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What's a high quality microphone?.....Shure SM58???

#21
I picked up a used SM-58 at Guitar Center used 2 months
ago. I paid 49 bucks. No scratches or dents.

I also picked up some utility AKG (58) clones from MF for
20 bucks each. They have been fine. The have a handy dandy on off switch as well. Have had no PA problems on
the backup vocals with those. Our singer likes the real
Sm 58 as it is 'forgiving and warm' in tone. Well, he sounds good through it.

My regular sound guy uses the SM 57 almost exclusively as an instrument or drum mike. Not being a sound guy, I won't
comment on that, but just pass along the observation.
 
#23
As others are implying, a good mic is only part of the equation when you are trying to control feedback. Obviously, monitor placement counts too, but there's other factors. The quality of the monitor speakers matters a lot, to me more than the mixer. For example, I originally was using a pair of Yamaha monitors--not bad, but upgrading to JBL's in the front made a big difference.

I run both pairs of monitors now, the front pair of JBL's for the singers, and the Yamahas are for the drummer. I'm running a total of 600 watts in the monitors. We have stage volume out the wazoo now, but no feedback usually..and BTW it's a Peavey mixer... :D

The room can make a big difference, but here's something else to consider: usually people don't think of the stage itself as causing problems, but it can. A wooden stage can transfer real low-frequency vibrations up through the mic stand and get picked up as a rumble..to eliminate, put a rug, towel, or ideally a piece of rubber under the mic stand.

I cut anything below 80 hz all the way down in the monitor mix, 125 hz gets a -6 cut. Above 18 Khz gets cut too. Everything else is flat almost always. If a frequency needs anything, it's cut in the monitor mix, I almost never apply any boost in the monitor mix. No effects in the monitor mix at all. My goal is to keep the monitor mix as clean and flat as possible within the limited range that needs to be amplified.
 
#26
Don't know if it is too late or not but anyway, the Audix OM5 is a LOT better in the gain before feedback department (about 9db difference!!!) than the 58 or Beta 58 (its shure equivalent) and sounds REALLY good (better than either in my opinion). You can pick them up everyday at GC for $99.00 The Audix I5 is a better mic than the 57 or Beta 57 (and a TON of others) and can be gotten at GC for $79.00. These mics along with an Audix OM 7 and a few Audix drum mics have replaced most of my old "standbys" that I have been using for the past 25 years or so!! Very good products PERIOD!! ESPECIALLY for the money.....

Peace,

T
 
#27
Just thought I should add my 2 cents!

I've got an SM58 and like others have already said they're great mics. Electro Voice do have a solid competitor for it though. The ND767a is a very durable microphone, so much so that my boss asked us to test the "durable" claim out. Apparently you can drop it from 3 feet and it won't get damaged. So... I thought why not video our tests! I got our Hi Tech Department Manager, Brad, to carry out the tests while I filmed. He even dropped kicked the microphone 30 feet onto solid concrete. Watch the video on youtube to see what happens and how the ND767 really fairs after to a beating.

Link:
 
#32
I used mostly SM-57 / SM-58 for nearly twenty years, great mics for live use. I switched to the Audix OM-5 about 10 years ago, sounds a little nicer for my voice.

I would guess that although the Beta 58 will help, your feedback problem probably has a lot more to do with room acoustics / EQ'ing, and monitor placement.
 
#34
I can't believe nobody has mentioned this. I know this post is years old, so this for whoever stumbles upon this and is having the same problem:

Yes, microphones can make a difference. The ND767 is a way hotter mic and requires less eqing than an SM58. It has a tighter pattern, which can reject feedback. I love the SM58, it can be eq'd however you like and it will respond accordingly. Other mics might sound better flat, but you may have trouble getting a different sound out of it.

You might have the mics backed up against the wall, which reflects sound from the monitors, which the mics pick up, causing feedback. Monitor placement and stage setup make a difference. Put up some blankets or curtains on the wall, use carpet wherever you can. Auralex if you have $$.

Bottom line: You need a good graphic equalizer, preferably a 31 band, to cut out problem frequencies in the room. This will differ from room to room and depend on the response of your system, placement, etc.

1.Get a DBX 231 graphic eq

2. Ring out the monitors by boosting the gain until feedback, and finding the frequency on the graph and pulling it out (turn the fader for that frequency down) continue this until you have a flat responce (you hear many frequencies feeding back at once)

3. Turn the gain down a little so it doesn't feed back. Your mics should be much louder and clearer!

Good luck,

Bobby C.
 
#37
I think y'all missed the most important point here.

The owner of the studio is highly recommending the SM58 to solve a problem that is probably not mic-specific.

If he walks in with any other mic than the SM58, and it still feeds back, the owner (and possibly other band members) will blame him for buying the wrong mic. But if he buys the SM58, and it still feeds back, the owner takes the heat for a bad recommendation.
 
#39
I have used 58s for years, but switched to a Beta 58 a couple of years ago. I haven't noticed a significant improvement in feedback resistance, but I definitely like the sound better. The increased treble response is a good fit for my voice and my band members noticed a difference when I started using the Beta 58.
 
#40
I don't know what "gain before feedback" means. Mics feed back when the SPL from the speakers at the surface of the mic reaches a threshold where each time around the path gain is added. All mics do it (yes, there are differences between mics in pattern, sensitivity, etc.). Due to mic placement, system EQ, and room acoustics, this point is usually reached for a specific frequency before any others, hence the frequency of the feedback squeal. A better mic might help, but it won't be a magic bullet. The cheapness of the PA is not necessarily a factor, but installing an EQ with lots of bands to help you isolate the frequency where the ringing is occurring (and attenuate it) is a good measure to take.

Are the speakers along one wall and are your mics placed all around the room? This can be problematic, especially if the face of a mic is facing the speaker or even close to that direction. Are the walls, floor, and ceiling flat and hard? Problem. Do you rehearse really loud? Problem. Changing mics won't solve any of them, unless (as someone else has said) your present/former mic is an omni or condenser mic. For different reasons, both these types are not suitable for vocals stage work.

One thing I did in a rehearsal space that was really effective against feedback was to ditch the PA mains and go to wedges clustered in the center of the room with the vocal mics circled around them. I also carpeted the floor (carpet scraps that were being thrown out) and treated the walls and ceiling to cut high frequency reflections.
 

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