GiftFilter: Please help me find a microphone.
August 18, 2005 9:02 AM   Subscribe

GiftFilter: Can you recommend a good vocal microphone?

My wife's birthday is nearing. Just last night it suddenly struck me that she needs a microphone. She is a singer in a punk/pop/grrrl band. I want to buy a decent microphone for her. She has been borrowing one for some time. I'd like recommendations for a good microphone (and where to buy one.) Some conditions do apply.

1. It should be able to be bought for around $150.00 or less (a little more won't kill me). This is where "Street Price" may be much more important than MSRP.
2. It will be mostly used for practice and performance, but it would be a bonus if it would be good for recording too.
3. It should be fairly readily available as her birthday is about two weeks away.

I have read answers to a similar AskMe question but that person had only around $50.00 to spend. Based on that and other research I have become interested in the following two mics: Shure SM58 and Shure 55SH Series II. I am not stuck on these and any recommendations for quality mics of any make/model meeting my conditions are very appreciated.

(I have anonymized this to so as not to blow the surprise)
posted by anonymous to Media & Arts (10 answers total)
 
For live use, you really can't beat the Shure SM58. It's tough as nails (she'll have it for decades) and cuts through a mix due to its non-flat repsonse curve. I don't particularly like it for recording (I think it colors the sound too much), but for any situation where a performer is using her own mic for recording, I think it'll do just fine. You can pick it up at your local Sam Ash or Guitar Center, or you can order this package from Musician's Friend (GC's online arm). The package is a good deal, given that the mic alone usually retails for $99.
posted by uncleozzy at 9:21 AM on August 18, 2005


SM58 is good for live; for studio, I'll recommend the Studio Projects C1 - very clean and organic, only $200.
posted by abcde at 9:34 AM on August 18, 2005


I second the SM58. No live sound engineer was ever fired for using a 58. You can use it as a hammer to nail down the stage (only slight hyperbole) then wire it up and sing through it. It'll last, as uncleozzy says, for decades, and it's sound will only get better as it ages.
posted by gnz2001 at 9:36 AM on August 18, 2005


shure sm58s are pretty much industry standard ... they're not the best microphone of course, but within your price range, they're what most people use
posted by pyramid termite at 10:05 AM on August 18, 2005


Agreed, SM58s are what everybody uses.

And that gift package Uncleozzy linked to looks like a great deal.
posted by Vidiot at 10:10 AM on August 18, 2005


Go with the Shure SM58. There is a reason that you see them on practically every stage in the world.
posted by wsg at 10:11 AM on August 18, 2005


SM58 for live performance.

For recording, though, I recommend the MXL 990. Maybe you can get both?

If you're recording in an established studio, you'll be ok, but if you're building your own setup and you don't already have one, you'll need a preamp to record with the 990. I like the PreSonus TubePRE.
posted by ludwig_van at 10:21 AM on August 18, 2005


Oh yeah, the MXL 990. That thing would still be a champ at twice the price. I'll second the call for that for recordng, if you're willing to spring for both and a pre (or a mixer with phantom power; don't be tempted by cheap Behringer mixers -- I have two and they are both crap).
posted by uncleozzy at 11:18 AM on August 18, 2005


While true that the 58 is the industry standard, I find the Sennheiser 845 to absolutely bury the 58 for stage use. I'm seeing more and more national acts bringing these mics on tour for when the venue only has 58s.

The EV n/d767 is another mic I use. It seems more detailed than a 58 to me, but where it really shines is with a quiet vocalist. The mic has monstrous (in a good way) gain-before-feedback, which means that the mic can be turned up more before you get feedback from the monitors. (That's the squeeling sound that makes everyone wince) Of course, punk singers rarely sing too quietly, but your wife may be the exception.
posted by stet at 12:00 PM on August 18, 2005


What about wireless mics? Are there any that are decent, or would they all be hugely expensive? I'm almost completely ignorant here, but as a singer myself, I'm interested.
posted by amtho at 12:23 PM on August 18, 2005


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