
incredibly well with itself, making it a
nice one-and-only studio mic, especially
with acoustic instruments like acoustic
guitars, cajon, hand percussion, fiddle,
and drum kit when used as a front of
kit/room mic. It was also nice on an
Ampeg 2x10 bass cabinet, and even
worked well on kick drum when angled
down slightly to lessen air thump.
The words that come to mind are full
and lush, yet this mic does not come across
as overly colored. Like the AT5040, it still
has a very clear hi-fi sound to it.
Like its 50 Series siblings, the AT5047
has a neutral off-axis rejection that rolls
off quickly. Up close it also has a very

tight sweet spot that can change fast,
especially as a source moves up or down.
However, this is one area where thanks
to its extra smoothness and weight, the
AT5047 works great at a distance. You
don't need to be right up on the mic-it
still sounds full and rich on instruments a
few feet away, thus making its up-close
narrow sweet spot less of an issue.

Conclusions

While the AT5040 was (and still is)
unique and impressive when it was
launched, the AT5047 just edges it out as
the most beautiful, boutique and hi-fi microphone that Audio-Technica has ever built to
date. This is that good of a mic, and sets a
new benchmark for the company.
The "47" designation is not lost on me,
either, especially as it compares to the company's own AT4047. While the AT4047
invokes classic FET mics of the past, the
AT5047 is a FET mic of the future.

PRICE: $3499
MORE FROM: Audio-Technica,
www.audio-technica.com
http://www.audio-technica.com http://cras.edu/gainful-employment
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - October 2017
