Edgy female vocalist live mic recommendation

[jangoux]

Hello everyone,

I am looking for a new mic for use with my rock band's singer. She's got a edgy voice with an annoying 3~5 peak and i usually find the SM58 isn't right for her. She's very dynamic, and sometimes this mic to be too "hard" and boxy on her. Any opinions ? Somethig with more gain, and more rejection would be acceptable . Also, i don't think condensers are an option because not always we'll have phantom power.

the SM7 sounds great on her voice for studio rock stuff. For calmer stuff, we've tried the 4047 (great for detailed stuff on her voice) and the 414 (also great for more intimate stuff). The Md421 also sounds WAY better than a 58. Any opinions ?

Would a Audix OM7 or a Sennheiser 935 (or 945) fit that need ? Any other suggestions ?

Thanks,
Ivan

[cortisol]

Hi there.

We're using a Sennheiser 935 for live female rock vocals. We're quite pleased with it. We tried out a number of mics, shoot-out stylie, and this mic beat out everything we tried including some hand held condensers. Would have like to have tried the good AKG hand held condenser but never the less very pleased.

I am finding this mic to be better suited to the detail and range of a womans voice and that it rejects feedback very well, maybe even slightly better than an SM58.

It sound like your singer hasn't learned to work the mic so mic choice won't cure that. Just a pair of headphones, a mixer with a headphones out put and some practice is all it takes. It's a pretty good idea to do this with any new vocal mic.

The Sennheiser 935 has a different build up of proximity effect than an SM58 so it is worth learning this mic.

All the best,
cortisol

Try a Shure SM87A - condenser vocal, smooth and rich for my favorite female vocalists. NOT the Beta - SM-87A.

<L>

[squeegybug]

I've not used the SM87a, but have had good success for many years with the Beta 87A on male and female singers. Must get close to it to balance the response, it has a great proximity boost. Very tight pattern, excellent GBF, powerful sound.

I would not recommend Audix mics for your needs, in my experience they are pretty bright with very little low end. Sennheiser 935 was ok, not as much resolution and dynamics as the Beta 87a though for our needs.

Steve



whoops, I see you might not be able to use condensers. Maybe try some EV dynamics too, or of course the Beyers. FWIW the Beta 87a will run on 12v phantom, it's not fussy. But if you don't even have that....

[jangoux]

Thanks for all replies.

So, the Audix mics have a weak low end ?. But that's worse than a SM58 ? A weak low end is a no-no. Her voice could use a low end use, or at least something to thicken it up a little bit.

What the differences that can i expect from the SM to the Beta 87, besides the later being able to go 20k ? I prefer not to use condensers, but if there's anything near them, i could get a cheap pre just to feed it, when there's no phantom power available.

We already tried - for recording - a EV ND967. Nice mic, but it seemed too mid rangey, but we just used it on studio. Somethign thicker would be best.

As I said, mics with a little scooped mids seem to work better. Think 421, SM7 and 414. I think something on those lines would work, my only fear is not being able to cut through well with a scooped mic.

[jangoux]

I know i shouldn't take frequency response charts as guidelines, but i just did a quick comparison between those mics.

THe ND967 seemed to be the flatest, and has a mid-range cut switch. But when we used it, it seemed to lack on the low end, like I said.
Both 87 mics have a roll-off starting at 200. it proximity effect makes up for that?
All shure mics have a bigger boost starting at 5k.
The 935 and 945, both have a boost starting at 3k or so. Bad for edgy voices?

And, btw, We usually play many different venues. Small venues with drums right behind the singer, and sometimes very big stages. Picking up less ambient noise (guitars, drums) would be great. Also, something that we could rehearse (small room, loud drums) and pick up not much ambient noise and with nice gBF (Better than sm58) would be great.

[squeegybug]

Yes, as I mentioned the Beta 87A has a great, easy to work proximity effect. This is what I mean by balancing the tone. They are fun to sing on. Look again at that chart to see this strong response. The rolloff at distance is what can help with their superior GBF.

You can't use them too far away, the sound will wander and be too thin. Richard Thompson and Emmylou Harris are two artists whose voices can be a little edgy, and they use these almost exclusively when I've seen them perform.

The isolation is by far the best I've found for the stage mics I've used. Not even in the same universe as SM58, that mic will bleed a bunch. Beta87a is supercardioid so wedges need to be a little to the sides rather than directly behind. If you are using IEM then that is a different subject.

I don't like cardioid patterns or dynamic mics for live vocals. Often by the time you get the gain up enough for their lack of sensitivity (compared to condensers) you are back in feedback land and needing some good EQ. Dynamics can take the heat from screamers if set up right, but the punch and clarity and... dynamics... are rarely if ever as powerful as condensers.

re the P48 -- you can always get something like the A-T CP8506 remote phantom unit and power up to 4 mics. I use these, they are nice and reliable. About $140 I think.

Steve

RE:
What the differences that can i expect from the SM to the Beta 87, besides the later being able to go 20k ?"

I find the Beta have a big peak right where many systems like to feed back - they are harsh to me and need to be tamed in the 3-5k range, right where you don't want it.

I have just one SM-87 and it sounds perfect on female vocals without EQ most of the time...

<L>

[GearHunter]

BeyerDynamic M88TG or M69. Very round, loud, tight cardioid, and without that brassy mettalic peak that the Shures have.

Believe me on this one. I have a thin nasally voice and the M88 has been my live mic for years. It booms!