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Vocal mics of choice and why


EBS_freak

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I've always had 57s as I've used them as instrument mikes. My first one was appropriated as a snare mike and got the life battered out of it (kept on working, it must be said). I have a beta 57 now... because I was feeling a bit flush. Also used it for bvs though. Very solid and confidence-inspiring.

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I have a cheap Behringer bought after a review on here. It seems to be a 58 clone and seems to very good. The only other Behringer stuff I have had experience of (pedal and amp) were truly awful so this was/ is a pleasant surprise. It is great for my level of BV.

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we use 58's with the band but I use a 57 for home use (practicing my vocals for open mics) and I prefer the 57, not so much bottom end on it, more of a Jeff Lynne type sound which suits my occasional flat vocals, could be a counterfeit though, I got it second hand O.o 

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I use the TC Helicon MP75 - used to use the sure and the behringer clone (which I still use for miking up guitars) but the MP75 had much better feedback rejection and I think it sounds much better for my voice. They are expensive here but strangely cheap in the states.

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I used to use an AKG D5 for backing vocals and it was OK for that. I was then asked to do lead with a band and the sound guy said that D5 wasn't doing me any favours tone-wise (I'm pretty much a baritone with, to my ears, a distinct low end). I tried an SM58, but this gave much the same results as the D5, then I tried an SM58 beta and this was much more suited to my voice: cleaner; less wooly; more mids. I have been using this ever since.

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The AKG D5 is my regular go-to. Better off axis rejection than a 58 and nicer response around the high mids to my ears. Suits most vocalists I point it at. Occasionally find a voice that doesn't suit them that well, at which point I tend to reach for a Beta 58a or a Beta 57a. The Sennheiser stuff is also great, and I'm more than happy to use it when provided, but I've got five D5 in my personal kit now. 

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SM7B with a Cloudlifter or similar booster. Excellent rejection, nicer tone than a 58 or 57. Gotta be right on axis, but it's good for vocals and recording speaking voice as well. And snare. And guitar amps. Great on stage and in the studio.

Edited by jposega
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By chance I happened to pick up a couple of AKG C5900 condenser mics a few years ago and fell completely in love with them. They are streets ahead of the SM58 in terms of clarity, fullness of sound and feedback rejection. Whenever I see one now selling for a reasonable price I snap it up. A couple of years ago I A/B'd the C5900 against the D5 which I have to say I wasn't overly impressed with.

The Sennheiser E365 also gets my vote. Once again its a condenser mic and comes a close second to the AKG C5900.

Interestingly I have an original SM58 made in the USA and a few years ago made a direct comparison to the Mexican SM58 and found it was quite different in that the Mexican version had less clarity and presence and tended to overload easier. It is certainly a step backwards in terms of performance.

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19 hours ago, mike257 said:

The AKG D5 is my regular go-to. Better off axis rejection than a 58 and nicer response around the high mids to my ears. Suits most vocalists I point it at. Occasionally find a voice that doesn't suit them that well, at which point I tend to reach for a Beta 58a or a Beta 57a. The Sennheiser stuff is also great, and I'm more than happy to use it when provided, but I've got five D5 in my personal kit now. 

D5 seems to be a very good mic - theres a band with that use them across all the vocalists and they seem to be very consistent in their performance. I dont recall ever having any battles with feedback - mind you, this particular band runs a silent stage with the exception of the drums. Oh and the other great things about those mic - they don't break the bank.

The more and more mics that I use, the more I am turned off Shure. The 58 and 58a really don't do it for me - although I do like a 57/a on the snare.

The majority of my vocal mics are 935s and 945s. The 965 tends to be a bit on edge unless we are talking big stages. Mind you, I find that when using all condensers as vocal mics. I tend to think that they are more hassle than they are worth because all the extra air and clarity you end up rolling off anyway, especially if there's a kit behind the singer.

Historically my fave dynamic was the Heil PR45 but I am more turned on to the sounds of the OM5 and OM7 from Audix. They are ridiculously good on loud stages - unfortunately they tend to come up a substantially higher price. I'm really impressed by the Audix range... and very tempted to change my drum mic setup to Audix too.

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I've got a Beyerdynamic Opus 69 that I like.  I'm also a fan of the Sennheiser dynamics and (for the price) the cheap Behringer Shure copies. My experience of the 58s is that they are a bit muddy and a bit "raspy". Same goes for the Audio Technica dynamics.

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