
I think DPA has absolutely knocked this one out of the park.
Live Sound International s Dennie Miller tested our 4055 Kick Drum mic on a wide variety of drums, drummers and msucial genres.
"I think it's fair to say that anyone would be hard pressed to find a sound engineer worth their salt that doesn't choose their kick drum microphone based upon the genre and musical content du jour. So, what gives? One of the most reputable mic manufacturers on earth has created a product that flies directly in the face of such a standard practice? They've absolutely fallen off their chair, right?
My friends at the company were kind enough to send me a pair to try and now that several weeks and performances spanning multiple styles of music have gone by, my skepticism has proven unwarranted, and I think DPA has absolutely knocked this one out of the park.
(...) I've now had an opportunity to use the 4055 with metal, R&B, and country artists, and in each case the same scenario played out. I gave the 4055 its own input strip, placed it similarly to the existing mic(s), and proceeded to A/B the sources. Without fail, it took a matter of seconds to create a sound that I did far less yet different processing to achieve; however, in each case I was instantly happier with the sound attained with the 4055 than the previous mic of choice.
It didn't matter whether the goal was powerful low-end paired with the clearly dened attack of the batter head for metal (the short impactful transients of the double kick were out of this world), a well-rounded and punchy internal sound for R&B, or the fat but scooped kick sound from outside the drum that is so popular in pop-country, the 4055 found itself at home in every situation.
I will admit that it made me rethink my idea of what my kick channel's EQ should visually look like without the inherent high-frequency boosts and low mid-frequency cuts that are baked into so many other mics, but in this case the theory of less is more remains true. I even found myself choosing to favor a single 4055 over a blend of two microphones, which really surprised me.
I'll sum it up like this I've thought for a long time that DPA is on to something with their choose your own adventure philosophy, and the 4055 continues to prove that. I now have four other kick mics for sale, and I would submit for your consideration that perhaps mics that alter the sound of a source aren't as wonderful as everyone thinks they are. I could go on, but you get the idea use your ears, not your eyes, and try it for yourself."
Read the full review...
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
09/10/2026
September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026
New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
11/09/2026
Calrec will introduce two new products at IBC2026 (Stand 8.C47, RAI Amsterdam, September 11-14): the Type RT broadcast production console and the Apex M6 Modula...
11/09/2026
Grass Valley has announced AVORA, a standalone all-in-one live production solution launching at IBC2026 (Booth 9.A01 and IBC Future Tech Zone, Stand 14.C49, Sep...
11/09/2026
CAMB.AI is introducing its Streaming SDK and Streaming Dashboard at IBC2026, wit...
11/09/2026
EVS has announced XT-S, a software-defined server platform that runs multiple live production applications on a common hardware foundation. The platform debuts ...
11/09/2026
EKT is demonstrating a new Linux-based ATSC 3.0 set-top box at IBC2026. The second-generation product moves away from Android to reduce memory costs, with Linux...
11/09/2026
The Sennheiser Group will exhibit at IBC2026 (Hall 8, Booth D50, September 11-14...
11/09/2026
ESPN's Monday Night Football will open its 2026-27 season with a new renditi...
11/09/2026
Dalet has announced an integration of NVIDIA's Synthetic Video Detector AI model into Dalet Flex, enabling media organizations to identify potentially AI-ge...
11/09/2026
The Media Coding Industry Forum (MC-IF) will demonstrate Versatile Video Coding (VVC) capabilities at IBC2026 (Hall 2, Stand 2.B13), as the codec moves toward c...
11/09/2026
Sony will exhibit at IBC2026 (Hall 13, September 11-14), demonstrating products across live production, news, cinema, and immersive and spatial content workflow...
11/09/2026
Wave Central, a Domo Broadcast Company, has been named a recipient of a 2026 Tec...
11/09/2026
Studio Network Solutions (SNS) is bringing a pair of workflow updates to IBC2026...
11/09/2026
iodyne will co-exhibit with Hedge at IBC2026 (Booth 7.A36, September 11-14) and appear across three additional partner booths, marking the first public demonstr...
11/09/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
11/09/2026
The network will phase in HDR crew by crew while expanding Next Gen Stats integration, SkyDry availability, and onsite studio shows...
11/09/2026
CAMB.AI is introducing its new Streaming SDK and Streaming Dashboard at IBC2026,...
11/09/2026
Massive host operation at Melbourne Cricket Ground featured 54 cameras, 25,000 ST 2110 flows, REMI studio production in Stamford, and global distribution to mor...
11/09/2026
Production Anywhere Remote Kit (PARK) & AR-fueled Stage B are two key pieces to ...
11/09/2026
By Ramona Flume and Lucy Spicer
There's a particular kind of magic that hap...
11/09/2026
By Jessica Herndon
The fall film season is kicking off, and Sundance Institute-...
11/09/2026
Spark series gains compact modelling stompbox
Positive Grid's Spark amps have become a popular part of the company's line-up, offering a convenient ...
11/09/2026
New flagship sequencing plug-in revealed
Rapid Flow have just launched a new 16-track sequencer plug-in which they say has been designed for total rhythmic...
11/09/2026
Rohde & Schwarz unveils the air-cooled R&S TM1 medium-power UHF transmitter at I...
11/09/2026
FIFA World Cup 2026 and Peacock's Love Island USA' Power NBCU-Versant ...
11/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
11/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
11/09/2026
Lightware has announced the launch of LARA (Lightware Advanced Room Automation) 2.0, a major upgrade to its built-in room automation platform, introducing impro...
11/09/2026
10 September 2026 - MusiMap, the B2B music intelligence company that is transforming how companies can harness the emotional power of music to reach consumers a...
11/09/2026
Matrox Video today announced an integration between Matrox ORIGIN and NVIDIA Holoscan for Media, enabling Matrox ORIGIN media services to be provisioned, config...
11/09/2026
Net Insight today announced that its cloud-native live media orchestration is now available through Oracle Cloud Marketplace, providing broadcasters, production...
11/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
11/09/2026
Version 1.8 will bring advanced routing control, new workflow tools, boosted control panel flexibility and ease of integration into IP networks...
11/09/2026
Ikegami announces four additions its UNICAM XE range of 4K-UHD cameras with the introduction of the UHK-X700VN, UHK-X750VN, UHK-X600VN and UHK-X650VN. Developed...
11/09/2026
DHD.audio has chosen IBC2026 as the launch venue for a major new addition to its broadcast sound production platform: the MX3 console range. MX3 retains the mod...
11/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
11/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
11/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
11/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
11/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
11/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
11/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
11/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
11/09/2026
New standalone solution gives production teams everything they need to create, produce and deliver live content from one flexible system.
Grass Valley today an...
11/09/2026
Recognition honors the development of FPV drone camera systems for live sports broadcast coverage
Wave Central, a Domo Broadcast Company that develops advanced...
11/09/2026
Teradek, the industry leader in zero-delay wireless video solutions, announced the launch of Bolt 7, which now includes a unified wireless video and data system...
11/09/2026
The ACT Entertainment tvONE and Green Hippo Pixel Academy has released its autumn course schedule, with hands-on training dates in September, October and Novemb...
11/09/2026
LA JOLLA, CA-Transthyretin amyloid disease (ATTR) is a progressive, life-threatening condition caused when the protein transthyretin (TTR) breaks apart and aggr...