Best Mic for Untreated Room

[MBantle]

Dear All,
I don't do a lot of vocals in my untreated room but I would like to upgrade from my SM58 that I use for sketches. I am currently considering two options: Shure SM-7 or one of the higher end Vocal (Performance) Mics such as the Neumann KMS series. Have you got any experiences you can share as in 'use this model + Izotope and you did all you could considering your bad room'
Please let me know your thoughts.
Cheers,
Matt

[sherrylynnlee]

Hi Matt,

The Shure SM7-B is great to work with in a bad room. That's what I use for most of my vocals these days. It does need a lot of juice, but it sounds great, especially on female vocals I find.
I have not tried the Neumann KMS.

The other thing I use is a condenser mic with the Kaotica eyeball. https://www.kaoticaeyeball.com
It's great when you want the details that a condenser mic gives but can't get a good room to use it in. I use it with the Shure SM27 sometimes.

Hope that helps.

[Len911]

For the same money as the KMS there's a new Earthworks SR314. It's new so there isn't that many reviews, but they tout it
as having excellent rejection and of course their reputation as a transparent mic.
https://earthworksaudio.com/products/mi ... ies/sr314/

[Kolstad]

Its hard to suggest a mic if it is for your own voice, because the mic has to complement it, and you have to love it. These things are somewhat subjective.

A dynamic mic is less likely to pick up the room, but needs a really good preamp to sound good. Otherwise you can try a condenser with supercardioid polar pattern (only picks up at the front, and rejects very well at the sides) and use a heavy baffle (rockwool) behind you. A Shure Beta27 or KSM32 comes to mind. It is mostly the space behind the singer you can hear in recordings, so that is the spot that needs most setup. Live mics sometimes is supercardioid, so I think you are on the right track. Pick out a bunch of them in a store, put them in a preamp similar to what you have, and test them out, would be my best suggestion.

Some dynamic mics sounds close to the clarity and detail you get from condensers, like the Electro-Voice mics. You could try out some of those, the RE-20 is a classic (also for vocals) and the newer RE-320. I had an SM7b and many like it, but I think it sounds like a thin SM58, and it needed a lot of gain, which adds noise, so I didn’t care for it at all. But for a female voice I get it.

I have tried different mic screens, but most of them leves ugly phasing artifacts in your recording (because they reflect sound with a short delay, back into the mic), so they can be difficult to use. Some may help depending on your situation, but not without a heavy baffle behind you anyway.

[ttully]

Hey Matt,

The SM-7 is a great mic.... low priced... good for an untreated room.

My SM-7 cents worth,
Tim

[ResonantTone]

Hey Matt,

The SM-7 is a great mic.... low priced... good for an untreated room.

My SM-7 cents worth,
Tim

Not to derail the discussion... but I find myself reading every one of your posts with the hope of catching you missing a signing off “cents” opportunity. So far, all my efforts have been thwarted.

If and when you miss one, I’ll be ready.

Andrew

[MBantle]

Thanks Guys for all your replies!
Cheers,
Matt

[ttully]

Good eye Andrew.....good eye!!!


Again,
My 2cents worth,
Tim

[wendylanders]

My Share SM 7B with a Cloudlifter along with a tube preamp has worked well for me. Minimal editing after recording.

I've got a real bugaboo with condenser mics right now.

[GBall]

There is a guy in Canada who used to design mics for Ocean Way, and opened his own mic business - Advanced Audio Microphones at. https://advancedaudio.ca. 45 years experience, family business, some of the nicest people I've ever spoken to.

He sells a CM47FET, which is basically in terms of brightness between the original Neuman U47FET and the U87. Specifically its a U87 mic design and circuitry married to a U47 FET capsule. Its just under $300 and I took a chance because I agreed with him that the U87 can sound over-bright on a lot of sources. (He sells a U87 too) I'm only guessing, but that brightness or brittleness is what most people seem to mean when they say something like you did about fighting condensers. Anyway, I would describe it as a U87 with a little more polish, and I've grown quite fond of it the last couple of years for female vocals.

I think it might be closer to the sound you're thinking of an SM7 but not as dead sounding - which is how I often feel about vocals done on dynamic mics. The CM47FET is multi-pattern, so you CAN use it cardioid and close like you're suggesting, but that's not what I personally do. Put that sucker on Omni, run a long cord out to your living room or wherever and try it. Bet you will find like I did that there's a place with not too much room color, where the sound can breathe, has dimension and more life. I have, I dunno, 15 or so mics? Nothing real expensive - I'm just saying that I don't love it because its the only one I have. I'm saying that we try a few, give the vocalist her choice and this one wins a lot.

Keep or Sweep as you wish.
Greg