Limited-edition Soyuz 017 TUBE V2

Telefunken M81 Supercardioid Dynamic Handheld Vocal Microphone

Dynamic Vocal Microphone with Supercardioid Pickup Pattern and 50Hz-18kHz Frequency Response
Share
Item ID: M81
Telefunken M81 Supercardioid Dynamic Handheld Vocal Microphone
Price:$249 and 00 cents
$42.00 suggested monthly payments with 6 month financing‡ 36 month financing available* with $399.00 minimum purchase on one invoice.

In Stock!

Add to Cart
Sales engineer photo
Ask An Expert

Our expertly trained Sales Engineers are ready to help!

What is a Sales Engineer?
Sweetwater Gear Exchange

Have one to sell?
Check out Sweetwater's Gear Exchange!
Learn More

Complete Your Order
Product Image - This Item - Telefunken M81 Supercardioid Dynamic Handheld Vocal Microphone
Telefunken M81 Supercardioid Dynamic Handheld Vocal Microphone
$249.00
+
+
=
Buy all:
OR
Telefunken M81 Supercardioid Dynamic Handheld Vocal Microphone
In Stock!
Price:$249 and 00 cents
Add to Cart
Add to list
Skip to Description
Most Popular Accessories & Related Items

Frequently Asked Questions

Telefunken M81 Supercardioid Dynamic Handheld Vocal Microphone

Q: What makes the Telefunken M81 a good choice for vocals?

Q: Can the Telefunken M81 be used for instruments as well as vocals?

Q: What does the M81's supercardioid polar pattern mean for my sound?

Q: How durable is the Telefunken M81 for live use?

Back to navigation

This article was Written By

Our Product Research Team

Get to know them!

A Higher Standard of Handheld Mic!

The Telefunken M81 dynamic microphone continues the legacy of the original M80, providing you with minimal proximity effect, maximum feedback rejection, and exceptional midrange articulation. By pulling back the high-frequency response a bit to flatten out its sound, Telefunken designed the M81 to handle a much broader vocal range than typical handheld dynamic mics. You'll also find it incredibly useful for guitar cabinets, snare drums, brass, and pretty much anything else you can throw at it. Live or in the studio, the Telefunken M81 is a true workhorse microphone.

Telefunken M81 Dynamic Handheld Microphone at a Glance:
  • Specially-designed capsule gives the mic a wide, balanced response
  • Remarkably consistent sound no matter what you're plugging into
  • Clear, detailed sound is perfect for vocals or instruments
Specially-designed capsule gives the mic a wide, balanced response

Telefunken designed the M81's head and capsule to reduce the proximity effect created by the supercardioid polar pattern. That means your vocals won't get boomy or indistinct, yet you still get the feedback-fighting characteristics of a directional microphone.

Remarkably consistent sound no matter what you're plugging into

If you're a live performer, you know that it's tough to get a consistent sound every night when you're plugging into a different mixing board each time. Different microphone preamplifiers can operate at different impedance levels, and that affects the sound of your microphone. The Telefunken M81 sports an American made, custom wound transfer that automatically matches impedance, and that means your vocal sound will be consistent no matter what you're plugging into.

Clear, detailed sound is perfect for vocals or instruments

The diaphragm on the Telefunken M81 is super thin, which gives it a fast, un-colored response that captures your sound with incredible detail. Because it's not a midrange-heavy mic like some dynamic mics, it's not just for vocals. You can get great results with the M81 in front of a guitar amp, over a snare drum, or virtually any other instrument that needs a detailed, well-balanced microphone.

Telefunken M81 Handheld Dynamic Microphone Features:
  • Durable, reliable, and great-sounding supercardioid dynamic microphone
  • Clear midrange articulation with tamed highs and minimal proximity response compliments most vocals
  • Consistent supercardioid polar pattern provides excellent onstage feedback rejection
  • Remarkably flat response and smooth transient handling flatters drums, horns, guitars, and more
  • Built tough enough for touring use, yet sensitive enough for studio recording
No mic locker is complete without a Telefunken M81 dynamic microphone!

Resources

Warranty Info

Sweetwater's FREE 2-Year Total Confidence Coverage Warranty

Extra peace of mind at no extra cost.

  • Save money with FREE parts and labor
  • Get back to making music with the industry's fastest turnaround time
  • Fix it the first time with our award-winning, factory-certified Service Department
Learn More about Total Confidence Coverage
Back to navigation

Tech Specs

  • Microphone Type: Dynamic
  • Polar Pattern: Supercardioid
  • Frequency Range: 50Hz-18kHz
  • Max SPL: 135dB SPL
  • Output Impedance: 200 ohms
  • Color: Black
  • Connector: XLR
  • Dimensions: 7.25" x 1.88"
  • Weight: 0.82 lbs.
  • Manufacturer Part Number: SYTM-050

What Makes Our Sales Engineers Great?

Sweetwater Sales Engineers are a world-class team of experts dedicated to you. Hand selected from across the globe, each brings a wealth of experience and expertise in the world of music gear to provide you with unparalleled service completely free of charge. Friendly relationships, real trust, and the right gear are only a call or a click away!

Back to navigation

Reviews

Super warm mic - great for guitars
I highly recommend this microphone for guitars. I haven't used this (yet) on drums or vocals, and will be testing it sometime in the next couple weeks.

I recently purchased this microphone because I wanted a microphone that complimented my AEA R92 mic.

The Telefunken M81 works wonderfully, both on its own, and also when paired with a ribbon microphone.

I've used this microphone with a wide variety of cabinets (Mesa Boogie, Fender Deluxe, Roland JC120, and a MojoTone, to name a few).
Music background: Recording Engineer
Excellent Super Smooth Microphones
I have to say that these microphones are really awesome.
The venue I do FOH is a small and intimate one yet some very talented artists come here to perform. Daniel Rodriguez, Michael Amonte, Marla Kavanaugh, Margaret Kelly and Frank Rendo. They sing at Lincoln Center, Carnage Hall and on Broadway and they deserve the best!

I had 4 Sennheiser e945’s and they are a great microphone but they seemed bright to me and I needed something smoother. I also needed dynamics so the Sennheiser XSW-D Base Sets would work. Asked Chris Arnold of Sweetwater and he suggested this combo would work well at our venue.
Could not be happier!

Thank you Chris!!! Used the Telefunken M81 wired and wireless when all sing on the same night. Very pleased with these microphones, the warmth and smoothness is outstanding and crystal clear!

Very happy with them and highly recommended.
Music background: Over 30 years in all areas, location sound, ENG, FOH and installs.
Fabulous
Love this Mic, its not as bright as the m80, but it will stand a world of gain before feedback, your vocal will stand above the music.
Finally, a mic that is a fantastic vocal mic and also does good with a acoustic harmonicas as well.
I am harp player and singer and have been looking for years for a mic that gives me clarity with a natural sound on my vocals and still sounds decent when I play my harmonica up to it as well, a "one mic" solution for stage and live recording. Although I use the handheld Shaker Mad Dog mic with my harp on most songs, I often play up to my vocal mic for a bigger "hybrid" sound or to emphasize my rhythm playing, and I often drop the handheld harp mic and just play sweet fully acoustic harp on a song. I have tried all the Shure Beta Series mics and found that the Shure Beta 57a is perhaps one of the best acoustic harp mics out there with its warm and fat tone, but my vocals were always a little muddy when I sing through it, requiring me to set up 2 separate mics on stage. The Beta 58 & Beta 87a are both great vocal mics with nice clarity and until to this week, I really felt the Beta 87a was one of the best vocal mics out there both for performance and live recording, although it has a terrible tone for harmonica and really loses tone if move around a lot like I do and get off axis. I also tried Blue Encore 200 Dynamic Microphone which does amazing well at both applications for an inexpensive mic, but tends to distort some with the proximity effect and sounds a little unnatural to my ears.

Now that I have a Telefunken M81, all the issues I have had with the other mics are no problem with this one. Vocals sound natural and clear and my harmonica sounds full and natural as well. It sounds great when I am off-axis, just little quieter as well. I have also used it for recording my Native American flutes as the mid mic in a mid-side stereo set up with a Sterling Audio ST170 Active Ribbon Microphone as the side mic. I was very please with the sound of the recording without adding any eq! The M81 is not only the best sounding mic I have every used for my purposes, it seems well-built and is attractive on stage.
Music background: Pro
Love this mic!
I purchased this after recommendation from Shawn in Sweetwater Studios that this performs really well as an overall mic that can pick up everything from drums to vocals with clarity. It is only the second microphone I've owned, but I can tell the difference in the smoothness and "roundness" of the sound it picks up. Worth every penny.