Sweet Vintage Character

I got this mic a couple months ago and I have been blown away by the quality of the sound. Its got a darker, thicker sound to it than most condensers, which is perfect for a more coloured vintage sound. Vocals sound huge and this is the first mic I've had absolutely no problems with sibilance with! I've recorded acoustic guitar with it, and it sounds great although you'll get a very thick sound as well, so it takes up a lot of room in the mix. I'd definately reccomend it for male vocals seeking a smoother, classier sound.

a terriffic vocal mic

The AT4047 is the best deal for vocal and acoustic guitar use. I'ts got a very warm smoothe un-hyped high end treble response unlike other mics like the Neumann TLM103 ( $1000 ) and Rode NTK ($529 )which quite frankly sound brittle. The AT4047 got a frequency response that's perfect for recording most vocals !!! I like it as much as my Neumann U87 -if not more, and at the price it's a steal. It's built with quality throughout. It's manufactured in Japan, unlike a lot of other high end mics from companies like Blue who have alot of their mics (like the Bluebird and Baby Bottle )manufactured in China. For those of you that have actually used a vintage Neumann U47 FET you will find the sound of the AT4047 is quite similar.....

Unbeatable for the price, and the only choice if you dont have the right room/preamps

Unbeatable for the price, and the only choice if you don't have the right room/preamps (a studio is only as good as its weakest link). I use it mainly for ambient bass drum, or main jazz bass drum. However it excels on male vocals, acoustic/jazz guitar and sax.

Among the best for male vocals, cellos, and other complex bass

Our favorite microphone for a large percent of male vocals. The mic produces a full, round bass, with a lot of detail in the upper end. The characteristic curve drops slightly in the middle, providing a slightly accentuated high end. When used on cello, all the complex upper frequencies are easily heard, but silky smooth. Even used this mic on kick drum with very decent results. Do not recommend this mic for most female singers, though - especially those with sharp sibilance, which may be difficult to control with this mic. For instruments with little or no bass output, this mic may produce an over-active high end.... that is, in our opinion.

Does it all

I have owned my 4047 for about 5 years, I own lots of mics but this one does it all.Great vocals, really nice room mic, perfect second bass drum mic, acoustic guitar........its all good

Warm and smooth

I've used this microphone on a number of sources; vocals, speech, acoustic guitar, kick drum. I don't recommend you use it inside a kick drum, as that use caused damage to mine (but it sounded great up until that point!).

I recorded a female vocalist with this mic plugged into a dbx 386 preamp. Her voice has the smooth softness of Alison Krauss, but a little more sultry (like Diana Krall, but without the "bite"). The mic captured her beautifully, singing a country-bluegrass tinged song. It lent a nice vintagey sound to the recording with its slightly muted high-end, and rich low-end. NOTE, when recording female vocalists, she'll need to back off the mic to about two feet or it will sound muddy.

For speech, it sounded like a person talking. Nothing more, nothing less. I call that a win.

The nylon classical guitar that I recorded with this mic and the same DBX preamp (386) wasn't the right combo for the instrument. While the sound was silky smooth, the resulting recording was a little dull on the high-end. This might be a good mic to use when taming an acoustic that's a little on the bright side.

I used it on the low side of a Steinway grand piano, with a 4050 on the high side. When located in the low sweet spot of the piano, it produced wonderfully rich, rumbling lows, with a very smooth overall character that stayed out of the way of the instrument's tone.

4.5 out of 5... It's not an all-purpose mic. However, on the sources it's good for, it shines through with stunning sound!

Smooth

This microphone is interesting, because it has a very different vibe going when compared to other Audio Technica products. Where other mics such as the 4050 and 4060 are very clean and detailed, the 4047 veers away from that and moves into a more "vintagey" colored sound.

The mic offers a low cut and a pad switch, both of which come in handy on every session. I have used this mic with great success on male vocals, guitar cabinets, and outside kick drum. I have found this mic to work great on smoothing out sibilant singers. "Smooth" is actually a great word to describe this mic. If you need clinical, look elsewhere, but if you are in need of a smooth-sounding, vintage inspired, colored mic, this is your best bet.

Student at SAE, Nashville

I did a 'blind test' on a Rode NT2 and the 4047 on a small guitar amp at my school. The main difference I heard was the 4047 had a slightly thicker low-end to it. On male vocals, the voice is very present, but without harshness... smoothe and thick, too. Threre is a negligible amount of off-axis coloration, so these sound great even when you really back off from the sound source. Bottom line: a great mic worth the price.