Shure KSM 27 vs Apex 460

A

Alkaline1

New member
What mic is better for my voice?

I've been hearing a lot about the Apex 460, and I am wondering, how does it compare to the Shure KSM 27? Besides having other patterns?

Which one do you guys think is better? And Why?

Any help is appreciated!

Thanks

Alkaline
 
I've got both, but I just got the 460 (actually belongs to my son - b-day present), and I haven't used the KSM27 too much. I can say that they're very different. What mic were you using on your myspace songs?

Any reason why it has to be one of those two?

Maybe off topic, but if you're inclined to perform electronic modifications on your mic, then hands down it would be the 460 - there's a wealth of info on the internet on what to do. The KSM27, on the other hand, in my opinion, can't be gainfully modified by end users. The on-topic spin here is that if you don't like the 460 and you're at all electronically inclined, you can probably change it significantly, but the same would not be true for the KSM27.

But I guess the main question is why just those two? Preliminary research? Budget? Availability?
 
Well, they're pretty much in the same price range, and all the songs on my myspace were recorded with a Shure KSM44, EXCEPT for "City of Ashes" which was done with a MXL 990 (the mic I currently own)...I guess what I REALLY want to know, is what mic will give me the best bang for my buck? $250 is what I wanted to set as my budget, but if I can get something REAL nice for $300 then I am willing to do so.

BTW I never took apart the mic before so I really don't want to modify anything unless I knew what I was doing.

Thanks for your help!
 
Alkaline1 said:
...the songs on my myspace were recorded with a Shure KSM44, EXCEPT for "City of Ashes" which was done with a MXL 990 (the mic I currently own)...
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In listening to the tunes on MS, I thought the KSM44 complemented your voice very well. FWIW, if you go with the KSM27, you know the general sound you can expect.

Disclaimer that I own a KSM27 and its my go-to mic for spoken voice. I'm probably too biased... but I use one for professional voice work, so draw your own conclusion.
 
Yeah, you do gotta ditch that 990 -- the KSM44 sounds much better. I'm told the 27 and the 44 have pretty much the same capsule (except that the 44 is double sided so it can do the other patterns), so I imagine they sound similar. If you read here, you'll see some folks who don't like the 27 for vocals, but they may or may not be doing the same style of vocals as you.

A few months ago, there was a rash of posts about failed KSM LDC mics -- I bought my 27 broken so I couldn't complain. I don't know if this indicates that they tend to break or not, but I do know that if they do break, you pretty much have to send them back to Shure to get fixed, because of the small circuitry - just another thought.

And there can be only one chipmunk Barry White -- me!!
 
KineticSound said:
In listening to the tunes on MS, I thought the KSM44 complemented your voice very well. FWIW, if you go with the KSM27, you know the general sound you can expect.

Disclaimer that I own a KSM27 and its my go-to mic for spoken voice. I'm probably too biased... but I use one for professional voice work, so draw your own conclusion.
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I hear this a lot but I think it's an assumption from people who don't use both mics. I would never go back to singing through a ksm27 after buying the 44. For me, the 27 is too stark and the 44 sort of smoothes the rough edges. I can't imagine that these days you can't find something as good as the 27 for less money. I would think the 27 is better for spoken word than vocals.

Don't discount dynamic mics and some cheap tube mics from your search. Good luck.
 
So there IS a significant difference between the KSM27 and the 44? Even just using the Cardiod pattern? (Keep in mind I am doing mainly rap vocals)

Worse comes to worse I will invest in a 44 later on because I really do like how it sounds. But if I can achieve a "good" sound from a cheaper mic under $300, I would rather do that first, since $799 is too much for me at the moment.

Any other mics you think I should look into?

And also what do you guys think about these cheaper mics...

http://www.zzounds.com/a--2676837/p...0&instock=1&button=Filter+Results&form=search

Do you know if any on that list will give a good sound? I'm not trying to achieve the BEST recording, but just something good enough to use as a serious mic.

Thanks again guys!
 
I haven't used the mics in that search, but I like the name of this one:

http://www.zzounds.com/a--2676837/item--CADU37

(something like "one of my high end friends has a U87, but another one has a U67 that sounds better - then along came someone with a U47 and blew them both away. Now I'm going to show them all up with a U37!)

It must be said: check out the Shure SM7b dynamic while you're at it.
 
quickmill said:
I hear this a lot but I think it's an assumption from people who don't use both mics. I would never go back to singing through a ksm27 after buying the 44. For me, the 27 is too stark and the 44 sort of smoothes the rough edges.
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My thoughts exactly... I dont think the 27 and the 44 are very much alike at all. The 44 is a much better mic. I had my 27 for about a month and had to get rid of it....... but I was comparing it to a 4033 and a C414.

If you are moving up to the KSM27, then you might like it. I woudl think it's better than the Apex stuff, which is fine but not quite in league with Shure, me thinks.
 
Alkaline1 said:
So there IS a significant difference between the KSM27 and the 44? Even just using the Cardiod pattern? (Keep in mind I am doing mainly rap vocals)
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I think that depends on your definition of "significant." I tested the 44, 32, and 27 for spoken voice, and I found them only marginally different for that purpose. Certainly not enough to warrant my shelling out an extra $500.
Alkaline1 said:
Worse comes to worse I will invest in a 44 later on because I really do like how it sounds. But if I can achieve a "good" sound from a cheaper mic under $300, I would rather do that first, since $799 is too much for me at the moment.

Do you know if any on that list will give a good sound? I'm not trying to achieve the BEST recording, but just something good enough to use as a serious mic.
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No offense, but you've got a decent mic now in the MXL. If the 44 is what you ultimately want, wait for that. There's no mic on the "budget" list that you reference that would be a leap up from your MXL. The KSM27 would be a big step up, but wouldn't make a whole lot of sense if your plan is to pick up a 44 next year anyway... :(
 
KineticSound said:
I think that depends on your definition of "significant." I tested the 44, 32, and 27 for spoken voice, and I found them only marginally different for that purpose. Certainly not enough to warrant my shelling out an extra $500.

No offense, but you've got a decent mic now in the MXL. If the 44 is what you ultimately want, wait for that. There's no mic on the "budget" list that you reference that would be a leap up from your MXL. The KSM27 would be a big step up, but wouldn't make a whole lot of sense if your plan is to pick up a 44 next year anyway... :(
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I respectfully beg to differ some here. The 990, I think, its not a good mic at all. Its hollow sounding, like hunky. I dont really know how to describe it. Its bad. Cheap mics that I have and are like a 139814091704 times better for not much more money are the CAD GLX3000. Its a great mic for the price and multipattern. Other is the CAD M177/179 witch is good in almost everything. You could not go wrong with any of those two, specially the M177. :)
 
Marcadiablo said:
I respectfully beg to differ some here. The 990, I think, its not a good mic at all. Its hollow sounding, like hunky. I dont really know how to describe it. Its bad. Cheap mics that I have and are like a 139814091704 times better for not much more money are the CAD GLX3000. Its a great mic for the price and multipattern. Other is the CAD M177/179 witch is good in almost everything. You could not go wrong with any of those two, specially the M177. :)
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I tend to agree. Also, for the price of a KSM27, you could get a CAD M9, which is a rather nice vocal mic, IMHO. Out of all my vocal LDCs, it's the one I'm most glad I bought. Definitely worth looking into, particularly for male vocals. Haven't had the opportunity to try on female vocals yet.
 
Marcadiablo said:
I respectfully beg to differ some here. The 990, I think, its not a good mic at all. Its hollow sounding, like hunky. I dont really know how to describe it. Its bad.
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Sorry, what I was after here was the fact that the OP has something with which to make decent demos already. I didn't see the sense in buying a $150 mic, or even a $300 mic, if what he really wants is a KSM44. It's like saying, "I have a car that runs, but I really want a Mercedes. I'll just buy a Honda... and then I'll buy a Mercedes later." That's the point I was after.

The OP should demo as many mics as he can to find the one that fits his voice, then decide if that mic is within the budget. If it isn't, then look for an alternative long term selection, not a temporary fix (which he already has in the MXL).
 
Hmm...well I think I am gonna go for the KSM27 to use in the long run...for at least a few years, just because it isn't too expensive and would be a big step from the MXL 990. If the KSM27 will give me a sound I'm satisfied with, I probably wouldn't need to upgrade to another mic at all, since I'm only recording myself and occasionally another person...but its all for my own music, so veratility isn't a big deal to me. As long as it suits my voice.
 
For $299 I think you'd be happier in the long run with an sm7b or even an mxl v69me. If I had a vocal to do tomorrow I'd use either of the above, the mxl 960 or even the Audio Technica atm410 before I'd sing in the ksm27. The 27 is good for some other things but if your buying for vocals only(or primarily) then I think you have better cheaper options. If I were in your place I'd look into Kel. They get a lot of love on the boards and have a liberal return policy.

Condensers are appealing in the beginning because they are so much more detailed than dynamics. This same detail (depending on the source) slowly starts grating on you until you can't stand it any longer and just before you go insane you turn back to the old beloved dynamic microphone with a new found fondness.

I still use and love condensers but less and less for vocals.
 
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