The SM58...

L

LiamSmith

Freshman
Jun 5, 2012
83
0
6
Ulster, NY
I don't get it. Whenever I am presented with an SM58 I have to work harder to get it to sound good than almost any other "professional" mic I've ever dealt with. There are cheaper and better sounding alternatives that are just as durable.

Sure, I understand that branding is everything and the SM58 is ubiquitous with rock and roll... But, I just don't see its use in the modern day.
 
I see them used a lot while watching shows on Palladia.

They may not be perfect or the right choice for every singer, but they are durable and for the most part work just fine.
 
They are common because they are, well, common; not because they are the best. In church installs, without riders or FOH engineers that don't have 30 years of familiarity with them, they aren't our first choice. One church requested them, then after briefly using some other mics, asked why they were always muddy sounding.
 
Re: The SM58...

Caleb Dick said:
They are common because they are, well, common; not because they are the best. In church installs, without riders or FOH engineers that don't have 30 years of familiarity with them, they aren't our first choice. One church requested them, then after briefly using some other mics, asked why they were always muddy sounding.
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Try 46 or 47 years, they were introduced in 1966 when not everyone sang with their lips touching the wind screen.
Back off a bit, and the mud subsides a bit too, though they still won't be as clean as many other microphones.
Of course, rock music and SM 58s have never been too much about cleanliness :^).

One could make the same complaint about the Les Paul guitar, it sounds "muddy" by comparison to many modern guitars, yet there is a cache about old venerable stuff that works well and has a certain sound.
 
Re: The SM58...

I quite like them for speech, hand held relatively close to the mouth anyway. For sung vocals I really like the e935 but don't like it nearly as much as the SM58 for speech.

Chris
 
Re: The SM58...

Nobody ever got fired for recommending an SM58. :)

While often not the absolute best choice, or even the cheapest choice, it's going to be the most familiar choice. If I'm coming into an unfamiliar location for a show today with limited setup time, I'd be much more inclined to use the microphones I'm familiar with, even though another mic in inventory may be superior. I know what it takes to get an SM58 to sound the way I want it to without even thinking about it.
 
Re: The SM58...

LiamSmith said:
I don't get it. Whenever I am presented with an SM58 I have to work harder to get it to sound good than almost any other "professional" mic I've ever dealt with. There are cheaper and better sounding alternatives that are just as durable.

Sure, I understand that branding is everything and the SM58 is ubiquitous with rock and roll... But, I just don't see its use in the modern day.
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I never have any trouble at all if it's a "professional" singer. What has gotten lost is the vocalist knowing how to work a mic. Many fine vocalists with whom I've had the pleasure of working will take almost any mic and make it sound good. Most of them actually prefer a 58. And if you haven't already seen it (it's gone "viral"), check out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-dmDFUzGPE
 
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The thing is, most of us know how to work with an SM58. It is not that it is the best, far from it, but it is a known reference. Not my first, second, third, or forth choice for anything, but I can make it work on everything if I have to. For many of us who have been around for a while, it actually was the best choice available for many years.
 
Re: The SM58...

It seems that with most musicians, their universe of audio equipment is confined to what is sold at Guitar Center and other stores. So, I see two mics more than anything: the SM58, and the Beta87a. Here's my thoughts why:

The SM58 is the classic go-to mic that musos buy because they see everyone else with it. Salesmen recommend it, and since convention seems to be all for it, why not? They buy it.

The Beta87a is only sold to people that walk into Guitar Center and want the best mic they have. And they determine which mic is best by which one costs the most - so they all end up with the Beta87a, even though it is a TERRIBLE choice for most situations in which I see it used.

I'd love to see a vocalist / musician buy a mic based on what it sounds like...
 
Re: The SM58...

Silas Pradetto said:
I'd love to see a vocalist / musician buy a mic based on what it sounds like...
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I did that. I ended up with an AT Pro 4L.......with a switch. I still have it and use it. The switch is still dead silent. The mic is over 30 years old. It cost $50 new and came with an XLR>TS cable.......which I also still have.
 
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Re: The SM58...

Eric Cagle said:
The thing is, most of us know how to work with an SM58.
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Exactly. Also important: Most vocalists/musicians know how to work an SM58. The proximity effect is predictable, handling noise is predictable, etc. When someone specs/buys a 58, I default to the assumption that they know what they want.

58 will always be my preferred Texas swing fiddle mic, because that's the correct tone for the musical style.
 
Silas Pradetto said:
It seems that with most musicians, their universe of audio equipment is confined to what is sold at Guitar Center and other stores. So, I see two mics more than anything: the SM58, and the Beta87a. Here's my thoughts why:

The SM58 is the classic go-to mic that musos buy because they see everyone else with it. Salesmen recommend it, and since convention seems to be all for it, why not? They buy it.

The Beta87a is only sold to people that walk into Guitar Center and want the best mic they have. And they determine which mic is best by which one costs the most - so they all end up with the Beta87a, even though it is a TERRIBLE choice for most situations in which I see it used.

I'd love to see a vocalist / musician buy a mic based on what it sounds like...
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My experience as well, those more able to be swayed by music stores and marketing, the more likely to own a 58 or 87a, or increasingly also a 58a.

After using various LDC mics in both studio and live applications, the bar has been raised as to how accurate a voice can be picked up. No amount of EQ can fix poor transient response.

Past employer had the good mic locker, and the old bar band locker. The latter was mostly 58's/57's/52.
 
Re: The SM58...

Silas Pradetto said:
I'm guessing it sounded really good. Does it still?
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I lined up a half-dozen of the "usual suspects" including the 58 and it sounded as good or better than everything.......at half the price. It DOES sound good, nice, flat response with a titch of a peak right around 3K where it should be for voice. Proximity effect is there but not really excessive, just enough to let you "warm it up".
 
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And there's the other side of the coin... Someone gets their esoteric, 'sounds so much better than an SM58' mic, foisters it onto their band(s), and then spends the whole night trying to get it to sound like an SM58... or 'fix' the monitors for the vocalists who can't seem to find 'something' they are missing in the wedges (that 'something' being the familiar response and their ability and understanding of how to 'work' a 58).

If your vocals don't sound at least 'good' with an SM58, fix the sound system or find a vocalist who knows how to sing and use a mic. IMHO...

(Which is not to say that an SM58 is the BEST choice for everyone.... It's to say that it's a standard for a host of reasons and sometimes you don't need to reinvent the wheel... and just because you think a mic is 'better' doesn't mean the person on the other end of it agrees).
 
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