The Heil PR-30 Mic Review

The PR-30 is the perfect replacement for 30-year-old condenser technology

There is no doubt Bob Heil makes quality mics and having shared air time him I know he is committed to customer satisfaction. That being said I will admit that my choice to use the PR-30 included not only my personal tests and review but also the fact that it just is one cool looking microphone. Given that the PR-30 was the winner I had no issue spending a little more money. The majority of what we do is all about the audio. Too many of us spend a lot of time and money on the rig, amp and antenna and then end up using a stock microphone. This is truly an area where we should spend more time. Tailoring our audio should perhaps constitute our greatest effort. So I conclude by saying that I love my PR-30 yet depending on your voice you may well likely do better with some other mic.

The Heil Sound PR-30 is a professional dynamic microphone designed for applications that require a smooth, flat output from a wide frequency response (40Hz-18kHz). Whether it's commercial broadcast, studio recording, or live sound reinforcement, the PR-30 mic can handle it. A specially designed magnet structure and large, aluminum 1-1/2" low-mass voice coil assembly make this possible. In addition to a carefully wound and placed humbucking coil, the components of the PR-30 are engineered to minimize external noise and provide pure articulation. A unique dual pop screen design ensures that breath blasts never hit the diaphragm directly. The result of all this is a perfect representation of the voice that is virtually unpolluted by external noise.

Heil PR-30

FEATURES

Large 1-1/2" aluminum diaphragm
Wide frequency response
End fire, cardioid pattern
Low handling noise
Natural articulation
SPECIFICATIONS
Generating element: Copper-wound dynamic with neodymium magnet structure
Body: Steel body with zinc die-cast bottom ring
Frequency response: 40Hz to 18kHz
Impedance: 600 ohms balanced
Output level: -52.9dB @ 1,000 Hz.
Polar pattern: End fire, cardioid, uniform front to back discrimination
Diaphragm: Large diameter, low-mass quilted aluminum
Finish: Anodized champagne matte
Net weight: 15 oz.

Pros

◾Broadcast ready sound, with an extended low frequency response.
◾Extremely warm, intimate sound. Clear and articulate representation of your voice.
◾Superbly flat frequency response.
◾Easy to EQ with.
◾Bright and rich like a condenser, but controlled and soft like a dynamic.
◾End fire pattern rejects side and rear noise. Excellent noise reduction overall.
◾Nice foam/plush/leather case.
◾Built rugged, with a beautiful and flawless finish. It’s heavy, with everything being metal.
◾Comes with clamp that has an adapter that screws in to allow the clamp to be used on different sized stands and boom arms.

This is a smooth mic, if you are a musician who grew up in live situations and prefer a dynamic microphone which performs at the quality level of a Condenser or Ribbon. This is a good choice. You can mike your bass drum, Stand up bass, Cello, Acoustic guitar or vocals with quality results. I have an assortment of vintage and new microphones and I am glad I got this mic. The only thing I do not like about it is that it does not come with a case or mic bag.

Who this mic benefits?

Endorsed for all of the following:
Audiobook
Podcasting
Voiceover
Ham Radio
VOIP applications
Narration
Screen recordings
Youtube
Skype
Kick Drums due to that deeper low end response.
Lectures
Female voices
Live vocals

At first sight of the PR 30 in your hand, you see a pleasing professional looking broadcast studio mic. The soft gold color is not too flashy. The mesh screen over the mic element is tight and straight. The entire mesh screen inside is lined with a foam rubber type filter, so an external foam pop filter is not required at all. And it just looks so pretty hanging on the shock mount and boom. Let's just say it looks very impressive.

The PR 30 is very directional and you need to be within 8 to 9 inches from it to have a normal amount of audio pick up, which I like. I usually stay 3 or 4 inches away from the front end. Just move a few inches to the left or right, and your audio is cut in half. We hams know that our radios will not transmit the full 40 to 18,000Hz range of the PR 30, but you can be sure that what ever the frequency response range is on your radio, this mic will cover it with a full flat response and no fall-offs.
The responses I have had on FM simplex is "great" to 'HOLY GRAAL'. I am told the audio is super clear, strong, and no fuzz around the edges. Everyone hears a nice normal amount of bass response for warmth, and just enough highs to be clean and crisp, but not tinny. The entire voice range is very articulate. Even SSB has a nice warmth with plenty of drive power without any distortion.

I run the PR 30 on my Icom IC-746PRO. For use on all Icom's and many Yaesu's, you must make a small modification to the PR 30. Icom and Yaesu insert 5VDC on the mic line to power the electret mic elements in their hand and desk mics. But the Heil PR 30 is a dynamic mic element, and that 5VDC will change the sound quality of the PR-30 for the worse. It makes the mic sound tinny and adds a hum. The 5VDC can also damage the PR 30 element.

To prevent this you need to do a simple modification. Removing 3 little screws allows you to remove the case off of the PR 30. You will see the dynamic mic element on the top with 2 wires coming off the bottom of the element. One is red (-), and the other is white (+), Un-solder the white wire from the element. You then need a 1uF electrolytic capacitor, any voltage above 15VDC. Solder the (-) side of the cap to the mic element where the white wire was. Then solder the white wire to the (+) side of the cap. There is plenty of room for the cap. Then just put the case back on the mic, and you are done. The cap blocks the 5VDC to the mic, but has no effect on the audio quality.
Now you can use the PR 30 on any radio with phantom power on the mic line, without any harm or effect to the mic. My PR-30 sounds fantastic on my 746PRO. I get nothing but high praise and compliments. And there is plenty of audio to drive the power on SSB.
Heil PR 30 is highly recommended for any radio old or new. And makes the best quality recording mic you can get. It beats a ribbon mic in every way. Heil did it again, and you would be wise to use the PR 30.

If you want to save a bit of moolah and still have as good a dynamic mic as any out there, get the PR30. Some may wonder why the PR-30 instead of the Heil PR-40? I liked what I read in reviews of both mics and decided I wanted to be different. I haven't regretted it.

The physical shape of the PR30 is slightly different from the PR40 and the response on the bottom is 40Hz instead of 28Hz. You will never miss 12Hz.

I think it looks fine business. Fit and finish is as good as I've seen. It comes in a cardboard box and includes mic and tough all metal mount.

The screen around the element is double thickness and has foam all around the inside. Right behind the front the foam looks to be about 3/4 inch thick. I don't have 'pop'problems and don't use any other 'pop' filters.

As a test I installed a foam surround - big foam ball type pop filter on the mic. All this did was drastically change the frequency response as heard in my monitor so it was removed permanently.
Like most any wide response mic this one benefits from mic equalization. If your radio has some internal eq and or some high and low transmit frequency adjustments you will still be able to get good sound.

As with most mics the PR30 exhibits proximity effect as you get closer to the front of the mic. I don't see this as a drawback though. I use it as a tool to change my low end at will.

The mic has an articulate and smooth sound. I have yet to hear it muddy up in my monitor. No one has complained of harshness in my audio. I use it with a channel strip that contains a preamp, eq, and compressor and the result goes into the front of my stock 950SDX.

A nice thing about this mic is the reduced sensitivity compared to most condenser mics. Less sensivity equals less mic pickup of shack noise. So far I've been able to get by without any noise gate or expander. This may change if I get a noisier amp though.