innocent mic question...

[didgijimmy]

i'm a posting machine tonight so if anyone is tired of seeing my name the know ill be logged off again until this time tomorrow very soon.
This has probably been asked before but i couldn't find it:
I went into the local music store to buy an sm57, they didnt' have any. i guess they normally use peaveys, but they didn't have any in... they had no instrument mics at all, anyway... The salesman said that the sm57's haven't changed in years and most mics now have moved way past them technology wise and are much more capable. obviously this is highly subjective, but i'd like to know if this is true. do we buy sm57's because they are a "trusted" name, even though they are miles behind other mics. or do they just not change them because they nailed it the first time? i'm afraid to buy anything different because of limited funds but this guy got me thinking. i figured this might be a good thread starter...
thanks

 

[Chili]

The SM57 is a workhorse. The salesman was just trying to make a sale.

When he said the 57's haven't changed in many years, I doubt they changed at all, otherwise it wouldn't be a 57. I wouldn't call it "miles behind" other mic's. He was just throwing hype at you. It's a known quantity that people can go to all the time and know what they're going to get.

The salesman was just trying to make a sale.

 

[didgijimmy]

makes since, i guess i kinda figured the same thing, just got me thinking.
though i gotta say, its kinda hard to make a sale if u don't even have the other damn mic in the store to show, or any instrument mikes for that matter.
thank you sir..

 

[dgatwood]

Actually, the SM57 has changed quite a bit as it moved from factory to factory. In theory, it is supposed to be the same, but in reality, IIRC, the current ones don't even have the same number of wires inside as the originals. The early ones sounded the best, IMHO. The current ones just sound dull and harsh at the same time---boosted high frequencies up to a point, then the response drops off like a rock.

I would also tend to agree with the salesperson that microphone tech has come a long way since the SM57 came out. While they are acceptable on most sources, they are great on pretty much none. As far as dynamic mics go, IMHO, you're usually better off with either the Beta series or the older Unidyne/Unisphere series, e.g. the 545SD or 565SD; the SM57 and SM58 are just too heavily tailored for stage use to be ideal for recording.

As for whether I'd recommend a dynamic mic at all, that depends on what you are recording. What are you recording?

 

[mixsit]

So where is reality? Maybe both answers are in some ways.
Let's take another shot at it- The i5. 'The modern replacement for the 57'. Is it? Has it? Slightly different tone, better off axis.
Did it 'kill the 57?
Oops. We want both.

 

[suprstar]

57's were good back then, and they're still good now, they didn't really need to change a whole lot.. For $100, you cant complain, 57's are definitely waaaay on the happy side of the price : performance ratio.. They're great on drums and guitar cab's. Sure, there are better mics, but they cost a lot more.

All the reading I've been doing about the I-5's lately have me curious too, they are supposedly practically interchangeable with the 57's. I'd like to get one in my hands and do some A/B'ing, but if I did that with every mic I dream about, I'd be broke as hell The I5 is a constant battle in my mind: "I really don't need any more mics.. But it's only $100.. But I need other things way more.. But it's so cheap.. But I have a 57.. C'mon.. Stop talking to me... Cmon, just do it do it doitdoitdoitdoitDOIT!"

 

[leddy]

Just remember that every mic will be good on something and not good on something else.

A 57 is a good, usable mic - but it depends a lot on what you are recording.

What are you recording?

 

[Weasel9992]

Dude, that's so funny.

"An Sm57? That old thing? Why, it's *way* outdated. It's what your grandfather used; now, this Behringer mic...that's what everybody's buying these days!"

Seriously? There's a reason why every single studio in the world has SM57's and use them on everything from kick to snare to vocals. It's a dynamic mic...really, really simple in terms of the way it operates. How much updating is necessary?

Frank

 

[Dogbreath]

Seriously? There's a reason why every single studio in the world has SM57's and use them on everything from kick to snare to vocals.
Frank

I'm DogBreath and I approve this message.

 

[mixsit]

...It's a dynamic mic...really, really simple in terms of the way it operates. How much updating is necessary?

Yeah like iron sights-

 

[mixsit]

All the reading I've been doing about the I-5's lately have me curious too, they are supposedly practically interchangeable with the 57's. I'd like to get one in my hands and do some A/B'ing, but if I did that with every mic I dream about, I'd be broke as hell The I5 is a constant battle in my mind: "I really don't need any more mics.. But it's only $100.. But I need other things way more.. But it's so cheap.. But I have a 57.. C'mon.. Stop talking to me... Cmon, just do it do it doitdoitdoitdoitDOIT!"

I hear that.
That's the thing- i5 is fairly different than the 57- (perspective- let's say enough perhaps to be easier to hear than between a lot of flatter mics?) So here we are again. In macro world view (is that the right word?) what the hell does +/- 1 or 2 here or there matter anyway? But micro view... We love to play in micro don't we? $$$

 

[didgijimmy]

crazy busy, and a date...

thanks for all of the input guys, now ive really got some stuff to think about, and ill have time too because after restockin the car with tires im a bit lower on funds than i intended to be . a few of you asked what i'll be recording, and ill be recording mostly my crate halfstack. i have a mxl v63 mic right now, but its just not the right mic for my amp lets waaaay to much bass in, enough that the sound is overloaded and constantly clipping, and thats with the bass turned way down on the amp. im getting tired of running low pass filters on everything i play. but yeah thats the gist of it...

 

[dgatwood]

thanks for all of the input guys, now ive really got some stuff to think about, and ill have time too because after restockin the car with tires im a bit lower on funds than i intended to be . a few of you asked what i'll be recording, and ill be recording mostly my crate halfstack. i have a mxl v63 mic right now, but its just not the right mic for my amp lets waaaay to much bass in, enough that the sound is overloaded and constantly clipping, and thats with the bass turned way down on the amp. im getting tired of running low pass filters on everything i play. but yeah thats the gist of it...

IMHO, it's an easy call now that we know what you're recording with it. Ribbon mic. Let the debate about long vs. short ribbons begin now....

"An Sm57? That old thing? Why, it's *way* outdated. It's what your grandfather used; now, this Behringer mic...that's what everybody's buying these days!"

ROTFL. That's like saying "That '67 Ferrari is *way* outdated. It's what your grandfather drove. Now, this Yugo... that's what everybody's driving these days!" The second part being a recommendation for a terrible automobile doesn't invalidate the fact that modern sports car powertrains are way, way more efficient than anything built back then and can produce half again more torque with less fuel and a smaller engine.

 

[didgijimmy]

not any time soon...

thanks dgatwood for ur input. id rep u but apparently i gotta spread some more first. ill prolly go for a dynamic, dont know if it will be shure or not. ribbons are just way out of my price range at the moment. $100 for an sm57 or 700 for a ribbon? just cant make it happen. unless u have a suggestion for a good cheap ribbon, of course im asking alot

 

[j2310lime]

we have about 7 sm57's we use in my church for the singers.

honestly they sound better than any other mics we use. Even the one for the main singer. but no one really can hear the difference so no big deal.

Even if it didnt change over the year its probably just as usable as the mics that are made today.

 

[LorenzoG]

57s are so universally used that most of the simulation packages out there employ it as the modeling input.

 

[didgijimmy]

we have about 7 sm57's we use in my church for the singers.

honestly they sound better than any other mics we use. Even the one for the main singer. but no one really can hear the difference so no big deal.

Even if it didnt change over the year its probably just as usable as the mics that are made today.

yeah i don't doubt the sm57s are great mics, at least in a general sense. i know ill be somewhat satisfied with them, its just a matter of deciding if there is a better mic thatwill Completely satisfy me for recording my crate cab. dgatwood suggested a ribbon mic, so now im just weiging options. i already have a great mxl mic im satisfied for vocals, it just sucks recording amps. let me know if u have any suggestions sir
thx

 

[noisedude]

I've got a 545D that's ace for recording vocals that don't need to sound toppy. I use it for live electric a lot when I'm doing sound for someone with a nice little valve amp.

I got it for about £15 on Ebay.

 

[Shadow_7]

57s are so universally used that most of the simulation packages out there employ it as the modeling input.

The 57 and 58's are used as the model by which most converters and preamps are designed to support. Therefor it works well with most things. And probably sounds pretty much the same regardless what's driving it on the other side of the signal chain.

So it's similar to: It's not that windows is the better operating system, you're just a little more likely to have software that supports all your hardware.

 

[dgatwood]

thanks dgatwood for ur input. id rep u but apparently i gotta spread some more first. ill prolly go for a dynamic, dont know if it will be shure or not. ribbons are just way out of my price range at the moment. $100 for an sm57 or 700 for a ribbon? just cant make it happen. unless u have a suggestion for a good cheap ribbon, of course im asking alot

Apex, Nady, et al rebrand a bunch of Chinese ribbons that start at about $100 and peak at about $300, IIRC, depending on model. For example:

http://www.frontendaudio.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=7489