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OT: Shure SM7B Live?


npfrs

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I've been doing some home recording and have a rented Shure SM7B. Man, I love this mic! I've used it in studios before and it really suits my voice well. I've also used it to record banjo and even put it on the speaker of a Casio SK-1. There's nothing I can't get a good sound out of with this mic.

Does anybody have any experience using one for live sound applications though? I think this year I'm going to start bringing my own mic to gigs, for a couple reasons. Will the SM7B hold up under live sound applications?

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I haven't used one personally but I know that the reputation is that they sound great but need a lot of gain from a decent preamp. So given that the sound guy will have to crank the gain on the board, they may be less comfortable than if you were using something else... And if the club's board is not up to the task then either you will be too quiet/drowned in hiss or the band will be too loud. So you can do it, but it might be an idea to bring along a preamp/cloudlifter too.

Steve

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I haven't used one personally but I know that the reputation is that they sound great but need a lot of gain from a decent preamp. So given that the sound guy will have to crank the gain on the board, they may be less comfortable than if you were using something else... And if the club's board is not up to the task then either you will be too quiet/drowned in hiss or the band will be too loud. So you can do it, but it might be an idea to bring along a preamp/cloudlifter too.

Steve

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Quote Originally Posted by stevemcb View Post
I haven't used one personally but I know that the reputation is that they sound great but need a lot of gain from a decent preamp. So given that the sound guy will have to crank the gain on the board, they may be less comfortable than if you were using something else... And if the club's board is not up to the task then either you will be too quiet/drowned in hiss or the band will be too loud. So you can do it, but it might be an idea to bring along a preamp/cloudlifter too.

Steve
Good and accurate info and advice all the way around. Phil-Thumbs-Up-Small.gif

The SM7b requires a decent amount of gain and a low-noise preamp for best results - especially on quieter sound sources like singers. Plus, the diaphragm is back a bit from the end of the mic, which means you can't get as close to it as you can with something like a SM57. The Cloudlifter (or better yet, Cloudlifter Z) would be an excellent companion for any relatively low-output mic like that - especially if you wanted to try to use the SM7 in clubs, where the PA system may not be up to doing it justice.

Your foam windscreen's lifespan will definitely be noticeably shortened if it spends a lot of time in a smoky club. Then again, most clubs don't allow smoking anymore, do they?

I dunno... I would probably just grab a SM57 and be happy with that. It's not all THAT dissimilar. Yes, there are some differences here and there in their tone, and the SM7B seems to put out about 6dB less than the 57, but they're fairly similar sounding microphones. And for what the SM7B does, I've generally preferred the E/V RE20 and RE320. I find them even more versatile overall than the SM7B. YMMV.
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