Podcast Academy

Subscribe to the RSS feed and follow me on Twitter

Heil Proline Microphones

September 28th, 2005 in Main Tags:

I subscribe to Radio Magazine. This is a fantastic resource for industry news, gear reviews and expert tips in reference to Radio and Broadcast Engineering. In a past edition of the magazine, I came across the Heil PR-40 Studio Dynamic Broadcast Microphone. Guess what? This mic was one of the winners of radio’s most prestigious technology honors, the “Cool Stuff” Award, sponsored by the Las Vegas Radio World Newspaper. The awards were announced at NAB, 2005. The Heil PRO 40 was the ONLY microphone picked this year. This product has raised the bar on dynamic technology.

I phoned Bob Heil to congratulate him on his outstanding achievement — Yes, Bob himself designed this mic. Heil Proline, a division of Heil Sound also offers the PR-30 Broadcast Dynamic Mic, which is less expensive and offers high quality results as well.

Bob was nice enough to send both models to me here in NYC. Stay tuned for a full review of the PR-40 [$325] and PR-30 [$289] Broadcast Dynamic Microphones designed by Bob Heil for the Heil Proline Division.

-paul.

15 Responses to “Heil Proline Microphones”

Feed for this Entry Trackback Address

1 Richard Sep 29th, 2005 at 10:01 pm

Is it better than the EV RE27?
2 Administrator Sep 29th, 2005 at 10:11 pm

Hi Richard,

I purchased the EV mic about a month ago. Very happy with it. However, I am hearing great things about the PR-40 [Heil]. It’s here - waiting to be connected to my gear and tested. I’ll post a few samples and a review –> I’ll keep you posted.

-ptfigg.
3 Todd Oct 9th, 2005 at 5:59 am

I have two microphones I have to buy for the podcast awards and I am wondering Paul if this is a good choice I have a budget of $1000.00 for the two.

Todd..
4 Administrator Oct 9th, 2005 at 3:20 pm

Hi Todd,

I am real impressed with the PR-40. It’s very afforadable and I think the recognition it has received backs up my opinion of it. I might add it is packed in a beautiful cherry wood box, and if you are considering giving this mic out as an ‘award’ … I think it’s a great idea.

-paul.
5 Joseph Palmer Oct 9th, 2005 at 11:04 pm

This morning I was watching Meet the Press, and I noticed that everyone on the show was using clip-on lavalier mics, and the sound quality was quite good. The same is true of the CNN anchors, and Face the Nation, and This Week…

My observation is that it seems like the television world makes heavy use of small, clip-on mics for spoken word, while the radio world seems drawn to large, fixed mount microphones, such as this Heil.

I’ve heard good podcasts done with both kinds of microphone, but since I listen to most podcasts through headphones, I occasionaly find the ones recorded close to a big mic (in proximity effect range) to be uncomfortable and too intimate — as if the person was speaking right into my ear.

Anyway, think it’d be really interesting to hear an A-B comparison, recording simultanously with one mic of each type and spliting them in the edit so that the differences could be heard. (Hint-hint)
6 Dorothy Nov 16th, 2005 at 3:48 pm

I think Leo Laporte received the PR-40 at the Podcast Expo (for People’s choice award) and used it on the twit podcast (#30). Listening to the ‘cast there is a noticeable difference in sound quality — what a great sounding piece.
7 Rogier Hof Nov 19th, 2005 at 7:08 pm

At the Podcast Expo our Podfather Adam Curry also received a Heil mike, although I don’t know which model. He was, and is, so impressed by the sound quality that he has promoted it for several times already on the Daily Source Code.
8 Rogier Hof Nov 19th, 2005 at 7:09 pm

Please note: boppod.com will become live next week…
9 Administrator Nov 19th, 2005 at 10:08 pm

Have you read my most recent post?

http://podcastrigs.com/?p=51
10 Rogier Hof Nov 24th, 2005 at 12:40 am

Yes, I did! Does sound good, doesn’t it!
And such is life: I just bought a Rode NT-1A for my podcast, two weeks before everybody starts telling me about how great Heil is.

Anyway; I’m still a WHOLE lot better of than talking into my Powerbook!

Love your site, by the way!
Just the info I need…
:-))
11 Administrator Dec 4th, 2005 at 5:30 pm

Thanks Rogier.

-ptfigg.
12 Mark Northam Jan 1st, 2006 at 3:08 am

Just purchased a Heil PR-40 and had the chance to A/B it with our RE-20 and RE-27 EV microphones - no comparison…

RE-20 - Smooth, but very un-dynamic and dead sounding.
RE-27 - Smooth, but a harsh high end that sounds distinctly different than the lower ranges of the mic. Still not as crisp or detailed as a condenser.
PR-40 - Very smooth, very condenser-like in crispness and sharpness/clarity of detail, very nice low and high ends.

For half the price, the PR-40 is an amazing mic and to my ears sounds much better and clearer than the RE20 or the RE27. If you’re looking for a mic that will work with just about any guest you have recording in your studio, perhaps the RE20 is a better choice, but only because via lack of clarity and lack of dynamic response, it hides a multitude of problems with some voices. But if you want the clarity and crispness of a condenser mic without paying the price or hassling with power supplies, the PR-40 can’t be beat!
13 Administrator Jan 1st, 2006 at 3:34 am

Hi Mark,

Great review. Question for you –>> did you notice the PR-40 was much more susceptable to plosives? I love the way the mic sounds as well.

-ptfigg.
14 EC Aug 23rd, 2006 at 4:21 pm

Hi, we want to start podcasting. The plan is to plug a microphone into our computer and record in that manner. Would this Heil microphone be suitable, or do you think it’s too high-end? I’m really not sure where to start.

Thanks.
15 Administrator Aug 23rd, 2006 at 8:16 pm

Hi,

In most cases you wiil need some sort of external pre-amplification provided by an audio interface [USB or Firewire], or a standalone pre-amp.

I suggest you join the forum and I will answer all your questions.

-ptfigg.
-podcastrigs.com

forum:

http://podcastrigs.net/forum/