Live vocal mic for male singer w/sibilance

MichaelT · 17th August 2006, 06:37 PM

I was wondering what live vocal mic people would recommend for a male singer with a bit of sibilance. Vocal tone and style in the ballpark of John Mayer, Goo Goo Dolls, things like that.

Also, besides the mic, what deessers (preferably cheap) are live sound folk having success with?

In terms of budget for the mic, it'd be nice to hear options no higher than the $300-$350 range...less is always welcome, but I'm also willing to spend what's necessary.

The idea is basically so I can have a vocal mic to take with me to gigs and not have sibilance be a distraction, yet still retaining good clarity.

Any advice is greatly appreciated...thanks!

-Mike

MichaelT · 18th August 2006, 01:31 AM

MichaelT · 18th August 2006, 08:52 PM

anybody?

dryout · 18th August 2006, 09:01 PM

maybe dynamics md421 re20?
Blur's/Gorillaz's Damon Albarn has pretty sharp ssss . Does anybody know his tricks?

seaneldon · 18th August 2006, 09:01 PM

have him get his teeth filed down for a couple hundred bucks and don't buy any more microphones.

MichaelT · 19th August 2006, 06:23 PM

Thanks for the suggestions so far...bump for some more opinions.

Thumper · 19th August 2006, 06:27 PM

What have you tried so far that isn't working out for you?

I just demod the new Shure KSM-9 at a live show. Amazing... alas, it's also quite a bit more than $300.

As far as a de-esser goes, just sidechain an eq into a compressor. Still get full bandwidth compression when you need it, but also on the 'esses'.

Audix vocal mics are cool, but they feel a little weird in the hand... Try out an OM-6.

carival · 19th August 2006, 07:09 PM

some people have pretty good luck with a sure sm58.

shanabit · 19th August 2006, 10:38 PM

Sennheiser e835 is a good dynamic mic that will have less feedback
issues than the Sure SM58. Its not a sibilant mic at all.
i do all my scratch tracks with it.

Arsene · 17th November 2006, 08:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MichaelT

Vocal tone and style in the ballpark of John Mayer, Goo Goo Dolls, things like that.

-Mike

John Mayer just used a Neumann u47 on his latest album.

Thumper · 17th November 2006, 10:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arsene

John Mayer just used a Neumann u47 on his latest album.

Who the fvck cares?!?!? This isn't a thread about fvcking studio vocal mics!!! LIVE VOCALS MICS IS THE QUESTION!!!

I would let your "addition" to this thread go, but the thing is 3 fvcking months old!!! READ the shit, look at the DATE when it was last posted on!!!!

If you plan on bringing a 47 on the road for live vocals, you must have, like 13 of them, right? Cause they sure aren't the most sturdy of mics... You don't need 13 of them. You only need twelve, so send me one bitch!!!

Not only is it not 'rugged' enough for live stage use, but you're in for a BIG suprise when you open the channel up for the first time. Feedback up the arse, that's what you'll hear.

You're either retarded because you can't read what the fvcking thread is about... OR you're fvcking retarded because "the 47 is the best microphone ever!!! I even use it for live vocals!!!!"

How the hell did you find this thread anyway? Were you so bored that you read back to page 73? Get a freakin life... Or at least work on your wonderful studio tan a bit...

Do some work that doesn't involve gearslutz sometime!!!!

Damn......

18th November 2006, 03:37 AM

So with this old thread did you find the mic you needed, or have you gotten the singer to learn to have control yet? (serious question, not smartass...)

shuamark · 25th September 2008, 10:36 PM

I'm new to this forum but I've used a number of different mics ranging from Neumann to AT to sm58, 57's, beta58, and many more. My 'go to' mic is AT's ae5400. No complaints there for someone that needs a little more in the midrange without killing the desired clarity in the highs.
As for John Mayer, I read that he used a ks105 or ks104, (can't remember which). But those are pricey.
Recently, I used my friend's Audix VX5 ($250 ebay price-range) and I was very impressed. He was using it with a bit of compression, nothing too crazy, and my voice shimmered. Now I usually like to have something just a bit deeper, but it doesn't seem like 'deeper' is what you're looking for. You might want to demo one of those vx5's and see if it fits.

choinga · 29th September 2008, 06:46 AM

If you watch Mayer's latest DVD - Where The Light Is...

Guess what, he's using a Shure Beta 58.

Personally, I've used an Audix OM-7 for most of my live work. You need a decent board (preamps) to push it, but the damn thing sounds amazing and you literally have to drop it into the speaker cone to get it to feedback. Singers with piss-poor mic skills probably won't like it but it's, IMHO, the best bang for the buck out there in that price range.

Jim vanBergen · 29th September 2008, 06:44 PM

I love answers to a thread that are 2 years old...

choinga · 30th September 2008, 01:01 AM

LOL - didn't even notice...was just responding to what I saw on the first page of the forum...

**Remoteness** · 30th September 2008, 03:38 PM

No worries, just wipe off the dust and start typing...

It's all good here in Remoteville.

Jim vanBergen · 1st October 2008, 03:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Remoteness

No worries, just wipe off the dust and start typing...

It's all good here in Remoteville.

OK- wipe, wipe, wipe...

Beyer M88!

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17th August 2006, 06:37 PM	#1
MichaelT Gear addict Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Brentwood, TN Posts: 477	Live vocal mic for male singer w/sibilance I was wondering what live vocal mic people would recommend for a male singer with a bit of sibilance. Vocal tone and style in the ballpark of John Mayer, Goo Goo Dolls, things like that. Also, besides the mic, what deessers (preferably cheap) are live sound folk having success with? In terms of budget for the mic, it'd be nice to hear options no higher than the $300-$350 range...less is always welcome, but I'm also willing to spend what's necessary. The idea is basically so I can have a vocal mic to take with me to gigs and not have sibilance be a distraction, yet still retaining good clarity. Any advice is greatly appreciated...thanks! -Mike

19th August 2006, 07:09 PM	#8
carival Gear maniac Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: boston area Posts: 223	some people have pretty good luck with a sure sm58. __________________ chris rival middleville studio http://chrisrival.com http://www.myspace.com/rivalchris

30th September 2008, 03:38 PM	#17
Remoteness Super Moderator Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: NYC Posts: 4,880	No worries, just wipe off the dust and start typing... It's all good here in Remoteville. __________________ Steve Remote AuraSonicLtd.com the home of ASL Mobile & Location Production Remoteness on the Linkedin Network Remoteness on Myspace

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18th August 2006, 01:31 AM	#2
MichaelT Gear addict Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Brentwood, TN Posts: 477	bump

18th August 2006, 08:52 PM	#3
MichaelT Gear addict Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Brentwood, TN Posts: 477	anybody?

18th August 2006, 09:01 PM	#4
dryout Gear interested Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 17	maybe dynamics md421 re20? Blur's/Gorillaz's Damon Albarn has pretty sharp ssss . Does anybody know his tricks?

18th August 2006, 09:01 PM	#5
seaneldon Lives for gear Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Foxboro, MA Posts: 2,082	have him get his teeth filed down for a couple hundred bucks and don't buy any more microphones.

19th August 2006, 06:23 PM	#6
MichaelT Gear addict Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Brentwood, TN Posts: 477	Thanks for the suggestions so far...bump for some more opinions.

19th August 2006, 06:27 PM	#7
Thumper Gear addict Join Date: Apr 2006 Posts: 408	What have you tried so far that isn't working out for you? I just demod the new Shure KSM-9 at a live show. Amazing... alas, it's also quite a bit more than $300. As far as a de-esser goes, just sidechain an eq into a compressor. Still get full bandwidth compression when you need it, but also on the 'esses'. Audix vocal mics are cool, but they feel a little weird in the hand... Try out an OM-6.

19th August 2006, 10:38 PM	#9
shanabit Lives for gear Join Date: Apr 2006 Posts: 999	Sennheiser e835 is a good dynamic mic that will have less feedback issues than the Sure SM58. Its not a sibilant mic at all. i do all my scratch tracks with it.

18th November 2006, 03:37 AM	#12
Lou Judson Guest Posts: n/a	So with this old thread did you find the mic you needed, or have you gotten the singer to learn to have control yet? (serious question, not smartass...)

25th September 2008, 10:36 PM	#13
shuamark Gear interested Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 1	I'm new to this forum but I've used a number of different mics ranging from Neumann to AT to sm58, 57's, beta58, and many more. My 'go to' mic is AT's ae5400. No complaints there for someone that needs a little more in the midrange without killing the desired clarity in the highs. As for John Mayer, I read that he used a ks105 or ks104, (can't remember which). But those are pricey. Recently, I used my friend's Audix VX5 ($250 ebay price-range) and I was very impressed. He was using it with a bit of compression, nothing too crazy, and my voice shimmered. Now I usually like to have something just a bit deeper, but it doesn't seem like 'deeper' is what you're looking for. You might want to demo one of those vx5's and see if it fits.

29th September 2008, 06:46 AM	#14
choinga Gear maniac Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 235	If you watch Mayer's latest DVD - Where The Light Is... Guess what, he's using a Shure Beta 58. Personally, I've used an Audix OM-7 for most of my live work. You need a decent board (preamps) to push it, but the damn thing sounds amazing and you literally have to drop it into the speaker cone to get it to feedback. Singers with piss-poor mic skills probably won't like it but it's, IMHO, the best bang for the buck out there in that price range.

29th September 2008, 06:44 PM	#15
Jim vanBergen Lives for gear Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: New York Friggin' City Posts: 2,286	I love answers to a thread that are 2 years old...

30th September 2008, 01:01 AM	#16
choinga Gear maniac Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 235	LOL - didn't even notice...was just responding to what I saw on the first page of the forum...