As Warren Huart says, the best mic, is the one that's ready to go when inspiration hits. Beyond that, run what you brung. Once you get to a nice studio with lots of options, don't be afraid to try it all out. I'm sure many of these takes could all be used in a mix together. p.s. Ronnie James Dio only used an SM7 in the studio.
Since the SM-7b was designed as a "Broadcast Microphone" you should do a shoot out of other mics like it like the Electro-Voice RE20 or the Audio-Technica AT2040 for extreme type vocals. I am sure you could find other Microphones in that category. 😊
Shure makes a pop filter for the SM57. I like it a lot on vocals, especially live. But the SM7b is just great. If you can’t get a good vocal sound with an SM7b and a decent preamp than the gear is not your problem.
I just discovered myself the E935 is a sleeper. In my second project, my singer used it on literally everything included “clean” singing. It was great. Just discovered the same thing told him to damn near eat the mic, and it worked out great!
The e835 is awesome too. Excellent room rejection and virtually no handling noise. I recorded a metal band and the singer hated wearing headphones, so I cranked the monitors to an ungodly level. There was pretty much no bleed, and the vocals turned out great.
YES i'm so excited that the grindstein song has vocals, that made my day! i've found through my own testing with a lot of the same/similar mics that it's pretty spot on to what you found. a lot of times i'll end up going with my mojave ma-300 tube condenser over an sm7b if no one needs to hold anything. i did actually get a 935 for live vocal use years ago, i always keep forgetting that i have it since i stopped playing live, i'm gonna have to put that in the shootout when i record vocals for my next album and see how it stacks up! i was also pretty disappointed in the origin for extreme stuff, but it's definitely gotten use elsewhere
Interesting! I’ve been using a E835 for these types of vocals. It handles saturation and compression very well. I’ve been looking into an upgrade and maybe I’m closer to where I want to be than I’ve thought. I also have the AKG C214 (similar capsule as 414) and I agree that is great everywhere! That SE RNT was quite a surprise! I’d use it for “impact” sections, like maybe on a mosh line before a heavy breakdown, haha. Great work!
Your french is as impressive as the passion you put in your work ! Really nice video, as always, super instructive and entertaining. I've been waiting for so long to hear Julien's tracks isolated, thank for that and your amazing productions. Hail from france.
I already own an SM7B. I love it. It works incredibly well on my bright, sibilant voice. However, after looking up that Sennheiser e 935, I think I may have to get one. It has 102 reviews on Sweetwater, and it's a perfect 5 stars! People love this thing. For $199 it seems like there's very little downside.
I absolutely love my c214 (I’m a cheap bastard and it has the same capsule as 414, no polar pattern selector) for aggressive vocals. It’s great for my vocals because I’m a quiet singer with shit technique, maybe there’s something around that. You also have to adapt yourself as an engineer/technician to the individual because the human voice is the most versatile instrument of all. Yet another great video 🤘
My favorite was the Rupert Neve condenser from SE. My second was the Sennheiser. After years of trial and error with the mics that I have, I finally figured out a chain that works excellent for all types of screaming. Believe it or not it is the RODE…NT1A, with the vocalist about 6 inches away from 2 pop filters back to back, running into my warm audio WA 73 preamp. Works awesome for me.🤘🏻🤘🏻
I think Shure make a windscreen for the SM57. That may bet you a bit closer to the sm7b. Would have loved to see/hear the SE Electronics V7. Never tried it, but I've heard a recording that was done with it and it's super clear on vocals.
I would like to see more content like this. Great vocals isn’t an option for me at the moment, since then I would probably have to bribe someone, but now I can get a good microphone at least. Previously I used the irig microphone.
Wonderful video! I love comparison videos for any and all equipment. I’ll join the Rode Podcaster vote and add in the Rode NT1 and NT1A as they are all great budget mics.
E935 is a beast of a microphone. I own 3 so far. They seem to do really well for Metal vocals. I recorded my wife the other day and was blown away by how detail the E935 captured. Better feedback rejection in rehearsal and live setup then any Shure I've ever tried. The Kicker??? I've got this paired up with a E865 mic'ing up my 4X12 cabinets. Kinda hard to go back to any Shure microphone.
I’ve used an SM57 for years, only because I haven’t had anything else. Really digging the Sennheiser! That’s some wicked consistency between the takes too, sick vocalist 🤘🏻
Loved the lyrics. That E935 was surprising. It would be great to hear it in other contexts. I know it's intended for live vocals but it would be nice to hear to track other stuff like guitars and clean vocals, for poor people who can only afford one mic.
Hi man and thank you so much for this video! I'll probably go for the Sennheiser since it sounds amazing! But let me ask you a question: since I already have an SM58, do you think, for the purpose of recording extreme vocals, the SM58 could work similar or can be comparable to the Sennheiser? In other words, the Sennheiser worth the investment if I already have an SM58? Thank you so much if you reply!
Thanks a ton for this vid. Been wanting to record some covers and wanted something decently affordable. I may not be an audio engineer but I don’t think my $20 gaming mic is great for vocals so I’ll definitely be using this.
With a small amount of eq you can get the RODE POD caster to sound very close to the sm7. It will also handle the high impact recording needs of metal vocals. $99US
The Gridstein master, that's a sick hook.... Since I don't have money I'm using a 57 with my new vocalist and it works really good with a pop filter but I wanna try that Sennheiser
Hey, I like my "shitty vocal booth!" ;) Actually surprised you engaged the mid bump on the 7b for the test and not use the HP or leave it all flat. This is standard for me and lots of guys I know, as nothing below 75hz I want in a vocal. I've always found that this mic is also very particular to the mic amp. I personally prefer cleaner, faster amps with it where so many dudes love 1073, or other slower slew rate mic amps. Daking, Averill 312a, and my Forssell (very clean) are best with it for me. Adding "mojo" is so easy to add post. Give me the clarity. Also save for 414 EB (great on vocals) I prefer the BULS the most. Thicker than that XLS. Cool test, KK!
I use the akgc214 a lot, i love it. Another good all round use mic. Great drum room, good guitar 2nd mic to fill out a 57/i5/mtp440 whatever main mic you use
I like the Zoom ZDM-1 for my voice, and I also like the Behringer BA 85A. I've been wanting to get my hands on the Sennheiser e845/e935, and the Rode Podmic. I'm also a fan of double mic for vocals, usually a vocal large diaphragm condenser, paired with a dynamic; I usually blend them together for fry screams, but sometimes I'll use one mic or the other if the situation calls for it, like if false fold and clean singing are being used back and forth.
I'm using the E945 wich is very similar to the E345. I orinigally bought it for rehersal and live shows when I'm good enough at some point. I also used it for some recordings and it worked out well. I'm very happy to hear that it can hold up very well against the sm7b wich is considered to be the instudry standard for screaming vocals. Thanks for that amazing video and I would like to see more videos on extreme/screaming vocal porducion
Great, finally the "Kohle death riff" (as I called it before) has some vocals! As I'm not recording professionally and have sort of a limited budget I use the SM58 with a popfilter on a micstand. This way I can get really close to the mic and it sounds okay I think. Is it compareable to the SM57 soundwise?
Been running an SM7B (on a stand) myself, very happy with it, but got myself a Shure KSM9HS a while back for the rehearsal space/potential gigs ones this shit has blown over. That one sounds pretty good recorded as well, especially for being something you can hold, and it doesn't appear to care much if you hold it like an idiot either. Something I'm sure Mr. Fricker would appreciate. This, of course, with my rather limited exposure and experience with mics in mind :). Question: I see you running your SM7Bs without the windshield in many videos, how come? Does it suppress the high-end? I am quite prone to getting plosives even using a dual mesh pop-filter and the bigger windshield that came with it.
Yes awesome been waiting for this. Hopefully a follow up vid on processing vocals for the mix. I have a question, Did you compress when recording the vocals? Im not sure if you compress when recording and then also compress again when mixing.
@@KohleAudioKult Cheers brother your commitment to your followers is outstanding. The Grindstein plugin is my go to when im tracking to that thing is filthy!
One friend of mine calls death metal overall sound as "Brynzalov Verein". This was a company which produced hawthorn tincture. A very dangerous and famous drink, popular among raging alcoholics which voices reminded a bit some extreme metal vocal technics. Brynzalov was dangerous too, one of the first oligarchs in the 90s. If I get into brutal death metal and goregrind, I will call the band "Brytsaloff Fear-Ein", which will use SE Electronics RNT, of course. Brutal name - brutal sound!
This is a very valuable video. i dont think there's a lot of videos that covers microphone for scream vocals. the answer is usually only just use SM7B. i can't afford a lot of mics or the expensive ones and I'm glad I'm not missing out that much. i use an SM58 on a stand because I had issues like your SM57 in this vid when I handheld it and I think I get good results.
Great content as always! Christian did you record your voice in a Marshall cab with G12T-75? Or how doyou explain that duck voice? Funny to see the vocalist starring at the paper super focus and serious while growling.
This video was BRILLIANT!! I ended up purchasing the AKG C414 XLS and the Sennheiser E 935... more videos like this in the future please & thank you! ^V^
Wenn ich ein SM7 B benutze, sollte ich trotzdem ein Micscreen aufstellen? Oder wäre das dann zu trocken? BTW echt cooles Video! Wirklich ein sehr interessanter Vergleich, Danke!
The song was very enjoyable haha. The e935 was very surprising. I have an e835 that was my first vocal mic for recording, which I put on a stand with a pop filter. Always resulted in the way that the e935 sounded here with the vocalist further back, that thin sound, but getting close enough to eliminate the thin sound meant I had to remove the pop filter, which resulted in too many plosive issues. I'd definitely like to see another comparison video using the Shure MV7 compared to the SM7, as well as an SM58 (because I find them slightly different than the 57 although they are essentially the same mic) and the Telefunken M80
Julien is a monster!! I have bought a Rode Podmic and I think it sounds really cool for harsh vocals, would like to know what you think about it! Great video 💀
I've used an SM57 (with about 10cm distance and slightly angled from axis, w/o pop-filter) for nice female vox recording, and it's pretty cool, just a little lo-mid cuts on EQ and it's ready for production
Great video! As you told in the video here are the suggestions for some more microphones to test :-): TLM193! Even more linear as the AKG in my opinion, should work great. And some Audix live mics which should compare well to the E935. I use an OM3 for sound rejection for singing drummers, OM6 sounds more linear as OM7. But my sleeper mix is the VX5! Not sure if it works well for screaming but it's a condenser with good detail and highs but VERY good feedback rejection for live. Rock ON!
You know what? While my colleague was tracking the vocals with Julien, I was recordin vocals for Agathodaimon in another room using the TLM193. That was the only reason NOT to include into the shoot-out. I only have one!
@@KohleAudioKult Ohhh - what a pitty! But you know what? That's the reason I have a stereo pair of TLM193 ;-) (Ok, 2nd reason is ORTF with these is such a universal recording setup, you can put it in front of everything and can make it work. And world class low noise.)
Interesting approach! In studio my band always uses a pair of tube driven newmanns (mixing engineer choice) but It does sound brutal. I Guess that double compression and some eq play the trick. As I don't have his skills (and the money) I guess I'll try the Shure SM7B as It provides astonishing results with less processing.
I liked the SE mic. I use a Sennheiser e935 and it is perfect. Dare I say, better than the 3k SE mic.? Oh, I use it on a stand about 2 ft or 2/3 of a meter. Maybe slightly closer. Never measured it. Just move it around until it sounds good. Edit: as soon as I posted, you called out the e935! When my brother does death metal vocals he has way more lows and it has to be backed off or it will have a lot of 60-80hz in there. I roll vocals off from 100 to 200 on him. He just has way to much lows in his voice. If your singer sounds like this guy, by all means, put him close to it. I love the Sennheiser mics. My drum set has all Sennheisers. 904s on the 16 and 18, 602 on kick, 604s on rack toms.
Noiiice, can you apply the same reasoning of the "wall of sound guitar" on vocals? Like choosing what you think is great because of higher mids but then adding somehting with more bottom end, for example More vocals tips and tricks pls my good sir!
For recording my vocals I use the shure sm 7b and for gigs I use shure beta 58 a. I am pretty satisfied with the results as they are capable to get the best out of my growls and shouts. What would you suggest for vocals Ala dying fetus (the low ones), disentomb, shadow of intent? Cause I got more of that timbre in my voice.
Kohle : we are talking about vocal like this \m/ the vocalist : ...grrgrgrggrrrr... me : sound like normal German to me ;c) Your french is great by the way. Danke für dieses tolle video.
Man I really enjoy your videos, they are awesome and really well explained!! Can you do one about DI guitar recording? Like for futur reamping! I'm interested to record good DI at home to be more flexible on studio but I don't know about the do/don't things to do. (like DI level, gear to use before and after etc). Best regards :)
Maybe the next mic video, include the sennh -e945 and Akg perception 5live s and P3live? Many thanks for a very informative and helpful advice video.. Regards Vinn 😎 👍 💭
Perhaps we are so used to the sound of the SM7B that we have to believe it sounds better? ;) Seriously, for instance, in comparison to the - not too bad sounding SM57 - it has the advantage to "glue" the sound, the frequencies, in whatsoever magic way together, imho. But there are always alternatives to expensives gear, which do the job pretty well and in many cases nobody would ask which (other) mic was used when the whole stuff is done in a decent way. My example was a cheap, blue, Audio Technica dynamic micro as an alternatice to e906 or MD421, the Audio-Technica MB 2k! It is still a secret tip for micing guitar amps but I also found it interesting as a voice mic, considering to keep it in rather close proximity to the speaker/singer.
Hey Kohle, got a Telefunken M81 in yer collection? I'd be curious what you think. Sounds like it's exactly what yer looking for. To me it sounds like a fuller e935 and the tone of the mic hardly changes as you go further away from it.
Im using the Austrian Audio OC18 for my harsh vocals, which is quite similar to the C414 (well... designed by former AKG engineers, duh). But I wanted to try a dynamic Mic for some time now.. The Sennheiser sounds really good :) Would have loved to hear the SE Electronics V7 as you said in another Video that it is cool on harsh vocals. Maybe next time? :)
I love your SE RNT... If I end with €3k to dilapidate in a static mic, this one entered the list of possibles... I can't guarantee the results when it comes to metal voices since I've never recorded a death metal band especially with a growling dude on vox, but the mics I will point are highly likeable for vocal recording : Shure SM-7B = Michael Jackson in the studio! Good choice, michamach!!! SM-7B is one of the two great classics in broadcast, the other being the Electrovoice RE-20, the RE-20 might be useable the same way, RE-20 is seen as warmer. AudioTechnica AT4033 : used by Jon Anderson of Yes but I didn't tested on growl... There is a more advanced version using the same capsule, the AT4050, nicknamed the poorman's Neumann. Price is similar to a 414, actually, it's nicer than the big Neumann's on piano... Massively used by Alan Parsons, massively used live by the Rolling Stones (24!) and Metallica (20!) in concert during the 90's (retrieved from a magazine centred about PA systems), taking near everything on stage to the PA (or were these used to record the concerts? IDK : these are statics, not intended for live use, so I found the fact these were used on tour a bit odd). AKG414 : well know and praised records of symphonic orchestras have been done with this!!! It's a very old cow that has long proven being great at near everything... The standard of the industry as well as for orchestra as for any acoustic ensemble has became the Schoepps in Y-pair (ot more with the large spread of 5:1. The Neumann KU100 binaural dummy head seems to be highly praised too. Never tried the e935, but all the Senns of the e9xx series seem to be really nice : I love the e906 for guitar amps as well as the e9xx for drumkits Sennheiser modified one of their cableless mics as Seal wanted something really better than the usual on stage, he wanted Neumann quality... Great because, guess what? Sennheiser and Neumann are the same company... I think that the first record done with it was Seal's Live in Paris... Seal's voice sounded so great (well, OK, he always sounds great, had I Seal's voice, I'd have became a singer and shagged Heidi Klum) that, despite being a custom mic only made for Seal, the company received massive requests to purchase this still non-existing in catalogue model, that they decided to make it... It's commonly praised as the best live mic a singer can get, although you have to be careful handling it, or about where you place yourself as it can be very punishing taking parasite noises or going Larsen easer than others... A few years ago, it used to sell, with the transmitter and the receiver, at about €1k5... But there's another practice in vogue especially as... You'd better not consider a studio if you fear to use a soldering iron... Well, you have MANY cheap mics copying Neumann's, these are utter crap but will copy the dimensions even having a vacuum tube in... So... some directly mounted a real Neumann capsule in and upgraded the electronics, there's also a company making perfect Neumann capsules replica that entered the market as well as upgrade kits that started being sold... There are static mics as cheap as €150-200 which can be upgraded into an U-47/67/87. It's probably the best solution if one can't fund over-expensive mics. Ribbon mics are often praised for their ability to not be affected by ambient sound. The Coles one is very common for sports events, the Royer R-121 is the main way to record guitar cabs in the studio, usually coupled with the tenth of its price SM-57 but... There are very nice AND affordable Beyer ones like the M-160, the M-260, etc... For sure, the main use of the good ole 160 was overheads, e.g. on Bonham's drums at Headley Grange with the Rolling Stones' mobile studio, but they might be interesting on vocals Any way, there is no One-Size-Fits-All microphone, I even know a dude that insists his voice being recorded with... The internal mics of a 80's "Ghetto-Blaster" Radio-K7, then, guess what, the Lo-Fi side of the internal mics really fit his voice!!! Then, just dig this, there were mythical albums recorded with just a Tascam 488, 488Mk2 or 688 (8 tracks porta-studio on K7!!!), so... No XLR, no 48V phantom, 1/4" large tape at only 9.5cm/s (a Studer A80 can run 2" tapes at 76cm/s). Even today, there are LPs being recorded with such gear as well as using 80's/early 90's home studio 8 tracks, 1/2" reel tapes of the likes of Fostex R8 or Tascam TSR-8, mainly stonner/desert-rock bands... I'm considering buying the near never used Tascam 238 (rack K7 8-tracker) from a friend, mainly since my own Yamaha portastudio is long f'ked up beyond repairs and I have many demos, about 50 titles, that were recorded between 1992 and 1997 on this machine, and it's a pity since most of this should had ended on LP, hadn't it been for the stupid shenanigans of our drummer which ruined the recording contract we were close to sign in 1995... Then maybe a (two?) 1" reel tape 16-tracker as soon as I have some extra-money left for this... I probably wouldn't go full analog, but it's OK to sync these with a DAW, as well as together and since I own two Amek consoles I mainly purchased to get word-class mic-preamps for the DAW as it ended cheaper than getting racked mic-preamp, but since these have automation, using VCA instead of motorized faders, they really were in the cream of the crop of analog w.o. reaching the insane prices you had with SSL, Neve or the huge Focusrite stuff... At the contrary, there are countless Pro-Tools recordings which really sound dull and lifeless... You want a record that sucks? Here's the recipe : drumkit used as a trigger for samples; Amplitube/AxeFx/Kemper/Helix for guitars; VSTis/VST-plugs on anything, Rhythm Inspector, Auto-Tune/Melodyne... You may hire Bob Clearmountain to mix this, you're guaranteed to sound lifeless because, well, there's no life in it!
It would be cool if you do a demo like this, with the Samson CS1 dynamic mic, but it's a shame that Samson discontinued them. If you find one you should try it, i like it a lot, specially on vocals.
Great video Kohle! The lyrics are really funny. Personally I liked the expensive one very much. It has a bit more room but not too much and the high end makes it just stand out a bit more than the rest. Since you are endorsed by SE Electronics have you ever tried out their take on the C414? It's called the SE4400A or there's also a version called T2...
Can't really afford the SM7B, unfortunately it's clearly the best sounding death metal mic in a mix, is forgiving regarding source distance and has good room sound rejection.
Hey, I have an original sE Electronics Gemini and it (at least to my ears compared to a SM58 or beta58 with the grill off) as does your RMT, Just puts Vox upfront and clear without adding sibilance.
