Which is best? An SM58 or a Condenser?

T

timandjes

New member
I have a band with 5 singers. I only have one SM58 vocal mic. I'm wondering, would it be best for me to get a condenser mic and have all the singers gather toghether and sing into it @ the same time, or would it be best to get each singer thier own SM58, (or perhaps some other good recording mic)? My motive for considering one sharred condenser is money... It would be much cheaper for me to get one condenser than to get 4 more SM58's. Also, I'm recording with a 4-track so track space is limited.

What I'd really like to do is record with as few "takes" as possible. Such as plugging the piano into one track, the singers into another, the guitar into another, and the drums into another, thus, recording the whole song in one take. However, with condenser mic's, is that possible? The sharred condenser mic of the singers & the over-head condenser of the drums would also be picking up the other sounds of the band wouldn't they? Is there anyway to use condensers without the other sounds bleeding through on each track?
 
There's afew options. One condensor could be used, but this would imply that your singers sing in a good balance with eachother, and you need to do some experimenting with positioning of the singers around the mic.

Recording this in the same room at the same time as the drums will give problems, since with 5 singers in one mic, you are kinda distant micing, drums sound louder as voices, so you'd get ALOT of drums in it.

What you could do is either record them in seperate room, they can hear eachothers thru headphones... Or record the singers afterwards, which would be the most logical choice, and frees up the condensor for use as overhead too.

4 more SM58's would cost about the same as a budget condensor. But you'd also need a mixer to get them on one track. If you will be performing live, you'll need the condensors anyway.

I don't know your bands setup, but the way I would record it would be: guitars and piano (I'm assuming an electrical piano here) direct to tape, and drums. Then overdub the vocals, and the guitar if the sound of the direct recording is not very satisfying....
 
I'd just stick all the singers in the same room . . . make sure you have some really deadened accoustics . . . and put an omni-directional mic in the middle of them. You could even get by, I suppose, with a Behringer ecm-8000 for like $35.
 
I'd go with the condensor, but record vocals on a seperate take from the instruments. A lot of bands can't play with the same feel if there's no vocal, so a scratch vocal is recorded during the rythem take, and then that vocal is later replaced with the keeper(s).
Regards, RD
 
I sometimes use the guide vocal very low under the eventual lead vox as a kind of chorus thickening track.
Tom
 
You'd get better results by stepping up to a hotter output omni condenser
like the soon to be released Studio Projects B3 that will have a street
price of about $150 for the following reasons.
1) The hotter output means you get a quieter signal because the mic pre
won't be turned up as high, with better response on transients.
2) Self noise of the microphone is less.
3) Better quality components = less noise.

You can also use the SM58 for scratch vocals.
 
I do quite a bit of group vocals with a factory matched stereo pair of Oktava MC012's from sound room. With just on capsule, in this case cardioid, you can get them for not much more than 4 SM57's, and they are far more versatile and accurate as recording mics. I wouldn't use dynamics for much other than micing a guitar cab. use as coincedent overhead with singers in a circle or as a spaced stereo pair w/ singers in a line, put weakest voices on the outside just slightly off axis- works for me. Good luck- Richie
 
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