Help: good all purpose instrument mic

Subject: good all purpose instrument mic
From: GUEST,whistledon
Date: 26 Mar 01 - 08:00 PM

I am looking for a good guality mic which I can use on stage in pubs for playing my wooden Irish flute into. I also sing, (though not at the same time I am playing the flute) and wondered if there is a mic which could serve both purposes. Currently I am using an Audix OM-3xb but am looking for something that better suits my needs. Any suggestions?

Thanking you in advance, whistledon

Subject: RE: Help: good all purpose instrument mic
From: Musicman
Date: 26 Mar 01 - 08:18 PM

Shure SM57...... works for me for vocals, whistle and bodhran, probably need a wind screen for it too......

musicman

Subject: RE: Help: good all purpose instrument mic
From: Fortunato
Date: 26 Mar 01 - 09:16 PM

musicman is right, sm 57, it's the industry standard. but go to the store and try some out.

Subject: RE: Help: good all purpose instrument mic
From: wdyat12
Date: 26 Mar 01 - 09:31 PM

HELP! Guest, whistledon: I need a quality mic or mics for transmitting over my PC on Paltalk. I also need a new sound card. Warranty is not up yet. Any suggestions for mic?

wdyat12

Subject: RE: Help: good all purpose instrument mic
From: Mooh
Date: 26 Mar 01 - 10:33 PM

I hear tell that Ampex is marketing a good mic these days, though I haven't tried it myself. The Shure 57, and Beta 57, are good choices.

Mooh.

Subject: RE: Help: good all purpose instrument mic
From: GUEST,kesara
Date: 28 Mar 01 - 01:41 AM

57's are very uni-directional which may be good for off-axis rejection (which is one reason why they are ideal for snares congas and bodhrans, etc.) although their pickup pattern is a tad wimpy, I found, for the flute. It also depends if you are playing in noisy pubs or concert halls. I've used a Peavey 580 vocal mic with good results on both flute and vocals in a pub environment and I found it to be stronger and more dynamic sounding than the 57.

There are some pretty good clip-on condensers being made these days that also serve both purposes. I read an article on Jethro Tull in the March issue of On Stage magazine where Ian Anderson discusses his mic choices. He sometimes uses an SM58 with 8db rolled off (through a high-pass filter) at around 100Hz to get rid of the low wind noise and rumble.

The clip-on mic he uses is made by Countryman, a company in California, a condenser mic driven by the output of a radio belt pack which transmits to a receiver on stage in a rack with a mixer. It clips on the end of the flute near the lip plate and he uses a little pop shield over it. While this is oobviously a fancy setup, there are a multitude of choices in this dept. The best thing to do, Im sure, is to go and check 'em out at your favorite music megastore.

Subject: RE: Help: good all purpose instrument mic
From: Troll
Date: 28 Mar 01 - 09:31 AM

I like the Shure SM-58 but if you've a bit more money to spend, try the AKG 1000 condenser mike. Thats what our clarinet player uses and it works very well. I mike our recorder player with an SM-58 as he plays everything from garklein to bass.

troll

Subject: RE: Help: good all purpose instrument mic
From: JedMarum
Date: 28 Mar 01 - 10:04 AM

I agree that the Shure mics mentioned above are good choices, multi-purpose and built to last, but I am convinced the Sennheiser mics are superior. They have a line of 'evolution microphones' that have excellent reproduction qualities, and are built to last. They are in the moderate price range. You can read about them here. I use Shure and Audix and am happy with them, but once I tried the Sennheisers, I have switched to using them as much as possible. I use 4 of the 845 models for voice or instrument mics (bodhran, banjo, fiddle, etc) and 2 of the 855s for vocals, although I suspect they would make an excellent instrument mic for whistle (they have a very fine quality for the very high frequencies). These mics cost a bit more, but are well worth the premium.

Subject: RE: Help: good all purpose instrument mic
From: JedMarum
Date: 29 Mar 01 - 09:28 AM

I forgot to say that I've used four of these mics for over a year of hard use. They have been dropped, once or twice - hard, and withstood the crash (not that ever want to drp them, but I'm glad I didn't hae to replace them when I did). They are not quite as mainstream as Shure, but you should be able to find 'em at the big music stores, or on-line.

Subject: RE: Help: good all purpose instrument mic
From: Whistle Stop
Date: 29 Mar 01 - 10:36 AM

Jed, I've also been using the Sennheisers for vocals for the past couple of years. I use the 835 model, which is the next model down from the ones you mentioned, but I agree that they have just a bit better tone than the SM-58's that I had used previously.

Subject: RE: Help: good all purpose instrument mic
From: JedMarum
Date: 29 Mar 01 - 01:21 PM

I think there is little differnce in 835/845/855 series. The 855 has a wonderful response in the very high (in the whispers sort of frequencies) but the others are excellent, and sometimes that very high freq is more of a liability then an advantage! It is helpful to make clear the 'mouth noise' we use to recognize words and syllables, but the others do a pretty good job too. Great mics! Good price!

Subject: RE: Help: good all purpose instrument mic
From: GUEST,whistledon
Date: 29 Mar 01 - 03:21 PM

Thanks to all who helped me out. I'm going to go with the Sennheiser e855. I believe this one will be best for me both in the pub and at concerts. Also, for the outside gigs in rainy weather (here in Florida), I'm going to get the SM57. Thanks again for the information you gave, can't beat experience! Whistledon