SM58 to SM57 conversion

  • Thread starter Thread starter S8-N
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S8-N

S8-N

..|.. Part-time Antichrist ..|..
This might be a dumb question (but that never stopped me before...)
If I take off the big ass windscreen off of a SM58 will that get rid of the proximity effect and give me, in effect, a SM57???
I don't need no stinking bass boost...
 
I've got one of each, so I looked at the specs, and the frequency response of each is nearly identical. Little diddy differences. The 58 gets up to +5 at about 6000 hertz, where the 57 goes up to +7 at the same frequency, for example. So maybe the 57's a little brighter than a 58 even if you take the knob off.
 
If i'm not mistaken, there is no real difference between the two.
To get rid of the bass boost try this-

1. move a little futher away from the mic that will help you lose the bass boost and thin out the sound.

2.just roll off some lows below 80Hz - most vocal tracks don't use freq. below and it can also muddy a mix also.

Typically, a SM58 rolls off some of the bass naturally
(unlike a condensor mic that has a roll off switch).
That's why you can close mic and get a full sound.

I'd try the distance first before EQ.

what kind of material are you using for a wind screen?
Some people don't like the foam type and clam that they muffle the sound. However it shouldn't effect the bass boost youre talking about.


Good Luck

[This message has been edited by Shailat (edited 01-08-2000).]
 
I am talking about using the SM58 on the kickdrum in addition to a kick-mic to pick up the click of the beaters on a seperate track so I have a bit of flexability when trying to get just the right amount of click vs. thump on the kickdrum in the final mix... I have a mic that picks up the low end well... But I don't want a bass boost on the click track.
 
Dynamic mics have roll-off switches too. That's one of the great things about the EV RE-20.

Also. If you're getting the presence and pretty much the sound you're looking for, but just don't want the proximity effect, I'd reach for the eq first before moving the mic back.
 
I thought you meant vocals so I suggested to back off a little but if it's for a kick then I'll suggest otherwise.

If I understood you corectly you are using 2 mics for the kickdrum.

I think you can acheive what you are looking for by mic placment and EQ.

for more attack place the mic near the center. For more tone - near the rim.
Tunning is also important - to get a warm punchy thump tighten the kick.
As for EQ - try to cut the low mids 200 - 600Hz and that should help you clean the muddy thick cloud.

Boost the lows for a power thump around 75-150Hz
Boost the 3-5kHz for attack and definition and you should
be able to get the attack you like.

If you play with these parameters you could possibly get what you want from 1 mic.
 
Just for the record I took the windscreen off and recorded some tracks today and they seem to sound a bit clearer... You guys might think I am lame but I LIKE the sound of a SM57 on the kickdrum...
 
S8-N, I had a friend that miked his kick drum with a 6x9 car speaker playing small bars. Dont know how the hell it worked, but it did. EQ'd it and it sounded pretty good. Point is....what the hell is my point...oh, if you like the way a SM57 sounds on a kick drum, hell on what anyone thinks.
 
Hey, S-8N, I read a bit more about the 58 and 57. Shure says the proximity effect only occurs when the sound source is 6mm (1/4") from the mic. More than that, no bass boost.
 
So a speaker can work like a mic? I guess it could so what happens. hook up a speaker and run it as a unbalanced line in? SO when you move the speaker it genereates a signal in the coil and sends it like a mic would? Is that it or am I spittin in the wind?
 
Hey Dobro:
How the hell does the mic know how far away the source is???
 
thees eez treek question, no? you try to pull wull over ol dobro's peepers, yes?

At least, that's what I thought at first. But it's actually a very good question. And my answer is: 'dunno'. Here's a quote:

"When the sound source is less than 6mm (1/4") from the microphone, the microphone boosts bass frequencies (by 6 to 10 dB at 100 Hz), creating a warmer and richer bass sound than when further away. This effect, known as proximity effect, happens only in unidirectional dynamic microphones like the SM58/57."

Horse's mouth, or horse's ass - you decide. :)
 
People forget that bi-directional mics produce the proximity effect as well. In some cases, more than cardioids.
 
Yea, nay, a dynamic mic like the Shure 5* is just a speaker in reverse...the same way that a generator is just a motor in reverse.

S8-N, the proximity effect in the SM-58 is caused by the peculiar design of the sound chamber in front of the element. In layman's terms...it has ball!

:)
 
Some older Shure PE 585 and PE588 performance microphones had flat wind screens that were interchangable with the SM58 (These were both introduced in the 1960's) and the flat windscreens do seem to make the mikes brighter, but also increase the possibillity of "plosives" (popping "p's" etc.)

Dom Franco
 
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