Vocal mic recommendations (for live)

[McCreed]

I have used a EV N/D-357 super cardioid mic for well over 25 years. It's a great mic, and suits my voice really well.

It still works, but the tapered plastic sleeve (poly???) that forms the "holding part" has perished.
EV's idea was for this to reduced handling noise, but it's a really poor construction method.

I was fortunate enough that EV provided me with a free replacement sleeve about 10 years ago, but the second one has now gone the way of the original. This mic is no longer in production and I doubt EV would be as generous nowadays.
I have half-arsed fixed the 357. Whilst the fix is practical, it looks pretty crap.

Sooooo... I'm looking for a new mic that won't break the bank and provide good performance. FTR, I've got some old SM-58's but don't really like them as my main vocal mic. I do tend to like hyper or super (same?) cardioid.

One option I've looked at is the Sennheiser e845. Seems to get good reviews.

Any suggestions?

[Simon Barden]

I've used E/V mics for a long time when I had a PA. 267, 367, 767 and 767a mics. All very good indeed. They all had that rubber grip on the outside which always stared to come loose after a while, so it was a case of gluing it back on as best I could. I've only got a couple left now the rest have been given away to friends.

The Sennheiser e845 is certainly a very good mic.

One alternative is the AKG D5 is a super-cardioid (not quite hyper) mic, that's significantly cheaper than an SM58 and is very popular in the UK. It's certainly of an equivalent quality, with more output and a better high frequency response. The D5C is a cardioid version of it. AKG are now owned by Samsung and no longer manufacture in Austria (now either Romania or China), so you get a good mic for a lot less money.

Either of those would be a good vocal mic, but there's no saying which one will suit your voice best. I'm also not sure how easy it is to get hold of AKG mics in Australia.

[McCreed]

Thanks Simon. That's very helpful.
I have come across the AKG D5 in my quest. They're around the $159AU price and right within my budget, and only 20 bucks more than the Sennheiser e845.
The AKG has similar specs as the EV 357 too. I don't understand all the numbers but enough for comparison.
It also appears to be a bit more versatile as far as instrument micing too.

I think the D5 is a strong contender now. Thanks again.

[Simon Barden]

Both are good mics and you can only tell so much by specs. I still like the SM58. It does most things well, if not all of them outstandingly and it is good for projecting a lot of voice types. But it's good to have or try out some other mics as well.

I can get the D5 for £52 in the UK, which is currently just under AUD$100. The e845 is around £90, which makes the Australian price very good value indeed.

I did have an e855, bought when the Evolution range was first introduced. I somehow managed to get it for less than the advertised price in the shop. But despite being the top of the range at the time, it was never that special and had a thin quality to the sound, probably due to less proximity effect than other mics. It wasn't made for long and was discontinued whilst the rest of that mic range has kept going.

[McCreed]

Well, I just pulled the trigger on D5!

The shop has a fair returns/exchange policy and all their prices are very reasonable. So worst case, I return it for store credit and get something else. (they also a good range of brands, including EV)

Thanks again Simon. I'll post back after I've given it a run at rehearsal next week.
Cheers!

[Simon Barden]

Hope you like it!

[dave.king1]

I used an AKG D190-C for many years, great mic for my rather ordinary voice and I always found AKGs to deliver.

Now using a Sennheiser MD426 for a vocal recording mic ahead of an SM58, I also have a no name SDC which I really like but it's a bit too unforgiving for my mates voices

[Simon Barden]

Now using a Sennheiser MD426 for a vocal recording mic ahead of an SM58,

I can't find any valid reference to a Sennheiser MD426, so maybe a MD46 or MD421?

[dave.king1]

I can't find any valid reference to a Sennheiser MD426, so maybe a MD46 or MD421?

Sorry it's called a pensioner memory c0ck up , it's an MD427

[blinddrew]

I've got an AKG D5 (won it in a competition, I'd never really looked at them before) and I definitely prefer it to an SM58. I was very pleasantly surprised at how well it served as an emergency mic for an acoustic guitar as well.