Is the sm86 ok for my needs?

R

ryanwoollerton

New member
Hi there,

I make dance/house music and i am keen to start recording some vocals to put in my tracks.

I have come into possesion of the Shure sm86 mic, which after some research i have found that it is a live performance mic.

If i was to record vocals through this in my home studio, would the quality be no good?

Would i notice a big improvement if i got myself a proper studio specific designed mic?

Thanks
 
ryanwoollerton said:
Hi there,

I make dance/house music and i am keen to start recording some vocals to put in my tracks.

I have come into possesion of the Shure sm86 mic, which after some research i have found that it is a live performance mic.

If i was to record vocals through this in my home studio, would the quality be no good?

Would i notice a big improvement if i got myself a proper studio specific designed mic?

Thanks
Click to expand...

There's a few main reasons why they'd call it a live microphone.

Can't seem to think of many right now :confused: but one is sensitivity.

If a mic is very sensitive (like most condensers), it wouldn't do well on stage. Because it would pick up everything else on stage, including the monitors, and feed back like crazy.

Another is its' durability. Take the SM58 for example. One of the most famous mics in the world. It's used all the time for stage, because it can take an unbelievable amount of beating and still work. Also, its' off axis rejection makes it great for avoiding feedback. It's also used a lot in studios. This goes the same for the SM57.

It's a dynamic mic. And while condensers are usually favoured for vocals, I don't see why a dynamic won't work well.

The last thing I'll tell you is, the only way you'll find if it's suitable for your needs is if you try it yourself. If it's a home studio, it's not going to cost you. We can't tell you how it's going to sound. If it doesn't suit the voice, then look into getting a different (probably condenser) microphone.

Good luck.
 
SM86 is a stage condenser :p

Give it a shot, could work out very well for studio vocals. Probably want to stay a bit closer than you might with a more typical studio large diaphragm condenser. Don't cost nothing to try . . .
 
mshilarious said:
You can put it in a clip on a stand . . .
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Thank you for providing this great insight, but microphone stand can still carry noise, and a condenser of any kind will be more likely to pick that up.

Shock mounts are'nt just cool looking... they serve a purpose.
 
Zeppe said:
Thank you for providing this great insight, but microphone stand can still carry noise, and a condenser of any kind will be more likely to pick that up.

Shock mounts are'nt just cool looking... they serve a purpose.
Click to expand...

I'm sure he'd cop on to that... As would anyone with a brain.
 
Handheld condensers, such as the SM86, usually have better internal shockmounting than studio condensers (which frequently have none).

Anyway, Shure offer this clever clip:

http://www.shure.com/ProAudio/Products/Accessories/us_pro_A55HM_content

or this one:

http://store.shure.com/store/shure/en_US/DisplayProductDetailsPage/productID.104213600

That said, the need for shockmounts is vastly overestimated. Somebody better tell these guys that mic has no shockmount, that recording is probably trash!

petsounds.jpg
 
That is not relevant, OP has a reasonable mic that will work fine. There is no need to spend money until he's had lots of time to play with the mic he has.
 
In actual fact I wish I owned a SM86, would be handy for live in the studio demos. It is also a favourite for live (stage) female vocals.

From the shure web site:

The Shure SM86 is a unidirectional (cardioid) condenser vocal microphone for professional use in live performance. An extremely rugged microphone,
the SM86 withstands the rigors of touring while delivering studio-quality sound. The tailored frequency response of the SM86 reproduces vocals with
clarity. A cardioid pickup pattern isolates the main sound source while minimizing unwanted background noise. The built-in three-point shock mount
minimizes handling noise, and a two-stage pop filter reduces wind and breath "pop" noise.

Looks good to me.

Alan.
 
Wow thanks for all your input guys! So it seems like this mic will be sufficient enough to get me going. I don't yet have a stand but I will be getting one with a pop filter.

As I am a complete recording novice, what other things do I need to consider to get quality vocals? Soundprofing the room, vocal booth type thing? A good software compressor?
 
ryanwoollerton said:
Wow thanks for all your input guys! So it seems like this mic will be sufficient enough to get me going. I don't yet have a stand but I will be getting one with a pop filter.
Click to expand...

Stands don't usually have pop filters on them, you need to buy em separately ;)

As I am a complete recording novice, what other things do I need to consider to get quality vocals? Soundprofing the room, vocal booth type thing? A good software compressor?
Click to expand...

Soundproofing shouldn't be a problem unless you have a real outside noise problem, or neighbours complaining. What you need is room treatment, both for your recording space and mix space. There's plenty of info on this site about room treatment, so take some time to have a look around for it. Also, if you have a good acoustically treated room, you won't need a vocal booth.

Chances are that with almost any vocal, you'll be using compression. With the kind of music you're doing, you'll almost definitely be using compression. So investing in a good one will be a good idea.

Good luck.
 
Big Kenny said:
you're not relevant
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Don't hate me because I'm beautiful :p

Look, it's simple. The SM7B is not a magic bullet, it's just a decent mic. There are other microphones in the world, and they work too. It's getting to be time for the mania to calm down a bit. If you can get a decent vocal with it, you can get a decent vocal with the SM86. Heck, you can get a decent vocal with the SM81. And I'm fairly happy with (shudder) my 55SH, that's after owning the SM7B, SM57, SM58, SM63, 315, Beta 57/58 and even 52, MD421, e609, M201, M69, and M88 (the nicest of the lot). And the 520DX!

I could have recorded a usable vocal with any of those, except maybe the Beta 52, that would be a little weird . . . maybe if you did screamo it would work . . .
 
okay, okay, you're relevant, I'm just saying that I get "better" vocals, "faster" (don't have to screw around with placement ,technique, distance, etc) with the SM7. I don't use it as much as others ( Brauner, T3, Marshall 77, Beyer 500) but I can always count on it for new clients to render something usable quickly.
 
Big Kenny said:
okay, okay, you're relevant, I'm just saying that I get "better" vocals, "faster" (don't have to screw around with placement ,technique, distance, etc) with the SM7. I don't use it as much as others ( Brauner, T3, Marshall 77, Beyer 500) but I can always count on it for new clients to render something usable quickly.
Click to expand...

I do have to agree with you in the sense that the SM7 will work with more clients than the SM86...and that is important to think about when you are only going to have one mic for a while...besides the SM86 will require a preamp as well...and I only know of a couple of decent preamps with phantom power even near the $300 range...you can get a line6 UX1 for $100 and it matches up with the SM7.
 
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