SM7b, a few details from experience?
Home > Home Recording Forum > Gear Gab > SM7b, a few details from experience?
Posted on Oct 04, 2010 04:23 pm
Fragile
Member Since: Sep 30, 2009
I'm thinking about getting one soon. likely on ebay. How durable are these things? I wanted mainly a new mic for live stuff. How's it handle live? It doesn't seem like it would pick up much ambience from the room, especially compared with my NT1-a. Which like a plus for recording, especially more rock-ish vocals. But i'm worried, is it "touchy" live? as in, if you back away from it a tad does it totally drop your voice?
I'm mostly just trying to figure out how this mic "reacts" before i really buy it. I've seen professionals use them on occassion in live recording sessions, but typically most of what i've seen most artists stick to a more "58-ish" style mic. Eh, honestly i know very little here. Tell me anything you guys know. i know its been recommended several times on here.
[ Back to Top ]
Dematrixhttp://www.reverbnation.com/2ndgMember
Since: Nov 27, 2007
Oct 04, 2010 09:29 pm I have an nt1-a, and hardly ever use it. I also have a 7b.
7b rocks.
as long as you have a decent pre you'll be good.
im using one everyday atm and i stand back 4 foot and can still hear it clear as a bell.
Nt1-a would be great for spill on electric gits and acoustic up against the neck, im sure it great for myriads of other stuff too, but by itself for vox its very unforgiving, very crisp and clear sounding but with **** all body to it compared to 7b.
I wouldnt take one to a gig, they have a capsule in them which is pretty touchy, but apart from that, you'll be picking up everyones thoughts, farts, squeaks and squabbles (and stage sound) with that thing man. very very sensitive they is.
Just my 2c.
Im going to use both the Rode and the 7b soon together for vox. i recks she'll be great.
GeoffSM7b the Chuck Noris of Mic'sContributor
Since: Jun 20, 2002
Oct 05, 2010 09:00 am The SM7b is a great mic. It can be used in a live venue but if you're looking for a live mic i'd stick with the good ol SM58. I'd rather have a 100$ 58 mic get knocked down at a show vs my SM7b . Now in the studio , the SM7b is great ,works wonders on rock and loud vocal (ie screemers). Now an NT1-a and a Sm7b are completely different mics , good at what they do . A condeser (NT1) is a lot hotter (it'll pick up a wholle lot more) than a dynamic mic (58, Sm7) , you will also need phantom power for the NT1.
Quincysanhttp://www.unitedmusicians.infoContributor
Since: Nov 11, 2007
Oct 05, 2010 02:01 pm Deon: You can stand back from your 7b 4 feet and still hear your voice clearly? I have trouble if I/vocalists back up further than 4 inches or so. Are you screaming or something?
In my experience, in order for the 7b to sound good you have to eat it, and you need a good 55 dB of gain from your pre. Sounds pretty good on most vocalists, good studio/live crossover mic for the budget minded purchaser IMO.
7b will be my live mic when I start playing out again, so yeah I'd recommend it.
Oct 05, 2010 06:52 pm Good :) thats what i wanted to hear! Honestly, i have a real problem eating the mic. i can't help myself. even when the proximity effect gets way overdone and my e835 sounds a tad boomy, idk. Just a habit i have when i'm playing and singing. So thats a good thing for me haha.
I won't be doing any heavy gigging, but thanks for pointing that out! i'll be sure to be careful with it when i do find one. With the way my current line of reasoning is going, this mic should be a little better able to reject the room noise i can't find a way around any time in the foreseeable future, so another plus. Thanks guys :) now i'll just have to decide if i keep the nt1-a or pawn it off to go towards a purchase of a decent mic pre. Any thoughts there?
Quincysanhttp://www.unitedmusicians.infoContributor
Since: Nov 11, 2007
Oct 05, 2010 08:54 pm If you have another LDC then sure, sell the NT1 but buy the MXL 990. You'll be so very surprised at how incredible that mic sounds for freakin' $60. I know Tad's touched on how great they are several times, and I couldn't agree more. Both Tad and I have owned several 990's. They aren't flimsy or anything, I'm just an idiot. Tad probably did something less stupid than what I did.
You should probably keep at least one LDC around, sometimes you'll just need a mic in a room...
Oct 05, 2010 10:15 pm Makes sense :) Yeah, i heard a youtube video once, a "high production" cover with all the instruments and synths and whatnot, i liked the tone on the guys voice. Decided to check out what gear he was using, and it was one of those 990's. They must be pretty good mics! For that price, you can't really go wrong.
Dematrixhttp://www.reverbnation.com/2ndgMember
Since: Nov 27, 2007
Oct 06, 2010 01:29 am I could still hear mine at 4 foot not a problem, though probably not the quality you'd want. Mine is loud as, i dont need to eat it at all.
I have my JoeMeek twinQ with the compression on, fast attack, like as quick as it will go fast, and about 800 release with a 8:1 ratio. Metal vocals my friends, works better than i need it to be honestly.
actually my pre gain is pretty cranked though for sure. Vol is at around 0 ish.
Fragile, if you wanna eat the mic then just make sure the compression is set right and you use untensils, with a capsule mic though, not a good idea.
Oct 07, 2010 12:36 pm Is there any reason to NOT buy an older SM7b? I'm looking at one on ebay that just looks a little older (could even be the picture, i'll send them a message). But as long as its in working condition, will it do well? Or do the capsules age over time, or are there any years where they upgraded the performance somehow?
Quincysanhttp://www.unitedmusicians.infoContributor
Since: Nov 11, 2007
Oct 07, 2010 02:11 pm This...I do not know.
Oct 10, 2010 01:00 pm Another question, the A7WS windscreen, do you guys use that or is it mostly for radio application? Theres a bid on ebay that doesn't include that. and i could purchase it seperately. But that'll affect what i'm willing to bid of course. Just curious what the two windscreens real difference is.
Oct 10, 2010 07:13 pm I too have an SM7b Fragile. I think I decided to buy after posting on here and you where involved with the talks as well as wanting one.
I will say, it is a fantastic mic. I get a lot of metal and gard rock bands in with yelling or screaming vocals, and it does great. I also have used it for Podcasting with a friend, and it gives that great DJ vibe off.
I have not tried it out yet myself, but I also hear it does wonders for micing guitar cabs. I am hoping to venture into doing that myself here pretty soon and testing it out.
One thing I will say though, never full dissemble the mount from the mic. An idiot friend of mine to it to mine, and with the number of pieces on the mount, it is a pain in the *** to get them in the original places like they where in the factory, making it difficult to tighten the mount down so the mic doesn't move. With about an hour of frustrations, I finally got it close to the way it was shipped. And as heavy as the mic is, you want the mount to stay solid...
One thing for sure is, it has a extremely low output. I don't have any pre-amps here, I just have the Line 6 UX8 interface. On that, I have to crank the crap out of the input knob to get a usable volume. But with the right compression methods used, it has done justice for sure!
Quincysanhttp://www.unitedmusicians.infoContributor
Since: Nov 11, 2007
Oct 11, 2010 06:53 pm I use the AW7s every time I record vocals, and I take off all the foam stuff when I'm recording guitar. If you are prone to plosives (and who among us isn't?), it would be good to find that windscreen. It does a great job!
@ Rockwood:
Yeah, 55 dB of gain is definitely out of the ordinary, make sure your pre's can handle it. I get 65 out of my API and typically have the pre gain up at around 70-75%. You gotta try it on guitar! Better than the 57 for most of what I do.
