Good, budget dynamic mics ... please advise!

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cjacek

cjacek

Analogue Enthusiast
Sorry it this question was asked before (I don't read the mic forum often :o ) but can any of you recommed a good, budget, (perhaps on the used market), dynamic mic ? I have an sm-57 and 58 and really like the sound of those but currently can't afford even one but need several ... I'm willing to try ebay but need some recomendations from you guys. I need a good, general purpose dynamic mic. My budget is about 30 USD per mic.

Thanks.

Daniel
 
A little long, but I get there

I was given 3 of these last week or so. http://www.avlex.com/pdfs/ECO-88.pdf

I didnt know much about them, but last night I worked the sound for a local group out of town. I had no intentions of really going to this gig, but the lead vocalist/keyboard player left his keyboard power cord so they asked if I would bring it. Anyway I pulled out at got there about a hour and a half later and when I walked in the groups guitar player had hooked up the gear and rigged a few connections to attempt get sound out if the club's PA.

Well I look up on the stage and the first thing I see are the Nady ( 7 piece Drum Kit ) tom mics mounted up on the vocal stands. LOL
There a sooo small. Well I figured since I had those mics in the truck I would throw them up to replace the Nadys after the first set. So I plugged them in and did a few mic checks and changed a few EQ settings on the Head they were plugged in to. ( Yes , they used a 6 channel head for a mixer )

So the second set started and I went out front stage to listen. Well all can really say is that they sound like mics. LOL I didnt hear anything that stood out bad with them. They sure as hell sound better than the little Nadys. I guess due to the limited gear being used for this set,, they were ok. I didnt have any 57s or 58s with me to compare them to.

Main point,, for somebody to give them to me they must be cheap as hell cost wise. Maybe right in your budget range.

anyone else know about these cheapos ?

Malcolm
 
Apex makes an SM58 clone that compares favorably in sonics even though it is not as sturdy.
 
cjacek said:
Thanks guys! What about .... ummm .... Behringer ... ? They make pretty inexpensive dynamics like this:

http://www.behringer.com/02_products/groupindex.cfm?mid=2&smid=5&lang=ENG

(scroll down to the bottom).

Damn, I thought I was looking at an sm58 when in fact it was their ultravoice. :eek:

So, yeah, should I really look somewhere else if these look very good in price and specs ??

Thanks,

Daniel
Click to expand...

The bands PA guy for real shows has about 4 of these mics. I have used them with the band in various environments. How they sound?? Like mics. LOL I mean I really didnt hear anything wrong with them as well. This was all live though.
Im starting to think unless it's a critical situation that requires some type of special sonics, etc. It really doesnt matter as long as the crowd can here the vox.

Just like last night, I probaly was the only person in the whole place thinking about how the mic may compare to another type of mic. This mic stuff has got me as bad as when I couldnt listen to music without listening for how it may have been mixed, or what type of equipment they may have used, or who mastered it.

Im going back to square one. LOL

Malcolm
 
i have had good luck with musicgoround.com for ultra cheap mics.

you can get sm57s there for pretty cheap. although right now nothing really under $60.

just type in "mic" and you get a couple decent ones. for $30 you will have to not expect much. but most mics you get from akg, ev, beyer, shure, or other trusted brands are at least pretty decent.


you can get a sennheiser e825 for example off of music go round for $39. should be a good deal.

are you getting these for live sound or recording. if you are planning on using them for recording you cant go wrong with the trusty ev 635a
 
malcolm123 said:
The bands PA guy for real shows has about 4 of these mics. I have used them with the band in various environments. How they sound?? Like mics. LOL I mean I really didnt hear anything wrong with them as well. This was all live though.
Im starting to think unless it's a critical situation that requires some type of special sonics, etc. It really doesnt matter as long as the crowd can here the vox.

Just like last night, I probaly was the only person in the whole place thinking about how the mic may compare to another type of mic. This mic stuff has got me as bad as when I couldnt listen to music without listening for how it may have been mixed, or what type of equipment they may have used, or who mastered it.

Im going back to square one. LOL

Malcolm
Click to expand...

Ok, thanks Malcolm :)

Daniel
 
eeldip said:
i have had good luck with musicgoround.com for ultra cheap mics.

you can get sm57s there for pretty cheap. although right now nothing really under $60.

just type in "mic" and you get a couple decent ones. for $30 you will have to not expect much. but most mics you get from akg, ev, beyer, shure, or other trusted brands are at least pretty decent.


you can get a sennheiser e825 for example off of music go round for $39. should be a good deal.

are you getting these for live sound or recording. if you are planning on using them for recording you cant go wrong with the trusty ev 635a
Click to expand...

Yes, it's for recording (analog). I'll be looking at an ev 635a. Thanks so much! Say, are there any other "vintage" type mics, on eBay, that you'd also recommend in this category ? Thanks!

Daniel :)
 
eeldip said:
.

are you getting these for live sound or recording. if you are planning on using them for recording you cant go wrong with the trusty ev 635a
Click to expand...

Can you please tell me what a fair (or max) price would be for a used but "mint" ev 635a ? When am I paying too much ?

Thanks :)

Daniel
 
Don't buy a Behringer mic. That would be a mistake that you'll kick yourself for later.

You can get 2 AKG D8000's with stands and cables at Musiciansfriend for 80 bucks. Good mic, very versatile.
 
not keen on those akgs at all. they've been up on a few threads recently but the sennheiser e835s are great for the money. not sure how much they go for stateside but i'd take them over 57s/58s anyway.
 
first of all,

i love cheap dynamic mics. i buy and sell them all the time. so much fun. so much fun.

#1 thing to remember: oldish cheap dynamic mics of the same model are gonna sound different from one another. so you really need to buy and try and then sell it if it doesnt work for you.

so just try to get good deals, something you can resell for the same price.

rockngroll on ebay has a lot of cool cheap dynamics. you can write him directly. he specializes in old german dynamic mics. good stuff. i got a funny sounding telefunken mic from him. good guy.

take a look at cheap old dynamic "stereo" mics. you can find them in odd sections of ebay, since many of them were packaged with tape recorders or other non-pro audio stuff, they end up as business equipment, home electronics, ham radio stuff. any old dynamic mic on ebay that is NOT under "musical instruments" sells for quite a bit less.

local pawn shops tend to have "one price" for old dynamics as well. especially ones that they cannot identify (since they all have ebay access by now). get the valuable ones.

oh and the PL series of EV mics are very good. usually less then their non PL equivalents- even though they are identical mics. the old RE20 to PL20 is the most obvious example, but there is a PL equivalent to the 635A as well... i forget the number...

i love all old beyer mics. love them. i'll look out for some deals...
 
Is the EV PL76 a good buy? it's in the PL series, but I'm just curious.

Thanks,
DAn
 
Mark7 said:
This is getting good reviews over on another thread.
Click to expand...

Interesting find Mark. Any idea why these are being sold off so cheap ? For instance, is it possible to make an SM-57 knock off for 1/3rd the price ? How is it even possible ? :confused:

~Daniel
 
I'd suggest the AKG D2300S. I got them in a 3-for-1 deal for something like $6-8 apiece from Musician's Friend a year ago or so. I liked the first three so much (compared to a PG58) that I bought three more (at... more like $15 apiece).

Since then, I've used them for everything from recording a church choir (as close mics to clean up diction, mixed with a distant stereo condenser for hall effects) to drum kit miking (five of 'em---four toms and the snare).

Perfect, they're not, and for the choir, I ended up rolling off the high end a little, but for the price, you can't beat them if you just want a buttload of mics for gigging and stuff and don't want to worry about destroying something valuable. :D

Anyway, best price I can find on them at the moment is $40 apiece, or two for $70 from MF. Still a good deal, even at that price.
 
Go ahead on ebay and search for the GLS ES-57, they're copies of the Shure SM-57, I love them. They're 30 bucks for one, but as you get more, the price lowers. I believe the price are 3 for $80, and then they have a really good deal which 10 for $200. They sound identical to the SM-57, I have listened to them side by side and it's very hard to hear any difference at all. I highly recommend them.
 
I have posted about this earlier:
I value "neutral, accurate" sounds from a mike.
I have bee really amazed at the Electrovoice C04. I bought one just for variety, and was so impressed with its sound that I ended up buying 4 more.

At $40 ea., you simply cannot go wrong. :)
 
hotwatertim72 said:
Go ahead on ebay and search for the GLS ES-57, they're copies of the Shure SM-57, I love them. They're 30 bucks for one, but as you get more, the price lowers. I believe the price are 3 for $80, and then they have a really good deal which 10 for $200. They sound identical to the SM-57, I have listened to them side by side and it's very hard to hear any difference at all. I highly recommend them.
Click to expand...

Ditto that :)
 
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