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Amazing looking new retro mics

My semi-acoustic band uses Shure Super 55s. Retro look, Beta 58 capsules. They sound great. But they're not $39. My guess is that the $39 ones will sound like $39.
I bought one when I started this thread. I LOVE this mic. It is not as good as my 58 beta's, but sounds like my 58, except it has better feedback supression. It really is "super cardioid". It's sort of a cross between a 58 and a 58 beta.

This company also produces the headphones I'm wearing in my avatar. I have five pairs now partly because they are only $17.50, and they are the absolute best under $200 headphones I've ever used. I've been a user of decent headphones since I sold Hi-fi in 1976. I still have my original pair of Koss Pro 4AA's.

There really are some "stupid great" buys out there. My experience with the headphones is why I gave this mic a try. Just as what happened with guitars and basses with the stuff from sites like Rondomusic.com, we're seeing a paradigm shift in pricing of quality equipment.

When I sold Hi-Fi when the CD player first came out, you could get a Sony unit for $1,199. Even $200 would have seemed extremely cheap back then. And here we are now. I think a similar thing, though not as dramatic, is happening with pro audio equipment. The market is huge and prices can reflect it.
 
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Anybody who has half a clue about live sound reinforcement knows that mics are one of the most important parts of the PA, probably second behind speakers. If you are using $39.00 mics then the rest of the PA probably sucks also.
The price is not what matters. It's the quality. And those of us that have been around the block know that the two don't always go hand in hand. As I cover in my post before this one.
 
I bought one when I started this thread. I LOVE this mic. It is not as good as my 58 beta's, but sounds like my 58, except it has better feedback supression. It really is "super cardioid". It's sort of a cross between a 58 and a 58 beta.

This company also produces the headphones I'm wearing in my avatar. I have five pairs now partly because they are only $17.50, and they are the absolute best under $200 headphones I've ever used. I've been a user of decent headphones since I sold Hi-fi in 1976. I still have my original pair of Koss Pro 4AA's.

There really are some "stupid great" buys out there. My experience with the headphones is why I gave this mic a try. Just as what happened with guitars and basses with the stuff from sites like Rondomusic.com, we're seeing a paradigm shift in pricing of quality equipment.

When I sold Hi-Fi when the CD player first came out, you could get a Sony unit for $1,199. Even $200 would have seemed extremely cheap back then. And here we are now. I think a similar thing, though not as dramatic, is happening with pro audio equipment. The market is huge and prices can reflect it.
Bet it will not last as long as your shures. If your Beta sounds better then why would you use a mic that sounds worse?
 
Bet it will not last as long as your shures. If your Beta sounds better then why would you use a mic that sounds worse?
There is more to it than sound quality. This is especially true when the sound quality difference is so minor. When plugged into my Digitech VLFX, this thing sounds absolutely mind blowing. And the difference between it and the beta is non-existent.

Thing is, a life show is a SHOW, not just sound quality. Appearances of everything from the performer to the mic stand - and how you route cords - have an impact. If my budget was unlimited and I could justify it, I'd just get the 55, of course.
 
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I wonder if newark has an exclusive on them or something.
Newark has a nearly identical logo. I'm sure the companies are connected.

I modded mine. I made a rubber mount for the cartridge instead of the hard plastic one. I moved the cartridge slightly closer to the face cover, and put a little more windscreen in.

Now the mic is more sensitive because the cartridge is closer to my mouth, breath noise is reduced. and handling noise is less.

This is a good sounding mic. I've been finding cheap mics that perform as well or better than my 57's, Beta 57, and EV767. I'm in the last years of my performing due to arthritis and dementia, so IF I buy any equipment, I won't spend much.

I needed a mic a few years ago, that sounded (and hopefully looked) like my Beta 57. I bought a supercardoid, neo mic from Radio Shack on sale for under $50. The specs were close to the Shure.

It was thinnner and not as loud as the Shure. I took off the windscreen and found the cartridge was quite far from the screen. I reset the mount, glued it in place, and moved the cartridge a little more than 1/4" closer to the windscreen.

It worked great. The mic was easily as good a performer as my Beta 57. Proximity effect and sensitivity matched the 57. It didn't come close before the mod.
 
Newark has a nearly identical logo. I'm sure the companies are connected.

I modded mine. I made a rubber mount for the cartridge instead of the hard plastic one. I moved the cartridge slightly closer to the face cover, and put a little more windscreen in.

Now the mic is more sensitive because the cartridge is closer to my mouth, breath noise is reduced. and handling noise is less.

This is a good sounding mic. I've been finding cheap mics that perform as well or better than my 57's, Beta 57, and EV767. I'm in the last years of my performing due to arthritis and dementia, so IF I buy any equipment, I won't spend much.

I needed a mic a few years ago, that sounded (and hopefully looked) like my Beta 57. I bought a supercardoid, neo mic from Radio Shack on sale for under $50. The specs were close to the Shure.

It was thinnner and not as loud as the Shure. I took off the windscreen and found the cartridge was quite far from the screen. I reset the mount, glued it in place, and moved the cartridge a little more than 1/4" closer to the windscreen.

It worked great. The mic was easily as good a performer as my Beta 57. Proximity effect and sensitivity matched the 57. It didn't come close before the mod.
How did you take the Stellar Labs mic apart?
 
There are four small phillips head screws on the front, between the fins.
Just thought I'd let you know I found some thin foam and did take the mic apart and mated it with the existing foam. Pop supression is a LOT better.

I also noticed (for anybody still reading this) that they are STILL being offered in the MCM sale catalogs.

I'm thinking of picking up a couple more for future projects.
 
Am I the only one that's found that the surest way to kill a project is to buy special stuff for it? LOL
I'm not sure what you mean by that. I've bought lots of "special stuff" for projects and end up blending them into new projects. Lights, smoke machines, basses, shirts, etc.

The price of breaking away from the generic "bar band" mold is to do special stuff and buy or make unique stuff, like band logos and banners. People like that. It's all within the vein of being a show rather than just music, which they can get from a stereo with bluetooth connectivity to a smart phone.
 
I'm sure those mics will be a big hit when you play at the local cornhole tournament. :)
No cornhole tournaments here. Sorry.

However, one of the reasons I like them is that most of the reason for buying them is their look and that will become an irrelevance eventually. It's why they are worth $40 to me and not $240. At that price, they're "throw away" products that still do the job well.
 
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Monoprice looks to have a version at $100, and it actually has some pretty good measurements.
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