This is (simply put) an incredible mic. Having spent years using SM57s for a guitar amp application, this was a breath of fresh air. Clear, crisp top and mid range without the nuisance expanding bass response of the 57. The flat head design makes it a great space saver when micing live and the strong clip design means the mic can hang (god forbid) if necessary.
The Supercardioid pattern catches a small touch of the projection of the amp that can give a bit of perceived space and size that simple cardioid mics might miss out on (depending on the quality of the space the amp is placed in). This can be a negative with unwanted rear pickup in small live setups or poor recording environments, so do keep that in mind. I have used this as a snare mic on a couple of occasions and have to say it did a wonderful job. Depending on your preference. the rear pickup can be useful or completely painful depending on genre, style, player etc etc, but definitely opens up options.
I haven't used the Hi cut/boot much, however definitely can be a useful if you have a lot of top end energy you want to deal with before it reaches the desk.
The only thing is that I feel a little conscious when handling it in comparison to something like the 57. But almost a year on , it hasn't failed me yet.
And it even tells you which way is front so idiots like me know where to point it (while giving Sennheiser a little bit of advertising)
Great mic for great money.
