VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[Philip Banks]

http://www.audiomasterclass.com/arc.cfm?a=shure-sm58-better-than-a-neumann-u87-for-a-thirtieth-of-the-price

[Ed Gambill]

Philip

Thanks. I have been telling folks for years that the SM58/SM57 is a great microphone that can perform well when use in a proper manner. I and the wife owned a cable advertising company for some years and our go to mic was an SM57. I voice a recent edition of my radio program with it and the sound was right good.

The capsule in the SM7, SM57 and SM58 are virtually the same. After they (the cap) are manufactured they are tested and the one with a present’s peak (emphases on the vocal frequencies) are use in SM58. The SM 7 has a built in EQ circuit and the 57 are relatively flat.

Something to consider, Bell Labs/AT&T/Western Electric invented the condenser microphone and Siemens AG , Germany invented the moving coil Dynamic Mic. The ribbon was an RCA invention.

Sorry the topic was placement. It does matter what you place in front of the speaker and how its positioned. Yes it do. Its not about the tool you own, it’s about how you use the tool.
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[Lance Blair]

Shure dynamics are great for voice...heck good dynamics are great for voice period, especially with a well matched preamp. The article does emphasize that the issue is more about mic placement. A distant U87 won't sound good as a close dynamic for voice...and vice-versa.

That sm57 probably won't sound as good as the u87 on many acoustic instruments. It's never about price, it's about the proper tools for the gig.
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[Rob Ellis]

With all due respect, I have owned both and don't care how poor my mic placement or technique may be (or have been) but there is just no comparison.

In my humble opinion.

I sincerely doubt that many top VO talents will be cashing out their 87s and replacing them with $100 Shure SM 57s.

Not dissing the SM 57 or 58, mind you.

[Lance Blair]

This recent ditty was with a $169 Sennheiser e935.

http://www.lanceblair.net/files/24-7-VOA.mp3

For singing, loud delivery (or very soft), and podcasting...such a dynamic does the trick...and it doesn't require maximum gain. Shure dynamics are great too, but the 58 and sm7b still need more gain than the Senny. I prefer the new hand held Sennies to the MD421mkII which I used to own for a few years and could never get it to sound good on my voice.
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[Dayo]

Interesting.

Recently I was researching mics and got hold of a mic shoot out CD with 40 or 50 mics ranging from the most expensive, exotic boutique mics, to vintage classics to the humble SM58.

I did a blind test and wrote pithy comments about each one. The results were very interesting. What turned out to be a U87, I had described as "nothing special". The SM58? I described it thus; "very, very expensive".

When I checked which mic was what, I was more than a little red faced.

I think there is something about the very foward tone and clarity of the Shure that is immediately seductive. Wouldn't want to use one in anger though.

Mind you, a friend of mine is a stellar reord producer and told me that when recording Russel Watson at Capitol studios in LA, he insited on the handheld Shure. Apprantly it sounded wonderful, much to the amusement and bafflement of the engineers there. Of course, the room and pre amp may have had something to do with it. not to mention a little matter of talent.

[Rob Ellis]

If you guys don't stop it, I'm going to find myself in a "mic trance"

mindlessly ordering a Shure SM 57 or 58 which I absolutely don't need!

[Gp]

There could actually be some truth to the old wives tale; It's all about the talent.
So it's not about the voice nor the mic.

Imagine that.


Now all I have to do is find some place to get some of that talent stuff.

[bobsouer]

Greg,

Take a long look in the nearest mirror. You'll find a whole bunch right there, staring back at you.
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[Gp]

Bob you are too kind. Thanks so much.

[Eddie Eagle]

The 57 and 58 have been a staple in the live music arena with a solid track history for sounding great and being able to withstand the constant pounding on a stage by rocknrollers since I was a tech director in the 70s.
I remember War, Blue Oyster Cult, The Doobies, Bob Dylan and the Rolling Thunder Revue......................etc. I think I'm dating myself.

Think about it. Claire Brothers and the Showcos of the time only picked the best sounding stuff to travel with and get a consistent sound.

[georgethetech]

When people send me audio samples to evaluate their sound, more times than not their primary issue is mic placement.

Over the years I've used SM57's on snares, toms, kicks, guitar amps, trumpets, trombones, sax, vocals, rooms, nose flute, list goes on...
When it was all I could afford, I recorded some amazing music with them.
Does it sizzle? No, but it is amazingly flattering on many things.

A professor at Virginia Tech believed he could mic everything on stage with SM58's with great results. I thought he was nuts, but the sound was better than you'd expect. It just taught us how placement and room acoustics can have more importance than mic choice.
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[Ed Gambill]

…the responses to the test chose the Shure SM58 mic at 20 cm as being the more expensive mic over the Neumann U87 at 40 cm, by a margin of 43 votes to 13. *

Expressed in inches that ¾ “for SM 58 and 1 ½ “ for U87. It seems to me that the U87 should work quite well at 1.5 inches. I dare say that Philip works at a distance far greater than 40cm.

While I have a respectable collection of microphones, it’s obvious from actual listing that the SM87 performs very nicely. Would I record a orchestra with SM 87/57 not likley. I would use my set of 3 matched 22-251 Peluso. Better yet AKG 451EB.

A long time ago I actually saw a clip of Sir Paul McCartney laying down a track with the help of a SM57.

I have hammers made by Plumb, Blue Grass, Stanley, Craftsman and others. Each drive nails very well, some are heaver than the others but still they are valuable tools.

Matching the tool to the job, that where experence comes in to play. Spending a lot of money does not necessarily mean better results.

But then its a matter of personal choice.

*Record Producer.com
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Esse quam videri "To be rather than to seem"
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[Lance Blair]

40 centimeters is 15.7 inches.
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and now, http://lanceblairvo.com the blog is there now too!

[Deirdre]

I've been in Philip's Wee Huttie, and that's about right. As long as you're in the same room with that U87, you sound fabby.
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