GOOD Recording mic for Garage Band (Suggestion needed)

[pdp 9091]

they are not exactly the same, though they do share some components. they have different pickup patterns due to both the windscreen and, iirc, some small holes on the 57 capsule itself. more importantly, they sound different.

it's oft-said that the 58 is more suited for vocals, but i find that's not always the case. like any mic choice, it depends on the situation at hand and it's best to try both.

I should have explained myself better. Yes with the windscreen on, it may change pick up patterns due to proximity but without the windscreen on, and just the bare microphone, I stand by what I said, they are the same exact thing. I can guarantee you that.


Straight from a Shure Engineer himself:

"The SM57 and SM58 are essentially the same, except that the SM57 was intended mainly for instruments and the SM58 for vocals. The SM58 has a ball grille that acts as a pop filter. The two mics have the same proximity effect at the same miking distance.

Because of its smaller grille, the SM57 lets you get closer to it for more bass boost. But if you are 2 inches from the diaphragm in either mic, they have the same bass boost.

They have a slightly different response at high frequencies because of the acoustical effects of the different grilles." - Shure Microphone Enginee Bruce Bartlett


And if someone still doesnt believe me, the guy has a book written about microphone techniques.

http://www.amazon.com/Stereo-Microphone-Techniques-Bruce-Bartlett/dp/0240800761

A little background information on Bruce Bartlett to verify the validity of his quote.

Bruce received a degree in physics from the College of Wooster, and studied electrical engineering at Gannon College and the University of Akron. Then he worked as a microphone engineer at Astatic Corp. and at Shure, where he worked alongside the designers of the SM57, SM58, and SM81 microphones.

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This should end the discussion about the difference between the two. Without the windscreen, they are the same exact microphone, same specs (look them up).

 

[GregBoccuti]

dont you people know that an sm57 and an sm58 are the sammme exactt microphone? half of you are talking like they are totally different.

I'd actually have to say that you are quite mistaken here. The SM58 is a vocal mic, and the SM57 is an instrument mic. The SM58 has a bump in the frequency response around 2kHz, thus giving it a warmer lead quality, more suitable for vocals.

Shure SM57

Shure SM58

As you can see, the 58 has the bump at around 2k. Although it seems slight, it makes all the difference in the world. Also, think of them in their practical uses. The 57 is commonly used on guitar amps and mid to hi-mid instruments. 58's are vocal mics.

Of course, as with any mic selection, its all up to the engineer. The best tool for mic selection and placement is one's ears.

 

[pdp 9091]

I'd actually have to say that you are quite mistaken here. The SM58 is a vocal mic, and the SM57 is an instrument mic. The SM58 has a bump in the frequency response around 2kHz, thus giving it a warmer lead quality, more suitable for vocals.

Shure SM57

Shure SM58

As you can see, the 58 has the bump at around 2k. Although it seems slight, it makes all the difference in the world. Also, think of them in their practical uses. The 57 is commonly used on guitar amps and mid to hi-mid instruments. 58's are vocal mics.

Of course, as with any mic selection, its all up to the engineer. The best tool for mic selection and placement is one's ears.

The different in freq response is because of the windscreen, as i stated in my pervious post. Take the windscreen off and I don't know how else to tell you, its the same exact microphone. I work with these things quite often. I go to school for sound engineering at one of the best technology schools on the east coast of the united states (New England School of Communication). Im not just throw mindless information out there. You guys heard it from a SHURE engineer himself. Without the windscreen, they are the same microphone.

 

[marioman38]

Why not check out M-Audio's Nova its only $79 street. Keep in mind you will need Phantom power though.

 

[ashjamben]

i'll agree with this guy, with the covers they are the same mic. although not practical, many a time i have just taken the cover off a sm58 to use as a snare mic or guitar amp mic.

also, whoever said about sm58's not being studio mics are never used on modern recordings are talking bull. bono uses an sm58 almost exclusively in the studio, surely u2 aren't retro yet?

 

[pdp 9091]

i'll agree with this guy, with the covers they are the same mic. although not practical, many a time i have just taken the cover off a sm58 to use as a snare mic or guitar amp mic.

also, whoever said about sm58's not being studio mics are never used on modern recordings are talking bull. bono uses an sm58 almost exclusively in the studio, surely u2 aren't retro yet?

Many people probably hear their favorite bands/artists each day and don't realize quite a few people record with 58's.

 

[Evolesque]

Ok, forget the sm57 and 58...get the sm7b.
This will be very good for vocals @ 349.99. It's totally worth it.
This mic sounds very smooth, you do need a mic pre that has enough gain to drive it. It's a large diaphragm dynamic by the way. You can google the reviews for this mic. I'm sure this is what your looking for.

 

[ChrisA]

Hey guys, sup... i'm looking for a GOOD Mic to hook up to my powerbook and record some Vocals for a Demo i'm putting together......but i need a GOOD (not too expensive mic) so the vocals sound GOOD specially when i hit high notes, because with the "internal mic" when i sing high notes, the sound cracks....and it's terrible.

The good news is that almost ANY mic is so much better than the internal mic that it will be like night and day even with a cheal external.

The better news is that the most common profesional Mic on Earth. the same mic many megaa rock stars use on stage sell for only about $100. The Shure SM58 is kind of a standard. But then you can't plug theat directly into a computers. You will need a good interface. Add another $150 or so for maybe something like an m-audio "fastrack". From there you can go nuts and the prices go into four digits quickly. The '58 is designed for voice there is a '57 that is more accurate and "flat" for instruments and about the same price

EDIT: I see some people are talking about the '58 being "old school". I think if your ears are that good so that you can hear if a vocalist was using a large diaphragm condenser mic or an SM58 that you have progressed a little bit past making home recordings and should be working in a real studio. The reason I say this is because room acoustics matter much more than the type of mic. If your ears are that good you can tell in a minute how close the wall was to the mic or if the wall's surface was hard. And what about tube preamps and on and on.

Like I wrote above, moving from an internal mic to a sm58 is like "night and day" all the other stuff written here is just details. It's like walking to the store or driving, the kind of car hardly matters all of them are SO MUCH faster then waking. Yes some cars are nicers then others. Just get a car and learn to drive. That is the first step. Sweat the details later.

 

[GregBoccuti]

The different in freq response is because of the windscreen, as i stated in my pervious post. Take the windscreen off and I don't know how else to tell you, its the same exact microphone. I work with these things quite often. I go to school for sound engineering at one of the best technology schools on the east coast of the united states (New England School of Communication). Im not just throw mindless information out there. You guys heard it from a SHURE engineer himself. Without the windscreen, they are the same microphone.

I have a degree in Recording Engineering from a major school on the east coast as well, and I work as a professional engineer. I am not throwing out useless information either. The important thing to remember is that simply removing the screen from the 58 will not make it the same as a 57. You'd have to remove the screen from the 57 as well. Part of my education in college included intense training in physics. This argument exactly parallels a lab that we did. The conclusion was that if you take both windscreens away, they are the same mic. But they do each have a different windscreen that each have different effects. I know its a small detail, but it is still important.

On the other hand, I frankly think the argument doesn't matter because who wants to bother with switching capsules or windscreens and such. Unless you're dealing with extremely high end microphones (i.e. schoeps or something like that), just buy a 57 and a 58 rather then switching windscreens.

Not trying to attack anyone just wanted to bring up another angle.