Sennheiser MKE 2
A one-gram microphone that survives sweat, rain, and the front row of a Broadway pit.
Overview
The MKE 2-4 Gold-C weighs one gram. That explains almost everything about how this microphone gets used. At 1 g (0.04 oz) and just 4.8 mm (0.19") in diameter, it disappears against a lapel, tucks under a costume seam, or rides a violin bridge without anyone noticing. It is a sub-miniature clip-on lavalier built for speech and instrument miking in live work, and Sennheiser's own documentation describes it as suitable for both. That's a broader brief than most lavaliers get.
The headline technology is the Umbrella Diaphragm, a diaphragm design paired with a welded housing that Sennheiser documents as protecting the mic against sweat and moisture. That's the specific reason this mic became a fixture in theatrical productions, where performers move hard under hot lights and a lavalier that quits after three shows is worthless. The documentation is direct about the intended use: the MKE 2 Gold is "an ideal choice for theatrical productions." The capsule is omni-directional, so there's no proximity effect to fight and no off-axis coloration when a performer turns their head. The tradeoff is that an omni hears the room as readily as it hears the talent.
Maximum SPL at 1 kHz is 142 dB at 1% THD. That's a high figure for a capsule this small, high enough that the mic is not the limiting factor when someone belts into it, and high enough to sit on a snare or a guitar cab without folding. Frequency response runs 20 - 20,000 Hz ± 3 dB, and sensitivity is 5 mV/Pa ± 2.5 dB at 1 kHz. Nominal impedance is 1 kΩ with a minimum terminating impedance of 4.7 kΩ. Self-noise is documented at 26 dB A-weighted (DIN IEC 651) and 39 dB CCIR-weighted (CCIR 468-3). That's not a whisper-quiet studio number, but this is a live-stage tool, and the noise floor is academic next to a packed room.
The MKE 2-4 Gold-C ships with a short MZC 2-1 cap and a long MZC 2-2 cap, which alter the frequency response curve. The same capsule can be voiced differently for a hidden hairline placement versus an exposed lapel clip. It has a matt black finish and terminates in a 3-pin audio connector for the SK 50, SK 250, and SK 5012 bodypack transmitters, with a 1.6 m (5.25 ft) cable.
The MKE 2 line sprawls across a range of terminations and colors, and the part numbers are worth knowing because buying the wrong variant is the single most common mistake. The MKE 2-60 Gold-C is set up for K6/K6P powering modules with a 3 m (9.84 ft) cable, black. The MKE 2-5 Gold-C has an open-ended cable at 4 m (13.12 ft), black, and the MKE 2-5-3 Gold-C is the same mic in beige. The MKE 2-4-3 Gold-C is the beige version of the standard 2-4. The MKE 2-2R Gold-C carries a co-axial plug for the SK 2012 with a 1.6 m (5.25 ft) cable, black, with the MKE 2-2R3 Gold-C as its beige counterpart. Sennheiser also lists the MKE 2-0 with a 10-foot cable terminating in stripped-and-tinned leads, and an MKE 2-6 with an in-line battery supply, on/off switch, and a 13-foot cable. That last one can run either phantom-powered from 9 to 52 volts or from the mercury battery in the K3U, and it includes a three-position 12 dB/octave low-frequency rolloff switch.
A lavalier is only as good as its mounting, so the accessories matter. Sennheiser's MZ 2-1 Gold set bundles two MZW 2 windscreens and two MZQ 02 clips in black and beige, two ZH 102 tie clips in anthracite and beige, an MZW 102, and a carrying case. The MZ 2-2 Gold set is purely caps - five MZC 2-1 and five MZC 2-2, in both colors. The MZ 2-3 Gold set is ten make-up protection caps. There's also an MZM 2/MZM 10 magnetic mount set for anyone who needs to hide the element entirely.
Period coverage of the MKE 2 skews toward advertising rather than measured review. The trade press ran Sennheiser's copy touting the Umbrella Diaphragm and waterproof sealant as delivering sweat-resistant performance with the company's house sound, and those placements recur across Mix-Magazine (August 1999, p.85), (October 1999, p.15), (June 2000, p.15), and (July 2000, p.15). These are manufacturer placements, not independent lab verdicts. The more useful period artifact is the product announcement in DB-Magazine (July 1984, p.41), which described the MKE 2 as a miniature electret lavalier that could be sewn in place or attached with an alligator clip, measuring 0.24 inches in diameter by 0.43 inches in length, and confirmed the variant lineup - the MKE 2-0 with its stripped-and-tinned 10-foot cable, the MKE 2-6 with its in-line battery supply and 13-foot cable. That 1984 date is the earliest firm anchor for the line in the available documentation.
The MKE 2 is not a forgiving microphone. An omni lavalier in a live room picks up everything, and 26 dB of self-noise is audible in a quiet studio even if it vanishes on a stage. The 1 kΩ nominal impedance wants a proper 4.7 kΩ minimum terminating load, so plugging it into the wrong input is a real way to lose low end. And the sheer number of variants - different cables, different connectors, different colors, some built for K6 modules, some for specific SK bodypacks - means the used market is full of mics that won't work with the gear a buyer owns.
For the job it was engineered to do, which is staying attached, staying dry, and staying out of the way, very little else does it.
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