So this past week my show had me fly out to Rochester Minnesota…. in the middle of a blizzard. But never the less I still found some time to review the new Aputure Deity microphone.

Aputure Deity – http://amzn.to/2k705FH

Overall the build quality is amazing. Its a tad bit heavier then a 416 which is odd for being nearly identical in size. It is made up of 100% brass so it offers very good RF rejection. It should also be noted that the microphone is waterproof but only to a certain extent. When dropped in a river or ocean it does sound like butt (that’s a technical term) but after being dunked in clean water and having let dried off, the microphone will act as normal again.

I shoot the video in the back warehouse/loading dock for a convention center. Most people shoot their AB test in these very clinical sterile sound studios. And that is all well and good but doesn’t represent real world conditions. And it’s fairly common to shoot an action fight scene in a warehouse… turn on NBC… NBC loves warehouses, that’s a fact. NBC’s the Blacklist should be nicknamed Airplane Hanger ( AKA Airplane warehouse ) … or NBC’s Blindspot or AKA Spy Warehouse… or NBC’s Grimm… AKA Fairytale Crimes on Dock Warehouses… Or NBC’s Superstore or AKA Retail Warehouse. They love warehouses.

Back to the review.

Recorder Settings:

• 24bit
• 48khz
• +42dB gain on each of the F4 inputs

All audio in the follow video is completely unprocessed… I didn’t even bother to level out the audio. I kept it honest and real. Below the video is a download link to the raw polywav file from the Zoom F4.

Here is a link so you can download the raw polywav.

http://bit.ly/2mplMOg

Each microphone was recorded based on its location on the microphone stack. The Deity was ontop, middle as the 416, and the NTG2 was on the bottom of the pile.

Overall I like the Aputure Deity, but it’s not a substitute for the real thing. If you are the extreme hobbyist who buys the cameras, lens, light kits and audio and blah and blah and etc… then this microphone is for you. This is a much better value then the NTG2 despite being a tad more expensive. If you are a one man band videographer who needs a great on camera shotgun, the Deity is for you. If you run and edit a video blog by yourself, this would be a solid buy. This mic would be good for alot of the mainstream DSLR crowds.

But if you are a professional location sound mixer or a producer who regularly hires location sound mixers the Sennheiser beats it hands down.

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About the Author

Andrew Jones is a location sound mixer based in Los Angeles. He started in the TV and Film industry in 2004. You can email him at  Andrew@HoldForSound.com

www.HoldForSound.com