GLS Audio ES-57 vs. Shure SM57 (on Guitar) Mic A/B Test - Video and WAV pics

GLS Audio ES-57 or Shure SM57 (on Guitar)?

  • GLS Audio ES-57

    Votes: 1 50.0%

  • Shure SM57

    Votes: 1 50.0%
  • Total voters
    2
G

gregoryg

New member
Hey guys - I often see the GLS Audio ES-57 cited as a "perfect SM57 clone" or cheaper alternative. I have been watching prices for a while and saw the ES-57 dip back down to $29.99 so I decided to pick one up to experiment with.

First order of business was to A/B test the ES-57 against a genuine Shure SM57 on guitar. I tried to control for all variables and run a valid, scientific test, all the way down to the XLR cables and mic stands.

My ruling: THESE MICS ARE NOT EVEN CLOSE. Check out my results here: GLS Audio ES-57 vs. Shure SM57 (on Guitar) Microphone A/B Test - YouTube

So which do you like better and why?
 
if you had both mics in exactly (to the millimetre) the same place on the amp it would be a fair test, but because they are in different spots it's hard to realistically tell which one is better or worse, you might find that the cheap mic sounds almost exactly the same if you do this, mic placement is critical in tests because guitar amps have a very small sweet spot from my experience, and this is common problem that most tests I see. Playing live isn't a good idea, you want a DI'd guitar that has been pre recorded so that it repeats exactly the same every time re-amped so that it removes take biases
 
The mics sound different because they are different microphones, not because there is two inches of space between them. Lighten up.

Btyre2013 said:
if you had both mics in exactly (to the millimetre) the same place on the amp it would be a fair test, but because they are in different spots it's hard to realistically tell which one is better or worse, you might find that the cheap mic sounds almost exactly the same if you do this, mic placement is critical in tests because guitar amps have a very small sweet spot from my experience, and this is common problem that most tests I see. Playing live isn't a good idea, you want a DI'd guitar that has been pre recorded so that it repeats exactly the same every time re-amped so that it removes take biases
Click to expand...
 
I have a few of those gls mics and I'll go ahead and be "that guy" I hate them.. They lack transients, they always have a really bad dc offset to them. (Mine anyways) And the frequency response is not like an sm57
Imo they have a lot lower fidelity and in general I just really do NOT like them. Not for 30 dollars not for 10 dollars. I do however love my gls mic cables just bought some and set them up last week. I stand by word and I hate to trash talk a mic but they make claims to sound like an sm57 so in my opinion they deserve to be critiqued on that level. Not to mention they have much more handling noise than an sm57 (none) also add up a lot of tracks mixed with these and It will stand out more. I volunteer myself to do blind or double blind testing if neccessary I really do not like these mics. I would much rather have a nady or dare I say behringer mic. Just my two cents sorry to sound harsh...
 
What you talk about here is my single biggest issue with the ES-57: all this talk that they are "clones" or suitable replacements for SM57s.

My ES-57 here sounds nothing like the SM-57. On the distortion tracks presented in the video specifically, they couldn't sound much more different in my opinion.

Change the deceiving model number and stop marketing them as clones. And for those who claim to prefer the ES-57, that's fine, but again stop with the Shure comparisons and let the GLS mics stand on their own.


David Cooke said:
I have a few of those gls mics and I'll go ahead and be "that guy" I hate them.. They lack transients, they always have a really bad dc offset to them. (Mine anyways) And the frequency response is not like an sm57
Imo they have a lot lower fidelity and in general I just really do NOT like them. Not for 30 dollars not for 10 dollars. I do however love my gls mic cables just bought some and set them up last week. I stand by word and I hate to trash talk a mic but they make claims to sound like an sm57 so in my opinion they deserve to be critiqued on that level. Not to mention they have much more handling noise than an sm57 (none) also add up a lot of tracks mixed with these and It will stand out more. I volunteer myself to do blind or double blind testing if neccessary I really do not like these mics. I would much rather have a nady or dare I say behringer mic. Just my two cents sorry to sound harsh...
Click to expand...
 
gregoryg said:
What you talk about here is my single biggest issue with the ES-57: all this talk that they are "clones" or suitable replacements for SM57s.

My ES-57 here sounds nothing like the SM-57. On the distortion tracks presented in the video specifically, they couldn't sound much more different in my opinion.

Change the deceiving model number and stop marketing them as clones. And for those who claim to prefer the ES-57, that's fine, but again stop with the Shure comparisons and let the GLS mics stand on their own.
Click to expand...

I hear you man. I'm usually pretty liberal on subjective things like which mic is better but I don't feel that way on this mic aside from the whole "clone thing" i still think it sounds bad in comparassion to (almost) ANY mic but then again thats "subjective" as is the taste of chocolate vs horse dung.


Also the fact that so many people online praise them really bothers me and makes it hard to take anything I read online seriously.. I just don't know what people hear in these things. Like the old lynx aurora vs behringer ada test on gearslutz.. I recently upgraded my converters despite everyones advice (including ethan winer) that they don't matter. Imo it made a HUGE difference. I'm not a pro so my opinion doesn't mean anything to anyone but I really hate to see people make the same mistakes as me..
 
gregoryg said:
The mics sound different because they are different microphones, not because there is two inches of space between them. Lighten up.
Click to expand...

you can't claim the mic is worse because it's in a different position on the speaker cone, ALL mics will sound worse in the position where the GLS is, so your test is biased against the GLS. That's all I have to say
 
Yeah, the thing is that I never said the GLS sounds "worse," as you suggest I did. I said the GLS ES-57 sounds different the Shure SM57 (i.e., not a "clone") despite numerous claims that it's a "clone."

Yes, mic placememt counts on a real scientific test where you are trying to prove a hypothesis. There are other tests on YouTube comparing the ES-57 and SM57 by using pink noise and spectrum analyzers on the wav forms if you're really into the science behind it.

But I can assure you that mic placement is far less of a contributor to the difference in sound replication than the fact that one is a Shure 57 and the other is not.

I can re-do the test for you if you'd like. But I went ahead and tried it real quick on my own and it didn't make a difference (same results). At least no difference I could detect with my ears.



Btyre2013 said:
you can't claim the mic is worse because it's in a different position on the speaker cone, ALL mics will sound worse in the position where the GLS is, so your test is biased against the GLS. That's all I have to say
Click to expand...
 
PS - Your point that space matters is valid and correct, so I can totally re-do it of you want. I know things get lost in text and so I'm really not trying to be an ass.

For the purposes of my video, if anyone's still reading, the audio is in fact pretty much representative of the sonic and tonal differences between the mics, in the event you are in the market for one or the other.
 
I might take this on, considering I bought the mic for the express purpose of experimenting. I'll post before and after (with better attention given to positioning this time).
 
gregoryg said:
I might take this on, considering I bought the mic for the express purpose of experimenting. I'll post before and after (with better attention given to positioning this time).
Click to expand...

Please let me know your results I am very interested I have 3 of these mics and they have been collecting dust for years. And as far as the scientific variables I agree it could be better but I wouldn't get to carried away. The way some people talk you would think an u47 would sound like an sm57 if you changed the position. The fact that you are 1 out of hundreds of people that is willing to put your money where your mouth is and post results is more meaningful than the hudreds of people saying "i bought these and they sound just like a real sm57" kudos to you.
 
Thanks man, I appreciate that. People can get pretty damn snarky online, but that's the risk you take right?!

I'll be sure to document the entire mic mod and put it up for others who might be interested in taking the plunge.


David Cooke said:
Please let me know your results I am very interested I have 3 of these mics and they have been collecting dust for years. And as far as the scientific variables I agree it could be better but I wouldn't get to carried away. The way some people talk you would think an u47 would sound like an sm57 if you changed the position. The fact that you are 1 out of hundreds of people that is willing to put your money where your mouth is and post results is more meaningful than the hudreds of people saying "i bought these and they sound just like a real sm57" kudos to you.
Click to expand...
 
Interesting to me is that no one is answering the question. And the criticisms seem to be wrong to my ears :eek:
What I'm hearing from the ES vs SM is the ES is brighter, cleaner, more dynamic (and the dynamics can actually be seen); the reverb actually sounds fuller and distinct, and the lead pick slaps are actually less harsh.
Maybe my ears are worse than I thought, but to me the SM is muddy and non dynamic in comparison... No they're not the same mike (at least the way they were set up. (maybe try opposite sides of the same position on the speaker?)) Even if they do turn out to be completely different, for $30 this is a very nice mike...One thing I didn't see was a noise floor comparison; could that be included in your new batch of tests?
 
I found this TY comparison, of course it is to be taken with a grain of salt but the distorted guitar sounds pretty similar between the SM57 & ES57.

for the pink noise test i think the ES57 sounds truer, but we don't record pink noise.

[EDIT: i was listening on crappy speakers so i'll have to go back an listen on a proper set up]

 
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I think the question not being answered (if you are referring to the poll) is just because I'm a newbie, which is fine.

Trust your ears though, I hear it the same way (ES-57 is brighter and the SM57 sounds muddier [although I describe it as "consistent" I guess I meant to say flat]). While I refused to state which mic I preferred in the video and associated post because I was not trying to be biased, I did vote for the SM57 (that's my one vote up top!). Technically the ES-57 sounds "better" to me, but I would PREFER (and voted for) the Shure mic because I want my mics flat. I don't want them introducing brightness and other elements that aren't really there. Being in the room when it was recorded, I can say the Shure mic is more accurate to what was being played. So, all that being said, yes the GLS sounded "better" to me, but the Shure mic was closer to what the amp sounded like.

BroKen_H said:
Interesting to me is that no one is answering the question. And the criticisms seem to be wrong to my ears :eek:
What I'm hearing from the ES vs SM is the ES is brighter, cleaner, more dynamic (and the dynamics can actually be seen); the reverb actually sounds fuller and distinct, and the lead pick slaps are actually less harsh.
Maybe my ears are worse than I thought, but to me the SM is muddy and non dynamic in comparison... No they're not the same mike (at least the way they were set up. (maybe try opposite sides of the same position on the speaker?)) Even if they do turn out to be completely different, for $30 this is a very nice mike...One thing I didn't see was a noise floor comparison; could that be included in your new batch of tests?
Click to expand...
 
Really? I don't think the distorted sound on this other video sounds close between the two mics at all. I think it's essentially the same results I came up with.

blaumph2cool said:
I found this TY comparison, of course it is to be taken with a grain of salt but the distorted guitar sounds pretty similar between the SM57 & ES57.

for the pink noise test i think the ES57 sounds truer, but we don't record pink noise.

Click to expand...
 
For the sake of argument.. It's nearly impossible for anyone besides the OP to say which is better because he is the only one in the room. The fact that the mic sounds "better" may be due to the frequency response or simply distortion. Also I would be interested in the results of a test with drums or some
Other percussive source. There is also the question of the preamp and matching the impedance to the mic. If I get a chance I will upload a comparison on drums. I don't think the top dogs use
sm57s only because they've never heard of GLS before..
 
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I'm actually planning on doing snare and rack toms test this weekend for the two "xx-57" mics. This time I'll be sure to physically tape the two microphones together.

David Cooke said:
For the sake of argument.. It's nearly impossible for anyone besides the OP to say which is better because he is the only one in the room. The fact that the mic sounds "better" may be do to the frequency response or simply harmonic distortion. Also I would be interested in the results of a test with drums or some
Other percussive source. There is also the question of the preamp and matching the impedance to the mic. If I get a chance I will upload a comparison on drums. I don't think the top dogs use
sm57s only because they've never heard of GLS before..
Click to expand...
 
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