Shure 545 story ... and can you put a date on them ???

M

Mikey77

Member
I was reading an old thread of Hairy Larry's called "Undiscovered mic bargains" where he mentioned a couple of the old Realistic mics.

Michael Joly and others had joined in and chased a couple of these old Shure rebadged items. It's a good thread and worth reading.

I saw a Realistic on ebay that had no ID ...
So I emailed for details and the seller then informed me that when he went looking for the model ID he realised the mic had no capsule !!! Lucky I asked.

Anyway he felt bad that I had emailed all the way from Australia (?) so he offered me two other mics for the same finishing price as the Realistic.
No one had bid anyway and that meant a price of $7.

They turned out to be two pretty good looking Shure 545D ( one working and one not ) with XLR connection and the following info on the barrel.

Shure Brothers Incorporated Model 545D Unidyne 111 Dynamic # Made in USA Patented (the hash is for the circle and cross logo)

I've read a couple of other threads regarding these mics that are generally favourable with some folks prefering them to the 57 for some uses, but I couldn't figure out what year these were likely to be. Is there some way of finding that out???

Also is there likely to be a typical reason for the dead one to be non functional... humerous answers allowed in moderation.

Anyway nice bargain for $7 and $14 postage. I should let Hairy Larry know and also try and get this dead one to live again. Any help appreciated.
 
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I am not completely sure, but...I think the original 545 was popular back in the 60's. They discontinued them when they introduced the SM line. It was apparently re-issued somewhere along the way as a Unidyne III version (a budget alternative to the 57.)

More info here. http://www.shure.com/stellent/groups/public/@gms_gmi_web_ug/documents/web_resource/us_pro_545_ug.pdf

The copyright on the spec sheet says 1978.

I think the Unidyne name is a derivative of two words, which describes the cartridge design...Unidirectional and Dynamic.
 
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The Shure 545 had an unidyne 3 label back in the 1960s...I have a couple of 565s from the 60s I bought at a pawn shop in Branson Mo. for $15...and I collected a Shure 535...these are good mics for those who like a heavy feeling mic.

Up untill the mid late 70s the stainless steel unidyne series was widely used.
 
Thanks guys... because of the time zone I get this the next day so sorry for not getting back earlier.

Any idea what these go for on ebay these days... I'm not looking to sell but it's nice to know. The only ones out there at the moment are just the capsules selling for $85 and upwards.
I had a chance to have a quick play with this working 545 on my vocal. A bit Nat King Cole in the shower. Very smooth and I'm looking forward to trying it on my amp.

These have the wire baskets pushed in so it would be nice to have them reshaped for the aesthetics. Is there a way to get to the upper capsule area, it seems like the whole black plastic section is one piece. They are in pretty good shape to look at so it will be nice to bring them back to life.

I got them off a guy in California who I believe had no musical interest in them, seemed like someone who just liked to dabble on ebay.

I noticed today that both mics have the initials/letters: JW-KH scratched very faintly on the barrel near the XLR screws, so they've obviously been travelling together for some time, maybe since new.

Maybe a radio station or school?

When I was a kid I used to look at old coins and wonder at all the hands they must have passed through... same with these I guess.
 
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