Re: [Harp-L] That great "Bluesy" stage sound

[Michelle LeFree <mlefree@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Splash! writes:
> You will never go wrong with a SM-58 in your kit.  Get a Lo-Hi Transformer
> to go with it.  In the years to come, that mic will prove useful over and
> over for different uses.  I prefer the 58 over the 57 for a first mic for
> several reasons.  The ball on the end makes it easier for me to cup well,
> and it's a pretty decent vocal mic in Lo impedance mode.  The 57 is a better
> mic with wich to amplify an amp cabinet so it's number 2 on my list.  Either
> one will serve you well for decades.

Here's another idea: the Shure 545SD (aka, the "Butterfield" mic). You 
can get one new for ~$100 on eBay and elsewhere. Or you can do a little 
eBaying and get a vintage one that will sound even better than the newer 
ones. I see right now there is an auction with several cool mics, 
including a 545 (can't tell if it has the on/off switch, which would 
make it the SD model) with a starting bid of $10. [To be completely 
accurate, Butter used the 545 with the built in dog-leg shaped mic stand 
mount. That doubles the weight of the mic' so I prefer a straight version.]

I love my 1960's vintage 545SD. It was a church intercom mic for 40 
years, in pristine condition; an eBay acquisition that cost me ~$25. It 
makes my Silverface Princeton (tube) amp seem to levitate up off the 
ground with an almost beastly tone. I have several bullet mic's with 
vintage Shure CR elements in them that cost me much more yet don't sound 
any better than the 545SD to my ear with that amp. I'm saving up to have 
Greg Heumann "Ultimatize" it.

Oh, yeah. You won't need an impedance matcher because you can set a 
jumper inside the 545 to make it either high or low impedance. It sounds 
"clean" until you cup it tight like Iceman describes and then the magic 
begins. So, unlike a bullet, it makes a very passable vocal mic, too.

A couple of tips when buying any vintage microphone. One is to try to 
get one that comes with the cable and connector. There are different 
kinds of connectors and you may spend a good deal of time trying to find 
one that fits if you get a mic' that doesn't come with it. Also, I like 
to make a short pigtail cable with the mic' connector on one end and a 
female 1/4" connector on the other. That way I can use any guitar cable 
to plug into the amp and the 1/4" joint makes a strain relief so you 
don't rip the guts out of your cable if it gets stepped on.

My 545SD Shure does work for me! :-)

Michelle