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Which mic to choose for vocals?


Mike91

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There is a wide selection of microphones in stores - for every taste and budget. Condenser microphones are expensive pleasure, so I choose among the dynamic ones, as always with a good price-quality ratio. Chose a long time. And stopped at two - Sennheiser-e835 and Shure-SM58. The second is just a world standard. You can find a lot of good reviews about it. But Sennheiser is very good microphone for its price too. Which one would you advise? Any experience?

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12 hours ago, TVPostSound said:

The SM 58 is an SM57 with a 565 grill on it.

 

Well... almost.

 

From Shure:

 

"The SM57 and SM58 microphones are based on the same cartridge design. The main difference is in the grille design. The SM58 was designed for vocal application and it uses a ball grille that acts as an effective pop filter. The SM57 was designed as an instrument microphone where a smaller grille size is preferred. In this application, pop and wind are not usually a concern.
The SM57 uses an integral resonator/grille assembly, where grille is actually a part of the cartridge. These two grille designs place the diaphragm of each microphone in a different acoustical environment. The distance from the top of the grille to the diaphragm is shorter on the SM57 compared to that of the SM58. This allows for a closer miking position with a more pronounced proximity effect. The different resonator/grille assembly design of the SM57 is also responsible for its slightly higher output above 5 kHz"

 

---

 

You can't go wrong with a SM58, but personally, I prefer the Beta 58. I've had mine since 1995. It's has a slightly "better" high frequency response, and it's super cardioid, which improves monitor feedback resistance (if you're on stage).

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2 hours ago, Niels said:

I like RØDE M1 better than SM58.  and it has a lifetime warranty.

The Shure SM58 and Beta 58 need no lifetime warranty. They are inherently indestructible.  I know this for fact, I played and worked at the Manhattan (NYC) New Wave and Punk nightclubs (CBGB, Max's Kansas City, Gildersleeves, ect.) The SM58 vocal mics were heavily beat on. Most of grills were no longer anywheres near round.

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It is true that the SM58 is a classic for good reason, and Sennheiser's closest match, the e835, has become a go-to mic in the past 10 years or so, I think there are better vocal mics for not much more money. 

 

Someone already mentioned the Beta 58. 

 

The Audix range of mics are quite good, and are probably the best out there for feedback rejection. The best one IMO is the OM5, although it runs for about $150.

 

The EV 767a is quite nice as well - better sound IMO than the Shures, equally robust, and close in cost. 

 

The Sennheiser e945 is a really nice sounding mic used a lot more in the past few years, and runs about $150. 

 

My favorite, back in my live sound days, was the Sennheiser 431, but they were expensive and somewhat delicate. If you find a couple used ones in great condition and good price, you'll have a hard time finding a better sounding dynamic handheld mic. 

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14 hours ago, Rick Reineke said:

The Shure SM58 and Beta 58 need no lifetime warranty. They are inherently indestructible.  I know this for fact, I played and worked at the Manhattan (NYC) New Wave and Punk nightclubs (CBGB, Max's Kansas City, Gildersleeves, ect.) The SM58 vocal mics were heavily beat on. Most of grills were no longer anywheres near round.

Agree. Only time can tell if the M1 is equally rugged. I imagine that was the reason why the RØDE marketing team decided to make this the only lifetime warranty mic in their lineup.

Anyway - these are all relatively inexpensive microphones and it wouldn't break the bank to buy the candidates and decide from there - and sell off the leftovers at a modest loss.

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