The PreSonus PD70 microphone is PreSonus’ latest microphone. It’s just over one hundred pounds but has some similarities to one of the most popular dynamic broadcaster mics around, the Shure SM7B. However, the price of the PD70 microphone is under half the cost of a Shure SM7, in fact it’s around a third of the price at £120!
PreSonus PD70 Features
Dynamic broadcast microphone
Cardioid polar pattern
Great choice for recording vocals for podcasts, radio, and more
Works with any audio interface with a microphone preamp
End address
Exceptional clarity throughout its frequency response range
Rugged construction
Top-quality performance specifications
Integrated hard mount and windscreen
Which Do You Prefer?
What we wanted to know was if the PreSonus PD70 could match the sound of the beloved Shure SM7B, if we could tell the difference and even more interesting for us which one would we prefer in a blind shoot out? Perhaps putting a microphone costing significantly less against the Shure SM7B is unfair, but if nothing else it’s interesting to see how close they sound.
So in true Expert’s style we’ve created a shoot out between the PreSonus PD70 and the Shure SM7B. The mics were both used in standard configuration, is the SM7B had no filters and no cloud lifter device to boost the signal. We have used both mics on a number of sources, including of course spoken word. We recorded via an Apogee Ensemble at 96kHz and a 1kHz test tone was used to match microphone gain. Mic positioning was checked to reduced any on/off axis colouration from each microphone.
All files on this page are MP3 @ 320kbps, however you can also download the 96kHz files if you wish to listen to them at full resolution.
So check each one and then tell us which one you prefer, we’ll reveal the results in a week or so.
Spoken Word
Male Vocal
Acoustic Picked Guitar
Acoustic Strummed Guitar
Crunch Guitar
Dirt Guitar
Clean Electric Guitar
As always, please feel free to leave comments.