shure sm58 mic set up/EQ in live

cullashark · Post by **cullashark** » Fri Sep 28, 2007 1:38 am

I just bought a sm58.. I have a m-audio nova, but my only complaint was it picked up a lot of background noise, u could hear my roomates through the walls in the slow points while i was rapping, so i got a sm58, as i kept hearing how, "industry standard for vocals" it is...

so i got it.. and i plug it in.. sounds good, but its really bassy...

what EQ or settings does any of you use? I'm sure other people hear are using a 58, just wondering.. when your recording with it, what settings are you using for amp or EQ through it?

I'm kinda lost with the presets in live...

leedsquietman · Post by **leedsquietman** » Fri Sep 28, 2007 4:25 am

How are you connecting the sm58. what preamps are you using (mixer, audio interface). try rolling off bass below 80 Hz. Try a little boost at 400 Hz and 3 Khz, roll off 10 Khz. Try experimenting with compression and/or saturators and possibly a deesser (some vocal channel strips are good too, for example voxengo's voxformer vst for windows). Use some reverb but don't drown the recording in it.

btw, the sm58 is primarily designed as a LIVE microphone, rather than a recording studio mic, although if miced properly, preamped and with correct vocal technique, it can perform reasonably well on recordings.

cullashark · Post by **cullashark** » Fri Sep 28, 2007 4:58 am

i'm connecting it using a m-audio fasttrack pro..

really, i just wanted something that was more directional, not picking up annoying background noise.. and just a phsychological comfort, of holding the mic while flowin.. seems to just, be easier to put more energy in it for me..

you said to " try rolling off bass below 80 Hz. Try a little boost at 400 Hz and 3 Khz, roll off 10 Khz"

call me a newb or idiot.. but im pretty new to vocal recording.. whhere would i be doing this? I'll tell u waht i go.. mics, fasttrack pro, and ableton. haha. nothing else really going through.. thats why im wondering, is there a go-between i should be gettin my hands on? wether it be software or hardware?

Timur · Post by **Timur** » Fri Sep 28, 2007 7:21 am

Like about all directional microphones the the SM58 get's very bassy because of proximity effects. If you want a natural sounding voice then keep a distance of about 10cm between mouth and mic. It will pick up more backround/room then.

To avoid picking up your neighbors hold the back side of the mic (the other end pointing away from you) into the direction of the neighbors. The SM58 has a cardoic pattern pickup which means it wont pickup sound coming from behind.

Also don't hold/cover the grill with your hand because that will destroy the directionality and lead to distortion/boost of certain frequencies. You can use that as an effect though. I like covering parts of a mic grill for a little vocal distortion when I don't have an effect at hand and want to get more presence to my voice, but that's mainly a live technic and hard to control.

cullashark · Post by **cullashark** » Fri Sep 28, 2007 7:42 am

thanks.. thats a lot of great info.. i've pretty much been hearing 2 things... 1, that the sm58 is supposedly not so hot for recording in some peoples opinions, and is better for live use... (after playing around with it.. i can compare and hear my m-audio is a lot clearer, crisp and natural sounding, but, i aint always gonna want a polished sound like this...)

and 2... its all about testing it in different directions, distances, etc.. i've been doing it a bit, and i really like the sound im getting.. its great for just ripping into a flow, when u want something kind rough, or maybe not rough but.. not so crisp and polished sounding.

thanks for all the help and advice.. im gonna do some more playin round with it

swishniak · Post by **swishniak** » Fri Sep 28, 2007 12:49 pm

i would just add to that:

-try setting up a channel strip like this - compressor THAN eq (with the directions from above - bass below 80 cut out etc) and maybe a little reverb. .
-maybe try the 2 mics together ; set up the m-audio a few feet away and dont think about it and get comfortable with the 58. mixing the 2 could sound cool.

the sm58 is a dynamic mic, which means it can take a beating and a screaming (and is good for stages), buts its also one which has been used tons in the studio -i have heard many stories of it being used on vocals on some big records (bjork, michael jackson).

pixelbox · Post by **pixelbox** » Fri Sep 28, 2007 2:17 pm

cullashark wrote:that the sm58 is supposedly not so hot for recording in some peoples opinions, and is better for live use...

Studio recording is NOT what the 58 was designed for, and it WAS designed for live performance. However, that doesn't mean you shouldn't ever studio record with a 58, as long as that it gives you the sound you are going for.

Use that 58 going into a PA system at your next gig and you'll see why people love the sm58.

cullashark · Post by **cullashark** » Fri Sep 28, 2007 5:50 pm

wow thanks guys for all the feedback.. i do feel a bit better about my purchase now haha.

I am gonna try the two mics at once too.. does sound interesting, and im wondering why i havent thought of that yet haha.

and i do a lot of experimenting and collecting organic and found sound... i think i could get some different sound types from playing around with it some more as well..

thanks for all the feedback

leedsquietman · Post by **leedsquietman** » Sat Sep 29, 2007 1:20 am

The rolloffs and cuts/boosts to frequency can be done using the EQ Eight effect in Live or a 3rd party EQ vst/au, or a high pass filter for removing bassiness below 80 Hz.

The Sm58 is a great mic btw, as is the sm 57 (which I love for recording guitar amps and is good on snare drums and many other uses).

All of the effects I mentioned can be done using Live's effects (i.e. eq, compression, reverb, saturation etc) , although Live's compressors are not really close to being the cream of the crop but can do the job with some limitations.