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Author Topic: Vocal microphones  (Read 124425 times)

Richard Penrose

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Re: Vocal microphones
« Reply #130 on: February 28, 2017, 02:51:59 AM »

It also says on Telefunkens website the M80 has a tight cardioid pickup pattern? It is a little confusing that on the Telefunken site it appears they say it is a tight cardioid pattern then on another page it says supercardioid!?
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Andrew Henley

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Re: Vocal microphones
« Reply #131 on: April 01, 2017, 01:22:19 AM »

I stock the following mics:

AKG:
(1) D 112 (love this on baritone sax, and kick drums without holes)
(1) C1000S (last choice, unless I need an audience mic that can get rained on)

Shure:
(1) SM7b (can be useful as bass cabinet mic)
(10) SM57
(10) SM58
(2) SM81
(4) Beta 52a
(4) Beta 57a
(6) Beta 58a
(1) Beta 91a
(1) Beta 87a (picky mic, only used with low stage volume)
(1) KSM8 (still getting used to this one, only use for top notch vocalists)
(2) KSM137
(6) QLXD/SM58 wireless (with RF Venue combiner/D-Fin...btw, the RF Venue products are awesome!
(2) SLX4/SM58/Beta58 wireless

Audix:
(1) D2 (great for horns)
(1) D4
(1) i5 (quite nice on snare, and durable)
(1) f14 

Audio-Technica
(3) AT-4050
(2) AT-4041

Sennheiser
(6) e604
(2) EW100 G3 lavs
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RichardStringer

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Re: Vocal microphones
« Reply #132 on: May 11, 2017, 01:42:41 PM »

One microphone i've always hated is the Shure SM58, yes it's hardwearing and a workhorse mic but it's frequency response isn't great, I used to own one and used other SM58 too various places. I then bought an AKG D5 and was shocked how much clearer the sound was, it's WAY better in my opinion for vocals. My favourite microphone though is or was (because I don't use them anymore) the Neumann KMS-105 it's a brilliant vocal microphone.
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Jonah Powell

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Re: Vocal microphones
« Reply #133 on: July 19, 2017, 12:37:23 AM »

I've been around the block with vocal mics, starting with the Shure sm-58 then on to the e838 (not 835--look it up.  Same frequency chart as 935 and sounds identical).  Also have Blue encore 300, which is a great vocal condenser.  Another great mic is the MBHO mbd219sc, sc for super cardioid.  The MBHO is a dynamic mic that sounds like a condenser, but with a tighter pattern and without all the bad behavior.  I also have some ev 767a mics that sound decent out front, but for the performer the proximity effect is strange and changes wildly with slight distance variations.

With all of that said, I'm back to the sm-58 for daily use and love the way they sound through my Danleys.  A lot of what I had attributed to the sm58 that I didn't like was actually what I didn't like about my JBLs.  There is a harshness in the top end of the sennheisers that i find displeasing and false, and good vocal intelligibility is hard to achieve despite the "crisp" top end.
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Richard Penrose

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Re: Vocal microphones
« Reply #134 on: August 02, 2017, 07:47:02 AM »

There is a harshness in the top end of the Sennheisers that i find displeasing and false, and good vocal intelligibility is hard to achieve despite the "crisp" top end.

Yes I've found some vocalists can sound really harsh on the E838, E935 and E945's I own. The E945 matches one of the male vocalists I work with better than any other mic I've tried!
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Victor Estrada

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Re: Vocal microphones
« Reply #135 on: November 28, 2017, 07:15:27 PM »

This one is for the price:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071NP1D3V/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Ask me for a review and I'll do it! Very sturdy, really nice quality, even the cable it comes with is really good!
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Chris Grimshaw

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Re: Vocal microphones
« Reply #136 on: November 29, 2017, 05:19:10 PM »

So I borrowed a couple of Sennheiser vocal mics from another SoundCo, thought I'd post up some impressions. I've

My usual mics are EV N/D767a, with N/D967s when GBF is a problem, and Audio-Technica ATM710s when I'm happy to trade off some GBF for improved sound. I like the EVs, but sometimes there's some roughness/raspiness in the upper midrange that I'm not keen on. The Audio-Technica mics sound great to me.

First up, the e965 condenser.
Smooth midrange and treble, but far too much proximity effect. At 6" distance it sounded great, but up close needed of the order of 10dB taking out of the lower-midrange, and a wide cut. I found 150Hz, -8dB and Q=0.4 got it sounding pretty amazing, but that was with the low-cut filter switched in as well. Switchable pickup pattern is nice, though the frequency response towards the top end changes a little - cardioid has a rise towards 10kHz with a dip 5-6.5kHz. Supercardioid is smoother overall, but a bit of a rise around 3.5kHz. Both settings sound decent in use - I'd choose the pattern according to the environment rather than in preference for the sound of one or the other.

Next up, the e935.
First impression is a contrast to the e965 - immediate clarity and brightness. Going from one to the other, the e935 is very bright. On its own, it sounds pretty damn good. Up close, the response is pretty linear, with a slight dip in the 1-2kHz region between the presence rise and proximity effect. Used further away from the source, it sounds thinner as would be expected. Good mics - if I walked into a venue with e935s on the stands, I wouldn't swap them out for my EVs.


After all that, I put my usual mics into the same measurement setup. The ATM710 measures very similar to the e935, except with another few kHz of HF extension - the e935 starts falling off at 9.5kHz, and the ATM710 manages 17kHz before it, too, drops off. Both of them benefited from a few dB boost around 1.7kHz to fill in the dip as mentioned above.
The raggedness of the 767a seems to be from a couple of peaks in the presence region - 3.8kHz and 5.7kHz. Taking those two down a few dB with fairly narrow notches gave a much smoother and polished sound.

I didn't get to test GBF properly - the mics were loaned to me, so I didn't want to take them to a gig. I did try them with a couple of monitors for a quick test and the two Sennheiser mics seemed about as good as the N/D767a.

I was really hoping the e965 would be a one-size-fits-all type mic that'd give me the GBF I want while sounding excellent. It does manage that, with some processing, but at £440 a piece there are other purchases I'll be considering first.

A side note - I tested a couple of older mics: an original AKG C3000 and a Beyerdynamic M67. They both have low-cut switches that are very shallow slopes, but come in somewhere high up and are -3dB around 500Hz or so. The result is that, at a couple of inches distance from the source, the LF rise due to proximity effect is cancelled out pretty much perfectly.
Why don't they make 'em like that any more?

Chris
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Jared Koopman

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Re: Vocal microphones
« Reply #137 on: March 04, 2018, 12:36:22 AM »

The band I work with is in many tight venues as well. So far, for my lead vocalists voice we have settled on the EV ND76 or the Audio Technica AE6100 (my preference). The band is on IEM's and the PA is either ours (QSC KW153/181) or provided by the venue which ranges all over the place.

The AT has pretty good rejection and a nice clean pickup for his voice. The EV does have a bit "rougher" midrange but in this case, sometimes I think it adds to the flavor.

We have tried the following with his vocals:
Sennheiser E935/945 (I love the mics, but didnt seem to fit his voice. Felt like I was fighting eq more than I liked to make it sound what I wanted)

Audio Technica AE5400 (sounded very similar to the AE6100 but with more presence. Picked up a lot of the stage with messed with his IEM's. With some time I am sure we could have nailed it down, but he wanted to swtich the mic out mid show and we havent tried anymore since.)

Shure SM58/B58/B87 (just didnt sound good with his voice. He has a strong low mid presence and I find these shures just highlight the worst of his voice, so we went shopping. I wouldnt turn them down, but definitely required more eq)

Blue Encore 300 (I dont recall anything bad in the mix, but it wasnt mine and we havent tried it again)

EV ND767/ND76 - (great stage noise rejection, and he likes the proximity of it. Again has a bit of edge to it, but for our genre I think it adds to the mix. I havent had any issues with GBF)

Heil PR22 (I use these on instruments more than anything but tried it on vocals on a whim. Eh...lots of handling noise)

Earthworks SR40v (wow what a mic...it sounded fantastic. It did pick up a bit more of the stage, but it was crystal clear...and he was 4 feet from the PA. had to notch a smidgen for some feedback due to proximity to the PA, but otherwise if I had the budget, I would carry this mic).

Jared Koopman
JK Sound
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Thomas Le

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Re: Vocal microphones
« Reply #138 on: October 23, 2018, 12:06:01 PM »

- Shure SM58, just because.
- Senn e835, similar to SM58 but better IMO. Got it in wireless as ew 135 G3 currently.
- Shure SM86, sleeper and new favorite!

Ideally, I'd like a Shure UHF-R rig in the future with SM86's or 87's, NOT the beta!
OK I'm changing my opinions lol.

- I'm now used to the Beta 87a's and I can work with them.
- I'm still happy with SM58's and SM86's, but prefer 86's if given the choice of the three.
- I'm now disliking the e835, very boxy sounding/muddy imo, could be just me.
So is the e935 that much different? Is it like the Beta58a to the SM58?Anyone got opinions with e865 also?
« Last Edit: October 23, 2018, 03:18:38 PM by Thomas Le »
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Caleb Dueck

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Re: Vocal microphones
« Reply #139 on: October 23, 2018, 03:11:49 PM »



OK I'm changing my opinions lol.

- I'm now used to the Beta 87a's and I can work with them.- I'm still happy with SM58's and SM86's, but prefer 86's if given the choice of the three.- I'm now disliking the e835, very boxy sounding/muddy imo, could be just me.
So is the e935 that much different? Is it like the Beta58a to the SM58?Anyone got opinions with e865 also?

SM86's are a great option.

The 935 is much different (better) than the 835.  Newer technology.  Overall my favorite general purpose dynamic mic.

865 needs some low-mid EQ cuts, and the HF isn't as crystal clear as newer/higher cost mics.  With EQ it's still a good mic, but I'd rather use SM86. 

Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk

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ProSoundWeb Community

Re: Vocal microphones
« Reply #139 on: October 23, 2018, 03:11:49 PM »


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