Shure SM7B Cardioid Dynamic Microphone

Most Liked Positive Review

Voiceover and vocal champ

Worked in radio for 36 years and the best microphones I ever used were Shure SM7B's. I have used all kinds of microphones, some of which cost more than the SM7B. Name a microphone and I've probably worked at a station that had them. You can keep the tinny sounding Sennheiser MDU421's, boomy RCA 77DX's and 44's, stow away the overly sensitive Neuman U87's, wimpy sounding EV RE anythings and the sterile AKG anythings. Any other Shure microphone, other than the SM5, just is not the same either! I have no idea why the EV RE20 and RE27N/D seemed to have gained wider acceptance at radio stations. I guess because the Shure SM7B is less expensive people think it must be inferior. Yes, it has a slightly lower output than some other mics, but most broadcast and recording consoles have clean beefy preamps with lots of gain headroom and you will obtain a usable level with no outboard preamp required. Where you would need a preamp would be with a cheap mixer or when trying to use it live with a typical PA mixer. Compare the 1000 Htz specs of the EV RE20's 57 dB output at 1.5 mV to the SM7B's 59.0 dB at 1.12 mV and you see there really is 2 dB more audio signal delivered but at a lower voltage. So try it before ordering a preamp you may not actually need. If you do need one just a little boost is required and you can get that from an ART preamp for very little money. This microphone is natural, warm and rich sounding with absolutely no EQ applied and it never sounds boomy or muffled like some ribbon mics do when compressed. If God needed a microphone, he'd probably use this one. It comes with the integral shock mount cushioned stand mount and two windscreens including a close talking one. The thing about the SM7B I like most is the way it converts emotions into audio. It is easier for me to get a good take with one of these. There are adjustable EQ switches under the plate on the end of the microphone. It really comes with everything you need to start using it immediately except the stand and cable. This is the microphone Quincy Jones used to record Michael Jackson's vocals for "THRILLER." Also it was used when Bruce Springsteen or Pearl Jam made their hit recordings. For close talking applications there is nothing better as it has a very natural and smooth sound that compliments all voices. For recording or broadcasting the human voice, the Shure SM7B is tool number 1 for me and I've learned nothing else is close. By the same token the SM7B is not a general purpose microphone. So long as you use it for broadcast or recording studio voiceover narration or musical vocals you will be tickled to death. It has a nice and controlled proximity effect. This basic microphone design has been around for ages and is a descendant of the SM5 and SM5B which are discontinued but still in demand on the used market by voiceover artists. The early SM7 did not have the magnetic shielding that today's SM7B has. This microphone is a gem in noisy control rooms or home studios and equally at home in high end recording studios. Shure stands behind their products and offers full service if you ever need it. Avoid buying one used as there was a recent upgrade of the yoke/shock mount assembly.