Mic tips for vocals

Jalfrezi

I've started singing more lately, still don't like the sound of my voice, but decided to be less precious, and just get on with it. 

So, thinking of buying a mic, and maybe a processor, but how to choose a mic that will make the best of my limited talent?  Do, I just get an SM58 or similar, and see how it goes?  How do you guys figure out what's best for you?

AntonHunter

The benefit of buying an SM58 is its what most rehearsal rooms and gig venues will have, so you'll be used to have it sounds on your voice. Also, it's not crazy expensive if you spend 6 months with one, then highlighting the things you don't like about it will help narrow down the search for the perfect mic for you.

That being said, I hear great things about the SE Electronics handheld vocal mic.

BenSirAmos

I think you should give yourself the best chance - get a Beta 58A which is a step up from the SM58 and easier to dial in. Whatever the experts do, take a bit more bass off the eq to get more clarity and then focus on delivering the vocal line rather than trying to 'sing' like an angel. 

Stuckfast

IME the SM58 sounds pretty good on most male vocals, but it's a bit more hit and miss on female voices. There are tons of good alternatives these days though.

Whistler

For my voice, live, I switch the high pass filter on* and set it to 200Hz so that all the boom and close-miking effect are removed. Your mileage may vary but probably not by an awful lot.

*On the desk, there often isn't one on a mic.

Stratavarious

The SM58 is popular because it is just a great all rounder.  You won’t ever go wrong with one.

The SE v7 is good value but I find it can be a little more sibilant than our SM58s with the same settings. So needs some EQ to fix. Worth a look though. A slight step up from the basic SM58.  I have one I use for female vox.

 The BETA58 is good. We have one on lead vocals in an outfit.  I find the BETA58 has just a little more punch and clarity than the basic SM58.  Nice upgrade.  Similar to the SE v7.

I use a Sennheiser E945 (hyper cardioid) and would buy another one or the more forgiving patterned E935 - very smooth, nice sounds. If you play, move and sing the E935 has better off axis performance. Very nicely made. I’m sold on Sennheisers now.

Tweaks of EQ on the desk will have more impact than the basic differences between any of those mics IMO.

Not sure you need to be thinking about a standalone processor unless you have some specific sound you want like auto harmonies.

I use a little vocal delay and reverb and some compression on the digital mixer and roll off the bottom as suggested and tweak the upper mids if I want it to cut through.  The mixers I have will also take out any feedback frequencies, so ringing out the setup out at a gig can let you drive the vocals harder.

IEMs might make the biggest difference to your actual vocal delivery if someone else is overseeing the live mix.

DiscoStu

Edit:

Sorry, wrong thread !??

Jalfrezi

Thanks all, very helpful

Danny1969

With live sound on small stages like pub and club gigs the frequency response of a mic is less of a consideration than many other things. For a start every performer has a different PFL level. If you have a high PFL then you have a lot more choice on a small stage. If you have a low PFL then there's battles to be had in regard to gain before feedback and  drum spill, guitar cab rejection etc before you start to worry about which mic sounds good. 

Even when those things are overcome the EQ, compression and effects technique make more of a difference to whether the vocal sounds profession than the choice of mic.  

I like the Senn E945 for small stages but 58's are fine. Generally you use processing on the desk rather than a separate unit. As a basic rule for singers I use the following. 

Hi pass filter set around 120Hz
5 band EQ with cuts around 250 to 400Hz, small boost around 3 to 5K, steep roll off around 12k 
Compressor set with 3 to 6dB of gain reduction at a ratio of 4:1 ish .. medium attack
Reverb set with long tails but wet dry mix very low 
Delay set with tap tempo so delays match BPM of song 

The above isn't gospel but is a typical starting point. But it all depends on the PFL (how loud your voice is) 
If your PFL is low then your vocal mic will act as a drum overhead mic on a small stage and all the above is out the window. 
 
So 58. Beta 58, Senn E945 etc or similar voice coil dynamic mic .. defo no condensors 

Sing as loud as you can into the mic to get the maximum PFL

When you aren't singing stay in front of the mic as it helps reduce the drum spill into the mic and makes less work for us poor FOH engineers 

maltingsaudio

@Danny1969 got it right , although different engineers have different approaches which produce the same result. I do feel I just need to add a bit of clarification for those beginning at this not the experts. To begin with set the input gain such that the meter on the channel comes up to 0db to +5db at your loudest.  To view the level for your channel press the PFL button. I do this with the channel slider halfway and the channel muted so there are no sudden feedback issues . Then if your desk has a hi pass filter on it, this cuts any low frequencies below the point at which it is set, engage it and set it to about 150-200 hz. If you don’t have a high pass filter, reduce the bass EQ control to off if possible. 

Then my preferred compressor settings are threshold ie when it starts working at -10 db, ratio how much it reduces the signal 3:1 ,and make up gain or output of the compressor 0 db , bringing the output of the channel to somewhere near the input gain, at all times. I work to the mantra if you can hear the compression your using too much , unless it is part of your sound.

Once you’ve got this basic channel set up ,treat it as a starting point. Take the mute off and tweak every setting until either your happy or the feedback has cleared  the room!

Logie

I tried the SM58 and Beta58a and much preferred the Beta. I found it a bit more rounded/ midrangey sound wise. Very forgiving and using the same settings, a lot punchier than the SM58’s. I had two of each but used the Beta’s exclusively for the 7 years I sang in bands.

stickyfiddle

The Beta 58A is what a huge amount of "proper" singers use at the highest levels across a bunch of styles - Bono, Elton John, Axl Rose, Roger Daltrey, Brandon Flowers...  It's a fantastic mic. 

I have a a Beyer M88 TG that I love but I've been thinking about trying a Beta 58A as well 

AntonHunter

Yeah, I have a Beyer M88 TG too that I bought for kick drum use, but every time someone sings into it they're always impressed with the results. Bit too pricey for me to gig with mind, also a bit too pricey to just buy one to see if suits your voice too.

thomasw88

Pal of mine who has done sound for big name bands for years swears by the SE electronic V7.  We have a  couple and they sound very good, prefer them to the SM58.   

Stuckfast

I think @Danny1969 means SPL (sound pressure level) not PFL (pre-fade listen)?

Assuming that's the case then yes excellent advice.

stickyfiddle

AntonHunter said:

Yeah, I have a Beyer M88 TG too that I bought for kick drum use, but every time someone sings into it they're always impressed with the results. Bit too pricey for me to gig with mind, also a bit too pricey to just buy one to see if suits your voice too.

Yeah i sort of lucked into the M88 when a rehearsal studio just happened to have one and I like it. 

I will also admit that I just noticed I’ve dented mine, which hurt a little…. 

Danny1969

Stuckfast said:

I think @Danny1969 means SPL (sound pressure level) not PFL (pre-fade listen)?

Assuming that's the case then yes excellent advice.

Pre fader level …  also called pre fader listen but that’s a different use and how it works depends on the model. On a lot of desks PFL is both level and listen. The level is shown on the bar graph, the listen is solo,ed to the headphone socket. 

A higher sound pressure level produces  a higher  pre fader level / pre fader listen level so calling it sound pressure level is also fine.