Hopefully, no arguments! Seriously, there are probably as many different ways of doing this as there are engineers. Whatever works and gets you closest to your concept of a good recording. This is what works for me and I may be alone.

I second Plush on this. You really can't go wrong with either, but I think you'd find the MK2H will fit more situations than the MK2S.

Additionally, I've never known the MK21 to have a noise issue. I agree with John LaGrou that using MK21s can make the ideal ORTF setup. I like the 21s in lots of other situations as well, including as overheads on jazz drum kits.

Dear Abba,

I am a huge fan of both capsules. I personally traded in my MK2's for the MK2H capsules 3 years ago just because I found them to be better suited to a greater variety of concert hall and recording venues. The high freq boost is so very slight but whenever anyone hears "High Frequency" we of course immediately think bright. I know I did.

Anyway, whichever one you choose I can guarantee you will be a happy camper.

Here is a link to a site for the guitarist Jorge Caballero whose Dvorak cd I did for Guitar Review Magazine a couple of years ago. This was recorded with a single pair of MK2H capsules at the recital hall of S.U.N.Y Purchase in New York. It is of course only a web mp3 but you get the idea. I hope this helps.

Jorge Caballero Audio Sample: Symphony N0.9 4. Allegro Con Fuoco

Best,

Marlan

And then what happens when you return the ones you didn’t like? Do they then get to sell them to someone else as brand new? Is there a way to know? This question has always bothered me.

In my experience, items like you describe are typically sold as "demos".

I guess it just depends on the resellers policy but it would always be worth asking directly.

D.

So if an item is marked as demo, then you know what you're buying/trying. And if you return the purchased demo item (because you didn't like it), it will still be listed as demo on the website. I get that.

But if the dealer send you a brand new product which you can return if it doesn't satisfy your needs, will that item then be listed as demo as well when it's returned to the dealer? I sure hope so.

I think returned items are typically marked as “B stock”