SM58 vs. NTK for male rock vocals

PEImatrix · 3rd May 2008, 12:23 AM

After reading so many good things about the SM7 I thought, why don't I try recording some vocals through an SM58. I set up my NTK for a comparison.

I set up the 58 and NTK with the capsules really close together with the 58 on the bottom, and the NTK on the top hanging upside down. I set the gains so they were about the same.

After recording some vocals, I went back and solo'd each mic.

The NTK had more sizzle (not sure if that's a good thing), and more bottom (which got rolled off as soon as I added a HPF). In the mix, both mics sounded great.

When I purchased the NTK a few years ago I thought it was gonna bring my recordings to a whole new level.

Today, I'm wondering why I spent 5 times as much money for the NTK when it really doesn't sound any better (for rock vocals, which is why I bought it). It sounds different, but not better. Don't get me wrong. I like the NTK, but looking back I'm not sure if it was the right purchase considering my limited studio budget.

darkman2 · 3rd May 2008, 01:29 AM

bought a sm58 from mercenary 200 bucks, it has the tabfunken
transformer and it blew my nt2a away.. worth a try..

virtualsamana · 5th July 2008, 04:04 AM

PEImatrix,

Totally feel where you are coming from. Different mics suit different voices well...differently :)

SM57/58 is a great mic for rock vox. The NTK is nice on acoustic gits (not in a dense rock mix though). Just goes to show you it's not all about the price. I feel like we get lost sometimes and fool ourselves into thinking that the gear makes more a difference than it actually does to justify our spending our hard earned cash and our fetishism.

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3rd May 2008, 12:23 AM	#1
PEImatrix Gear Head Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 31	SM58 vs. NTK for male rock vocals After reading so many good things about the SM7 I thought, why don't I try recording some vocals through an SM58. I set up my NTK for a comparison. I set up the 58 and NTK with the capsules really close together with the 58 on the bottom, and the NTK on the top hanging upside down. I set the gains so they were about the same. After recording some vocals, I went back and solo'd each mic. The NTK had more sizzle (not sure if that's a good thing), and more bottom (which got rolled off as soon as I added a HPF). In the mix, both mics sounded great. When I purchased the NTK a few years ago I thought it was gonna bring my recordings to a whole new level. Today, I'm wondering why I spent 5 times as much money for the NTK when it really doesn't sound any better (for rock vocals, which is why I bought it). It sounds different, but not better. Don't get me wrong. I like the NTK, but looking back I'm not sure if it was the right purchase considering my limited studio budget.

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3rd May 2008, 01:29 AM	#2
darkman2 Gear nut Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: montserrat w.i. Posts: 108	bought a sm58 from mercenary 200 bucks, it has the tabfunken transformer and it blew my nt2a away.. worth a try..

5th July 2008, 04:04 AM	#3
virtualsamana Gear nut Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 109	PEImatrix, Totally feel where you are coming from. Different mics suit different voices well...differently :) SM57/58 is a great mic for rock vox. The NTK is nice on acoustic gits (not in a dense rock mix though). Just goes to show you it's not all about the price. I feel like we get lost sometimes and fool ourselves into thinking that the gear makes more a difference than it actually does to justify our spending our hard earned cash and our fetishism.