Re: SM-57, wow!, help!

["Shane Greene" <shane@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Jp Pagan wrote:

>bought an SM-57 ... <snip>
>holy hand cramp, batman!
> cupping that little sucker is a P.A.I.N...
>


Hi JP,
 I know what you mean about the cramp a smaller mic can give you. I use a
Shure Beta 57, which I love, I also have a 545SD but they can be a pain to
hold. One thing I did which helped was to wrap some foam padded medical tape
around the part of the mic that I grip. I put in as many wraps as it takes
to get it wide enough for a comfortable grip. You can even cut down the tape
and put in a couple of narrow wraps then cover with the full width wraps to
create a ridge that rests between your fingers to help you grip. Also on the
545SD ( and I think on the SM 57) you can use the wrap over the gap area of
the mic head that kinda "floats". this makes it more stable and it keeps it
from making unwanted noise while handling the mic. I keep meaning to look
for some tape that looks cooler than the skin colored medical tape, perhalps
some handlebar tape or tennis raquet tape, but in any case it seems to help.
I also put my transformer ( a Whirlwind "Little Imp") on the amp end of the
xlr microphone cable helping to make the mic shorter. Slinging the cable
over your shoulder also aleviates the pull of the cable somewhat, insterad
of it hanging down to the ground.
I hope that helps,

Shane