RE: [Harp-L] When do get started with amplification?

[Buck Worley <boogalloo@xxxxxxx>]

Splash-
 
I am posting on list wwith this besause you mentioned the 545s. Absolutely true, what you stated about those mics. I deleted the OPs (jake I think) email address.
 
I have an old 545 and a Shure Synodine II (similar to the 545 and all vintage) in my junk box and it's an old one with the hinged handle. I have 2 more JT30s, an assortmetn of Shure green bullets (all vintage) several old EVs, Turners and many many more in my junk box. I use the term junk box loosely because at least 50% are working and sound good to great.
 
I also have a pile of amps. From time to time I pull stuff out and experiment. Especially when I get inspired after reading a post on one of the forums.
 
A few months ago I had a student that was soing EXACTLY what the OP (Jake) is trying to do. He was trying to get a setup to go amplified. We pulled everything out and he had brought a Kal and 2 Silvertones of his own as well as an EV mic. After a fun filled afternoon of swapping mics and amps and stories I asked him what he liked. He liked the sound of one of my old green bullets, a real old 520 with an American white label CM element.
 
I GAVE THE MIC TO HIM. This is why some folks like me keep old stuff around; to share with up and comming players. And maybe I am a bit of a pack rat. I am glad I have held on to a lot of things, like an old EP2 Echoplex I picked up in the '70s for $25 that still works great and gets used regularly in the studio.
 
So, now you can go off in your closet and bow your head in shame and lick your wounds..................
 
***Splash, you know that I am having a little fun with you. Those 545s are fantastic, too.
 
When I first went aplified, all I had was Sure 57s and 58s. I dont even want to tell what amp. I had no idea what I was doing and after a come to Jesus meeting with the band and sound engineer, I got some advice from none other than Kim Wilson who at that time was doing some of the same venues in Texas and NW Louisiana and we crossed paths regularly. It may be that bad experience from way back that keeps me away from the 57s as a harp mic. However, I see a lot of players using them and getting a great sound.
 
All the best,
Buck  
 

> From: celtiac@xxxxxxxxx
> To: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: Re: [Harp-L] When do get started with amplification?
> Date: Wed, 6 Jul 2011 08:04:49 -0400
> 
> I agree that you can find some amazing things at yard sales and flea markets. I certainly have. But I also have a drawer full of junk that I got at some of these places. Those are the results of a lifelong endeavour. If a newbie wants to get started playing now with something reliable and that will last a lifetime he doesn't start by going to garage sales and flea markets. And whatever you might find down the road in the years ahead that good old reliable mic will still be an asset and won't end up in the junk drawer.
> 
> If you like a little dirtier sound, then go with a Shure 545 stick mic from eBaY or Craigslist. You can get them for less than $100 and it won't end up in the junk drawer either.
> 
> Then next year at the flea market you see an old tape recorder or film projector... but I'm dreaming now.
> 
> When life asks you to jump in...
> Splash!
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: Buck Worley 
> To: celtiac@xxxxxxxxx ; harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx 
> Sent: Wednesday, July 06, 2011 12:07 AM
> Subject: RE: [Harp-L] When do get started with amplification?
> 
> 
> Splash-
> I respectfully beg to differ.
> 
> I forgot to mention in the text that the cheezy mic was a GM-178. I really dont know much about it but IMHO I would play through it before I would play through an SM57 or 58. They are just too clean for my taste. BTW, I did play through them for many country gigs and that work just fine for me.
> 
> I have a SM57 that I have been using to mic my amp since the '70s as well as a couple of 58s. You are right about one thing, they are built to last. IMHO compared to a Shure SM 57 or 58 a JT30 is a cheezy mic. After all they were created to serve a dispatcher mics and for cheap. I have one JT30 that my aunt in Texas picked up at a garage sell for .50 cents and it is the mic I play through the most. 
> 
> I think we are touching on a subject that is so opinionated that I do not care to get into what mic is better that what mic. It's too subjective and a matter of personal opinion.
> 
> I have a big box full of mics that I picked up (pre ebay days) some of which are truly cheezy but have decent tone. My point was that you just never know what a given mic is going to sound like until one plugs it in. And sometimes what looks like a suspicioously cheap mic can be a jewel.
> 
> My advice to the OP (Jake) is to not pass up a cheap mic that is inexpensive and may look cheezy just because it is inexpensive or the way it looks. It might have a really good tone for very little $$. Look for those little surprizes at garage sells, old electronics stores, old schools or couthouses. Any place that may have used a PA system inthe past. Who knows you may luck up and find an old Masco. Talk about the cheezy factor!
> 
> BACK TO THE TOPIC:
> 
> No matter which route you decide, just go for it and have fun. Hook up your gear at home and get familiar with it before you go public. The more you play amped the more you learn. Therefore the longer you wait the more time is waisted. The quest for tone is a never ending thing. BW
> 
> 
> > From: celtiac@xxxxxxxxx
> > To: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
> > Subject: Re: [Harp-L] When do get started with amplification?
> > Date: Tue, 5 Jul 2011 15:52:44 -0400
> > 
> > 
> > OK on the pignose, but skip the cheesy mic. The pignose will sometimes be 
> > just the thing you need. It's a keeper.
> > 
> > But ditch the crappy mic. It will just will eventually end up in some other 
> > place anyway. With all the other crap.
> > 
> > Get a Shure SM57 or SM58. They run right around $100 new and still one of 
> > the best values around. And then that SM58 will sometimes be just the thing 
> > that you need, ten, twenty years or more down the road. It's a keeper.
> > 
> > Check eBaY. (Too many Chinese knock-off s on Craigslist) I just took a look 
> > on the baY and there's a sm58s with switch SM-58S - buy it now for $109 and 
> > free shipping. Plus you get a 20ft XLR cable, a mike-stand with boom, a mic 
> > bag and clip. Whole shooting match for $109. Or one of the many completed 
> > auctions that went for between $50-$60 And get a XLR to 1/4" Lo-Hi 
> > inpedance transformer for $12
> > $70-$121 not wasted. I still have mine after 35 years.
> > 
> > I prefer the 58 if I'm only going to have one. It's a little better for 
> > vocals and it has a ball on the end to make it easier to get a good cup with 
> > harp. If you're main intent is to mic an amplifier cabinet, go with the 57. 
> > There is a good reason why these two mics have been the standard of the 
> > industry for decades.
> > 
> > So, now you're in for $150-$175 and you have stuff you will keep and use for 
> > many years. If you keep at playing music, you're going to do it sooner or 
> > later anyway.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > When life asks you to jump in...
> > Splash!
> > ----- Original Message ----- 
> > 
> > > Jake,
> > >
> > > I have a pignose that I am willing to sell for cheap. The catch is that 
> > > I won't be able to ship it until the end of this month. (I am away from 
> > > home right now.) Contact me off list if you're interested.
> > >
> > --- 
> > >> Find a cheap mic and get a used pignose for a start. Cheezy mic + used 
> > >> pignose + a harp and you could easily be under $100.
> > > 
> >