Shure Sm-57 vocals?

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Okay, I know it's an instrumental mic, i'm not stupid, but going on the "hypothetical stuation"[of course :) ] that I'm broke, would an sm-57 be suitable for vocals?
 
I use mine for live vocals. For studio work, I have other mics I prefer, but the 57 is a decent mic to have around and will work for vocals, too.
 
I did a 5 song demo once for a band and used a 57 for the vocals on 4 of them...
 
I do all the scream tracks or heavy singers with a 57, Its really the only thing that picks up what they want to hear. I wouldn't recomend it for clean, but it really depends on the voice.

Ben
 
Shure SM57s are used for lead vocals on some very big major label artists. Its all a matter of whether or not the mic is a good match for a particular singer.
 
More urban mythology with the SM57

Ronan said:
Shure SM57s are used for lead vocals on some very big major label artists. Its all a matter of whether or not the mic is a good match for a particular singer.
Click to expand...
Well, everything you just said here is true. However, it's only PART of the truth and it's not the most important part. In fact, this is precisely the sort of half-truth that contributes to all the misleading "urban mythology" that has sprung up around the SM57. You see this all the time. Somebody will say, "'So-and-so' (a famous recording artist) recorded their vocals on the SM57." This may or may NOT be true (often it is NOTHING more than urban mythology), but it obscures a greater truth and implies that the SM57 is often a good choice as a vocal mic. This is simply not the case.

Let's take a hypothetical situation. Pick any famous recording engineer that you care to name. Now, keep in mind that this person is a recording professional. The only thing that he does all day long, month after month, year after year, is record people. He has a vast mic locker at his disposal, and has developed a very discriminating ear about what sounds good and what does not. Since this is what he does for a living, he might record 50 lead singers in a year, or 100 in two years. Out of that 100 people, he will probably choose a nice condenser mic for 60 of them, and the condenser mic chosen might be a daily workhorse mic like the AT4050, or it might be something more exotic, like a vintage U47 or 251. For 20 of the singers, he might choose a nice ribbon, perhaps an old RCA mic, or one of the newer Royer mics. On 19 of them, he might choose a large diaghram dynamic mic, such as the SM7 or the RE20. And, yes, on maybe ONE of the singers, he might choose an SM57, either because he feels that this is the best fit for this particular singer, or he is going for a particular "grungy" effect on a particular song. However, - and this is the important part - the fact that some famous recording engineer, while recording some famous singer, has chosen the SM57 to be the vocal mic in a particular application, does not change the fact that the SM57 totally SUCKS as a vocal mic for 99% of the singers out there.

This is why, Ronan, while the statement that you made here is literally true, it's still very misleading, and simply serves to propagate the (mostly undeserved) "mystique" of the SM57. It certainly doesn't indicate that you have much of an understanding of just how small and insignificant a role the SM57 actually PLAYS in modern, professional vocal recording technique. By the way, is this an example of the type of "expertise" that you share with your students at the "home recording bootcamp" that you advertise at the bottom of your sig line? Do you tell them (or lead them to believe) that the SM57 is a GREAT vocal mic, simply because it's used on some "very big, major label artists"?

Brad
 
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Yes and no

Only you will be able to tell if it works for your particular application, which is of course not what you wanted to hear. Mics are like shoes. Certain brands have a reputation for quality (like Shure), some have rep for lack thereof (Behringher), but you aren't going to know what fits YOU until you try it out.

In a modern professional studio, there's almost always going to be a better mic than a 57 for any given singer, but that's because they have the budget to have better options. A 57 might just be the best thing for you in that price range, but maybe not. It might be an SP B-1, or an MXL V67. It might not.

What's your recording chain, what type of vocals (rap, emo, opera), and what's your space like?
 
I also think that a lot of the "so-and-so recorded their vocals on a SM57" are talking about the Live on Stage track of the album. And it is true that the 57 and 58 are as common as rain in live venues, particularly club stages. So given that, do you think that there are very many singers who have not, at one time or another in their career, sung something into a SM57 or SM58 that was being recorded?
 
"Well, everything you just said here is true. However, it's only PART of the truth and it's not the most important part. In fact, this is precisely the sort of half-truth that contributes to all the misleading "urban mythology" that has sprung up around the SM57. You see this all the time. Somebody will say, "'So-and-so' (a famous recording artist) recorded their vocals on the SM57." This may or may NOT be true (often it is NOTHING more than urban mythology), but it obscures a greater truth and implies that the SM57 is often a good choice as a vocal mic. This is simply not the case.

Let's take a hypothetical situation. Pick any famous recording engineer that you care to name. Now, keep in mind that this person is a recording professional. The only thing that he does all day long, month after month, year after year, is record people. He has a vast mic locker at his disposal, and has developed a very discriminating ear about what sounds good and what does not. Since this is what he does for a living, he might record 50 lead singers in a year, or 100 in two years. Out of that 100 people, he will probably choose a nice condenser mic for 60 of them, and the condenser mic chosen might be a daily workhorse mic like the AT4050, or it might be something more exotic, like a vintage U47 or 251. For 20 of the singers, he might choose a nice ribbon, perhaps an old RCA mic, or one of the newer Royer mics. On 19 of them, he might choose a large diaghram dynamic mic, such as the SM7 or the RE20. And, yes, on maybe ONE of the singers, he might choose an SM57, either because he feels that this is the best fit for this particular singer, or he is going for a particular "grungy" effect on a particular song. However, - and this is the important part - the fact that some famous recording engineer, while recording some famous singer, has chosen the SM57 to be the vocal mic in a particular application, does not change the fact that the SM57 totally SUCKS as a vocal mic for 99% of the singers out there.

This is why, Ronan, while the statement that you made here is literally true, it's still very misleading, and simply serves to propagate the (mostly undeserved) "mystique" of the SM57. It certainly doesn't indicate that you have much of an understanding of just how small and insignificant a role the SM57 actually PLAYS in modern, professional vocal recording technique. By the way, is this an example of the type of "expertise" that you share with your students at the "home recording bootcamp" that you advertise at the bottom of your sig line? Do you tell them (or lead them to believe) that the SM57 is a GREAT vocal mic, simply because it's used on some "very big, major label artists"?


AMEN to this!
Use what YOU can afford and do the best you can but give up the illusions..a 57 sounds decent through a VERY expensive mic pre in a great room (and rocks on some guitar amps although a Royer 121 seems to be the mic of choice now)...Bono does not use a 57 or 58 for vocals! They hang a u47 over is head and give him a 58 to hold (fed into his cans with a ton of effects) to give him the illusion he is in concert..a good trick for someone who is a great live preformer...

Cheers,
Ray
 
Ya'll should read carefully. Ronan never said it was a great mic for vocals.
 
Chris Shaeffer said:
Ya'll should read carefully. Ronan never said it was a great mic for vocals.
Click to expand...

He also has experience recording some very big major label artists.


sl
 
And Newbie Dude didn't ask if it was the BEST mic for vocals. He said 'assuming I'm broke, would it be suitable for vocals'. If he's broke, I would say yes, it's suitable. But there maybe something else in that price range that would be more suitable.

Newbie Dude - You will have to answer the questions about what kind of vocals and what it's going into, and, being broke, if you need it to also do anything else, or just strictly vocals. That will get you more of the kind of answer you're looking for.
 
the rumor says sammy vanhagar and-- my songs will last 100 years you2- BONO made some albums with those crappy 57-s and 58-s
 
HOLY CRAP. I leave this thread over night and it turns out twelve responses, discussions, and arguments. I feel special. Cardioid, to answer your question, as of now my recording chains is a shure sm57 through a Presonus Firebox into my PC[with cubase]. I record in my finished basment, but have a couple different enviorments at my disposal[ theres a door right next to my desk that louds to an outside pavillion and another that leads to a empty boat garage . Well, I mean empty as in theres no boat in there. Theres tons of boxes of oldcrap in there.]
 
With a mic locker like Electrical Audio's, you really don't have an use for an SM57.
 
So what kind of vocals, and do you need it to do anything else? Is the basement live or dead? Don't know anything about the Firebox's pre's, such as whether it has phantom power or not, which might limit your mic choices. I was assuming you were looking at getting a mic. You've already got the 57, so what's the question?

Also, don't feel special. This arguement about 57's has been going on for years and has about the same chance of ending soon as 'the troubles' in Ireland do.
 
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