Popular mic for live male vocals

[Jose Mrochek]

after doing a search I found the Beta 87a to be the most popular along with the neuman ksm105 ? Some of the posts where old.. are those the standard still ? any new ones around ? or better put :

whats your favorite mic for live vocals today ?

you can check what my voice sounds like on myspace page : ) thanks for taking the time!!

[Matthew Murray]

I second this question. I've been using a beta 58 for years now and I can't help but wonder if a step up to those Neumanns might be a serious improvement.

Every little bit counts in those nasty venues I play.

[squeegybug]

I've owned and posted before about both of those mics. I prefer the Beta 87a over the Neumann, or any other stage mic I've used. The KMS105 is a little "soft" and airy to me, can't crowd it and get the power that I can with the Shure. We use live wedges, and I need my folks close to the mic, plus I want some bass in their tone. With IEM it might work differently, if that is what you are using.

Steve

[Thumper]

The new Shure KSM 9 is amaaaazing....

Super tight bottom, nice smooth top end. Midrange to die for. VERY good feedback rejection. You can also switch patterns on the mic, depending on how the vocalist likes it to be positioned on the stand. What's amazing, is that the cardioid and hypercardiod sound quite similar. That's not the case between the Beta 87a, and c.

However, It's expensive as hell for a live vocal mic. Around $675 or something... Way too expensive for a live vocal mic in my opinion.

Other mics to check out:
Audix OM-6
Beyer M-88 (NOT one that has been used for kick drum...)
Audio Technica's "Artist Elite" series... They're all great...

Now, If you're complaining about playing in "nasty little venues", and you still need to be heard over roaring guitars and loud as hell drums, may I suggest the standard SM-58... Forget the damn beta... the regular SM series. Sure, it might not be the most brilliant sounding microphone ever made, but it does cut right through anything and make you sound huge. And sometimes, that's all that matters. Just cut some 250 and add a 80 hz high pass, and it will sound great.

[recky]

A standard SM58 with a great preamp and compressor combo works wonders, be it a solo singer-songwriter or an AC/DC cover band. It's all I need. Condensers are great for an airy sound, but for a little punch there's nothing like the old SM58.

Cheers,

Recky

[Bat Head Sound]

I recently posted this in another thread, but I just tried a Heil PR-20 on a live male vocal and it was awesome. Sounded better than a Beta 58, KSM 105, Sennheiser 835, SM57, SM58, Cheapy Audio Technica (I don't remember which one), and the Audix OM5. It's seems to be built like a brick $h!t house and relatively inexpensive. Try it out, it's definitely worth it.

[Jose Mrochek]

what are the differences between the Beta87A and the SM87A ? sorry if this was posted in a different thread, but I still don´t get it... thanks.

[craigb]

Check out the Sennheiser E935 dynamic as well (not to be confused with the E835). About the same price as a Beta58 but MUCH better sounding, IMO. It has a very nice clear high end. I've had numerous players comment on how clear the 935 sounded in the monitors, and how easy it was to sing through.

[Gabriel Sousa]

nice thread....

any more opinions ?

thanks a lot

[fifthcircle]

Big fan of the AKG 535 here. Not quite as feedback proof as other mics, but sounds really good.

For high-volume/feedback prone locations, I'll generally go for Audix OM series (often the OM7), Beyer M88, Sennheiser MD431, or when I have pres on stage, the Beyer M500 handheld ribbon.

--Ben

[Bob Bickerton]

Depends on the voice of course. The mic I favour for my own voice over SM58, KMS105 and e935 is the Sennheiser e840. I'd describe it as less congested than a 58, not as airy as a KMS105, a rather neutral open mic with a splash on top and good extension down below. For their price you could throw one into your mic cupboard anyway!

Cheers

Bob Bickerton

[kissingonstilts]

You might wish to try the Schoeps hand-held vocal mic. It's quite expensive, and it is rather large, but quite musical.

[Sounds Great]

Great topic! I also have a C535eb that I have had for a long time and still love the sound. The only thing is I have run into a problem with handling noise when doing a live recording, so I would like something that sounds as good but maybe has a better shock system to reduce handling noise. Ideas?

[Remoteness]

Originally Posted by Sounds Great

Great topic! I also have a C535eb that I have had for a long time and still love the sound...

I like the top end on that mic.

[Walling1]

Originally Posted by fifthcircle

Beyer M88, Sennheiser MD431, or when I have pres on stage, the Beyer M500 handheld ribbon.

--Ben

I'm a big fan of the M88 as well.

A venue that I mix in frequently has 4 Beyer M500 mics, but I've never pulled them out. Any tips? Why only when the pres are onstage? I've never used a ribbon in a live setting.

Thanks!

-Dave

[Remoteness]

Originally Posted by Walling1

I'm a big fan of the M88 as well.

A venue that I mix in frequently has 4 Beyer M500 mics, but I've never pulled them out. Any tips? Why only when the pres are onstage? I've never used a ribbon in a live setting.

Thanks!

-Dave

The M500s don't have a lot of output so, you need plenty of gain for those mics.

Also, be very careful handling them -- They are ribbon mics that need tender loving care when handling them.

[fifthcircle]

Granted my 535's are newer versions, but I can't say that I've had much of a problem with handling noise. Are you sure you don't have a loose part in them that may be contributing to the problem?

The other thing that wasn't mentioned about the M500 is you also don't want to hit it with phantom (just like any other ribbon). I usually go for it with jazz vocalists with a pre on stage so I can hear it at FOH/recording position. As for treating it well, just don't treat it like a SM57. You just need to be sure not to drop it or bang it on anything. Probably not for the thrash bands.

--Ben

[Andrew B.]

I am a big fan of the Audix OM5 for both rock and jazz vocals. A huge step up from the (still) industry-standard SM58 on pretty much any voice. Also better than the Beta 58 on all voices I've tried it on. Your vocalist needs to have decent technique though, since the hypercardioid pattern is tight on these.

I've also recently used an Audio Technica AE5400 which is the cardioid version of the 4050 in a handheld form factor. It is very clean and unhyped - but I think the OM5 worked better for both my male rock vocalist and female jazz singer.

Andrew

[Harley-OIART]

Personally if an SM-58 isn't going to cut it for an act, usually due to the fact more detail is required, I'm a huge fan of the SM-86 as a solution. I love it better than the Beta or SM series Model 87. Not exactly a "High-End" microphone, and really far from slutty tone wise, but you may fall in love with it too. Nice SM-Series tone, extra detail from condensor capsule, and low handling noise. Worth a listen.

The AKG C-535's are a love of mine but the handling noise is a bit much as someone mentioned. Great mics to own none-the-less.

Really can't suggest enough though the Audix lineup. OM-5 sounds great. Lots to choose from with them though so try em all

-My unrequested 60 cents =)

[bachconnelly]

+1 Beta 58

[Remoteness]

I ordered a few Neuman KMS104s.
They should be coming in very soon.
I'll give you folks an update on how they sound once I test them out.
I suspect they will be a welcomed addition to my microphone collection.

[Karl Jackson]

I used an AKG C535 for several years on a baritone vocalist and loved the sound. We started doing more work with wedges so I switched to the Beta87A, but always felt it was a little lacking on his voice. Recently I did a tour with the new KSM9 and am sold 100% for this deep voiced baritone vocalist. Much smoother sound from top to bottom. Silky! Great rejection too when in the supercard setting.

However - when comparing the 87 w/ the KSM9 on a mezzo-soprano the improvement was less significant.

kj

[Robobo1]

The Neumann KMS 105 is definitely worth a shot. Wonderful live with wedges or with a singer/pianist (sub card pattern, good rejection).

Steve, I'm interested to hear what you think of the 104s... we've really liked our 105s.... but watch out for that hyped high-end!!

Karl... glad to see you made it to the forum! Welcome!


- Rob

[foldback]

I've been using a Sennheiser 431 when singing live in my band, it is smooth sounding and looks cool :-)

Recently we were doing some live recordings of the group in a bar. On one of the songs I sang into an SM-58 that was nearby (there were too many cords wrapped around my feet to make it back to my stand).

A few days later I was mixing on the tracks in my studio. When I hit the song with the SM-58 for vocals it sounded WAY BETTER than my regular Senn 431. The 58 had punch and clarity out the wazzoooo.

I baby my mics, the Senn has never been dropped and it still sounds great on its own but for my voice the 58 is back on the stand (I like the ones with on off switches - worlds cheapest anti-feedback device).

The moral of this story is, there is no one mic for male vocals and price spent means almost nothing. Get what works best for the voice you're working with.

Experiment often (but not on clients :-)

[Remoteness]

Yeah, and the SM58 is a great dual purpose mic...

It can be used as a hammer if applicable.

I have used the MD431 as a snare mic with excellent results.

[muziekschuur]

I do not like the KSM105. I prefer the Sennheiser 945. It is truely a nice microphone. A Beyer dynamic Opus 69 is allso a very nice microphone.

Muziekschuur

[foldback]

Originally Posted by Remoteness

Yeah, and the SM58 is a great dual purpose mic...

It can be used as a hammer if applicable.

great for wedging under a door to hold it open for load out too :-)

[fifthcircle]

Originally Posted by foldback

great for wedging under a door to hold it open for load out too :-)

Wow.. true versatility. Wish all my microphones could do all that.

--Ben

[Student]

Shure SM58 or Audix OM2...Audix OM series is great for not feeding back even if the singer doesn't eat it, just awesome.

[Sounds Great]

I am doing some comparisons tonight.

I am about to buy a wireless, but I wanted to make a decision on the wired versions first. I have an AKG C535eb now, and the UPS guy just arrived and dropped of my new Audio Technica at4054 (previous version of the new AE5400) and my new Shure Beta87c. (the c is the cardioid version and is said to be smoother than the standard Beta87a which is hyper-cardioid).

I will be buying the wireless version of the winner.