Audio Gear I am looking for a good microphone for singing

[MaJ]

Hey,

Beanie is a star

But in this case - I would politely suggest that SM58 is an awful choice for a studio mic

I have used SM58's at 300+ shows a year, for over a decade. They are a great LIVE gig mic.

They are built to not break, and for LIVE show mics give a great sound. But the key there is for LIVE shows they sound great.

I would NEVER use one in a studio. As you don't get anywhere near the sound quality you would with a condenser mic. And a condenser mic would be awful for a live show - as it would pick up too much of the room sound, and are not built to last if being used day in day out in a 'gigging' fashion. SM58's you can drop, sit on, use as a weapon to keep an angry audience at bay - hmm.

Maybe if you wanted to record a studio song that you wanted to have the limited sound of being a LIVE show. You may want to use SM58. Though I would still use a condenser [Rode] and then use after effects to 'limit' the range/sound to make it sound like a live gig.

The actual question - should be - which condenser mic. And that would be down to budget.

 

[Beanie Draws]

I still wonder why XLR is more important than USB in some cases, because the RODE NT USB has fantastic sound and I've seen a few musicians use it. Though not a good hand held mic

SM58's you can drop, sit on, use as a weapon to keep an angry audience at bay - hmm.

This one made me laugh hahaha! Sounds like it's popular at punk gigs

At the end of the day instead of focusing on the budget so much, I'd get a temporary mic (the SM58 would work well as a temo. I have an Audio Technica atr-something something... it's nowhere near as nice as a RODE NT USB but gets the job done)

I'd focus your energies on investing on a higher level mic if vocals and music is important to you. I've seen a lot of musicians use the SURE SM7B which is what I'm looking into investing into as well. Very expensive, but a worthy investment.

The cheaper budget mic will cover you for a few videos while you save for a more expensive quality mic.

 

[Yoyo]

Thanks for all your suggestions. I bought my new setup (all second hand).
Audio Inferface: Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 3rd Gen
Mics: Behringer XM8500 and Rode NT1A

 

[MaJ]

Just to follow up on Beanie

The NT1A is XLR so NOT a USB mic

But in regards USB mics you probably wouldn't want to use one for making serious master recordings, they could be great for podcasting and fast and easy, so great for 'quick and dirty' recording - like when you get a musical idea that needs to be recorded before you lose it.
Rode themselves suggest the NT USB mic is more than 'just' a podcasting mic, they suggest this because it features a condenser capsule that is apparently the same quality as their studio-grade microphones. Which is hard to prove as their studio mics have different capsules [pay more, get supposedly an upgraded version]

I would think [by the sounds of it] if you want the convivence of USB then the Rode may be an excellent pick, but if you are making song/studio recordings - then the Rode 'real' XLR mics are the ones to go for.

My channel is a bit schizophrenic - one of the parts of MCW - is the M for Original Music. We have live versions of brand new songs that we write, record, and then the performer performs live - all [from blank page to final performance] in less than 3 hours

The bonus of the Rode mics - is if you have a singer that doesn't like being on camera - it blocks out a lot of her body.

Hmm... I might take a few of them with me, when I go on dates...

 

[Doug B]

They are. The SM58 is one of the old standards in the industry.

<snip>

If you truly want to stay below 100 euros the easiest answer is the Shure SM58.

The SM58 is an excellent mic, and built like a truck - just like a 57!
However, it is a dynamic mic, not condenser. No phantom power needed.

 

[Yoyo]

Just a little follow up. I bought an used AT2035. It is great. I like it way better than the Rode NT1A