Hello, I am an aspiring musician, and I was wondering what mic I should buy to use at live shows. I have a $200 budget, and I am currently looking at the Shure 55SH Series II Mic. The music genre would fall under Experimental/Ska/
I really like the design, and it seems to be priced well.
If possible, could anyone please inform me about my choice, or suggest a new one?
Thank you in advance.
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Answers by: staplecheese
What's the most important feature of this mic for you? The styling? The cardioid pattern? The price? Shure makes great mics, but I've heard complaints about the on/off switch right on the front of this thing -- it's too easy to turn the mic off 'in the heat of the moment'. Not a cool stage tactic, and you'd lose all of the coolpoints you earned for the retro-looking microphone.
If you want that classic look, check out Nady's PCM-200... no on/off switch to trip you up, and a nice $70 price tag.
If I had to suggest an alternative for stage use, it's always gonna be the SM-57 or SM-58. They're bulletproof, reliable and decent sounding. They're pretty cheap, too - about half the price of the 55SH Series II, but a bit more expensive than the Nady.
Thank you tremendously for your response! I had not that about the switch, and I now see where that could be a problem.
I looked into the Nady PCM-200 before I found the 55SH, and while it had the classic look to it, I found it to be somewhat cheap in appearance when compared to the shiny exterior of the 55SH. I might just go with the SM-58 if nothing else catches my eye.
Your feedback was very helpful, once again, thank you.