I love the shure SM-57.

Han said:
I'd like to add that the 201 is a hypercardioid mic with a nice off axis response.
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This is a point that gets overlooked for hats and cymbals.

The M201 has a fairly tight pattern that should be useful for controlling bleed. It is far more directional than the SM57 cardioid pattern, and the M201 reaches 18 KHz where the SM57 crosses below 0dB at 12 KHz.

My gripe with the M201 is the anemic 1.2mV output compared to the 1.9mV output of the SM57.
 
bgavin said:
My gripe with the M201 is the anemic 1.2mV output compared to the 1.9mV output of the SM57.
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Which could be a good or bad thing depending on the snare, drummer, and etc. ;)
 
No, it's a bad thing for me.

I use multiple ATM25 and SM57 (both 1.9mV) at the same intensity level where the M201 would go, so it would be at an immediate disadvantage in my situation.

The bummer part is, the M201 looks like about the only dynamic that will go high enough to do justice to cymbals and hats.
 
bgavin said:
No, it's a bad thing for me.

I use multiple ATM25 and SM57 (both 1.9mV) at the same intensity level where the M201 would go, so it would be at an immediate disadvantage in my situation.

The bummer part is, the M201 looks like about the only dynamic that will go high enough to do justice to cymbals and hats.
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I don't see the problem, what about gain?

The 201 is a decent hat mic, but a decent condenser will do a better job on cymbals. The 201 still has the disadvantage of a coil.

That said, it sometimes amazes me how good a dynamic can sound on cymbals, like the MD441 or the MD416 (it's design is a work of art)
 
Good evening Han... it's 2:44AM here and I see your on board... are you and I cool with each other?
 
SM57 = Boxy sounding piece of shit.

Its NOT that great of a bargain, really, unless you think crapy and cheap make great.

Anyway, for $20 more, you can have a Sennheiser e609 Silver that smokes its ass. As well as a number of other Sennheiser handhelds, and the e604, too.

And dont even get me started on used mics on ebay, you can kill sometimes for $80.

If shabby sounding is cool with you, then dont waste $80, buy a 4 pack of behringer mics for $50 and get all the shabbny sounding crap you could ever ask for, and in more quantity.

I would probably like a 57 if I had never heard another mic. But its the worst mic in my arsenal, and reall really does sound boxy and nasally in comparison to everything else I have.

YMMV. Mine certainly has.
 
tubedude said:
SM57 = Boxy sounding piece of shit.

Its NOT that great of a bargain, really, unless you think crapy and cheap make great.

Anyway, for $20 more, you can have a Sennheiser e609 Silver that smokes its ass. As well as a number of other Sennheiser handhelds, and the e604, too.

And dont even get me started on used mics on ebay, you can kill sometimes for $80.

If shabby sounding is cool with you, then dont waste $80, buy a 4 pack of behringer mics for $50 and get all the shabbny sounding crap you could ever ask for, and in more quantity.

I would probably like a 57 if I had never heard another mic. But its the worst mic in my arsenal, and reall really does sound boxy and nasally in comparison to everything else I have.

YMMV. Mine certainly has.
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i wonder what do the big dogs of recording think of the 57, because some keep on using the sm57 when they also have like another 1000000 mics in their mic locker
 
Agreed

You will find the SM57 in the equipment list of every major recording studio out there. Just check the web and look at the equipment list on some of the studio sights. I guess the boxy P.O.S. sound is desired by some. Strangely enough you rarely see Senheiser mics listed, hmmm that's interesting.
 
Is that really so? IMO you will find at least a couple of Sennheiser MD421 in every pro studio.

Having that said, the 421 sounds a lot better than the 57 :D
 
Unidyne III SM-57s

Hey cavedog101,

I have a couple of old Unidyne III SM-57s that have been through WWII...when I came across them, they had no original grillscreens or foam left in the capsules-- that foam had turned into POWDER! One of the SM-57s I left alone (wide open--sans grillscreen or any foam in it) because it sounds AMAZING just like it is. I didn't wanna spoil the tone of that one. The other SM-57 in the pair got a new grillscreen kit put on it so that's a little more roadworthy. It sounds almost as good as the first 57 does...just a tiny bit brighter.

Here's the pisser. The Shure grillscreen kits basically make you you remove the old label & replace it with a new label -- which sort of loses the "vintage vibe" of the old Unidyne III label, you know what I mean?

Actually, I rarely use the "open" SM-57 (just on occasion and only with one instrument in particular). Other than that, I am squarely in Han's corner---I would much rather use a Beyer or a Sennheiser MD421/MD441 microphone any day of the week over a Shure SM-57 for a dynamic type mic. If you want a great sounding dynamic for cheap try the Audio-Technica ATM29HE. There's one mic that just slaughters a new SM-57. I also agree that the old Unidyne IIIs are MUCH better sounding than the new Mexican made versions. The new Sennheiser e609 Silver KILLS any 57 IMHO.

I really like nice microphones & feel that the SM-57 isn't all that brilliant really. Just my two centavos...:)
 
It would take a whole year or more to post the names of all the records that the Shure SM57 have been used on. Oh, and most studio's have MD421's and etc too.
 
crazydoc said:
Through what preamps?
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RNP, Great River NV, API and Soundcraft M-series.... several different 57's I've used too over the years. All boxy, all nasally. And its not really all THAT apparent until you unplug the 57 and talk into a 441 or 421 then you're like "WOW, holy shit what a difference" and the 57 gets put on the "I'm running out of mics for this session" list... again.

And whoever said there is rarely mention of the Sennheisers, you are sadly mistaken or looking at project studio lists. I would be willing to say every big player studio has several 421's, a 441 or two, and almost always four or five MD-409's in the list. The 409 and the 441 are the most popular tom mics at many nice studios. I often see Beyer M88's on those lists too.

Most Sennheisers and Beyers do indeed kick a 57's ass.
 
all good stuff

... i agree that a lot of high end studios use the aforementioned sennheisers. i know a few engineers who swear by them. i also agree that the 57 has a sound all it's own... some like it, some don't. i am one who does. the "boxy" tone you are speaking of sounds cool on some voices in my humble opinion (i don't know about "nasally", maybe too much dairy?:)).
consider this: the sm58 is probably the most popular live vocal mic on the planet, and many great artists have even used them for tracking vocals on bigtime records (bjork, and bono to name a few). the 57 is pretty damn close to the sound of a 58, and i personally like it better.
i think there are far better mics than the 57 if you are looking for big beautiful sound (and who could blame you), but i think people dig the 57 for it's cool, somewhat grainy, "boxy"... beautifully ugly sound. it's like those little crappy tube amps that sound a little fucked up in a good way. i think mids are missing in a lot of todays music (the industry standard "california smile"), and the 57 has plenty.
it's cool that this crappy little mic stirs up such heated debate. i think many of us could just agree to disagree, and offer suggestions from both sides of the coin with open ears.
peace - jv
 
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