Sennheiser
MME 865
Handheld condenser · Supercardioid · 80–18,000 Hz
- A condenser capsule for wireless handhelds — the transmitter supplies the polarising voltage, so there is no phantom to forget.
- The condenser head of the ew 100 G4-865-S sets: 1.6 mV/Pa and 152 dB SPL.
Frequency response
No response curve yet.
MicSense only draws a curve redrawn from a graph the manufacturer publishes — it never estimates one from the microphone’s class. No published graph has been redrawn for the MME 865 yet, so the numbers are in the spec table below.
Polar pattern
Generated from the first-order directivity formula for supercardioid. It illustrates the pattern type — it is not a measurement of this individual model.
Specifications
| Manufacturer | Sennheiser |
|---|---|
| Model | MME 865 |
| Type | Handheld condenser |
| Form factor | Handheld |
| Polar pattern | Supercardioid |
| Frequency range | 80–18,000 Hz (the ew 100 G4 transmitter's AF response; Sennheiser publishes no range for the head alone) |
| Sensitivity | 1.6 mV/Pa · ≈ -55.9 dBV/Pa |
| Max SPL | 152 dB SPL (THD not stated) |
| Self-noise | — not published by the maker |
| Impedance | — not published by the maker |
| Connector | Sennheiser handheld transmitter thread |
| Powering | From the wireless transmitter |
| Weight | — not published by the maker |
Specifications: Sennheiser specifications page · last checked 2 Oct 2026. These are the maker’s published figures for this model. A dash never means zero: “not published by the maker” means the maker’s documents give no figure; “not yet checked” means MicSense has not confirmed one yet. Spotted an error? Tell us.
MicSense notes
| Price tier | Pro |
|---|---|
| Introduced | — not recorded |
Price tier and “a rider regular” are MicSense’s own judgement, not the maker’s.
What it gets used for
- Wireless handheld capsule
- FOH vocal
MicSense tags microphones by the job on a live stage, not by studio category — so you can filter for “kick in” or “monitor vocal” instead of working backwards from “large-diaphragm condenser”.
MME 865 alternatives: closest in published specs
Based on published specifications only — always listen at soundcheck. These are the microphones in the MicSense library whose datasheet figures sit closest to the Sennheiser MME 865’s for the same live job, with the reasons. It says nothing about how they sound.
Not compared for the Sennheiser MME 865: response curve not redrawn yet.
-
Shure
KSM9
- Same job: wireless handheld capsule, FOH vocal
- Same type: condenser (handheld)
- Switchable pattern — set it to supercardioid
- Same form: handheld
- Max SPL as high or higher (152 vs 152 dB SPL)
- A wired microphone, not a wireless capsule
- ≈ 5 dB more output — about 5 dB less gain
-
Shure
Beta 87A
- Same job: wireless handheld capsule, FOH vocal
- Same type: condenser (handheld)
- Same supercardioid pattern
- Same form: handheld
- A wired microphone, not a wireless capsule
- ≈ 3 dB more output — about 3 dB less gain
- Check: Max SPL 12 dB lower (140.5 vs 152 dB SPL) — check it on loud sources
-
Sennheiser
MMK 965
- Same job: wireless handheld capsule, FOH vocal
- Same type: condenser (handheld)
- Switchable pattern — set it to supercardioid
- Same form: handheld
- ≈ 13 dB more output — about 13 dB less gain
- Discontinued — may be hard to find
- Check: Max SPL 8 dB lower (144 vs 152 dB SPL) — check it on loud sources
Compare it against the alternatives.
MicSense lets you put up to four microphones side by side — spec table, overlaid response curves and polar diagrams on one screen. Free with a free Squaresmile account.