Shure Super 55 Deluxe

[flwolf]

I'm doing a "Sinatra" type of show. This mic would be the right one based on its looks, but is it really good as well? Right now, my main mic is a Sennheiser e865, which is a great mic. Can anyone give me some input on the 55?

Wolf

[jpleong]

The Shure Super 55 is more the "Elvis" type of mic, specifically for the 50's-type of crowd.

Sinatra (and the other crooners of the Standards generation in the 60's and 70's) actually used mostly handheld mics like the AKG C535 http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/C535EB or Beyerdynamic M88/M69 http://www.sweetwater.com/c375--Beye...ic_Microphones as it gave them mobility. Your e365 is actually an "inheritor" of that legacy and role.

Aside from the aesthetics differences, the Super 55 will have a more restricted frequency range. The high end will not be as crisp as your Sennheiser. Between the two, the e365 will be the better sounding microphone fidelity-wise.

If you're trying to be more authentic to the entire time-span of Sinatra, then the C535 is the way to go (the C535 being Sinatra's mic for years). If you're trying to ground your audience visually in a "by-gone era" then the Super 55's looks can't be beat. Other than those two caveats, I would stick with your e365.

JP

[flwolf]

Your observations are absolutely correct and sound wise, I do have a great mic with the e865. Instead of "Sinatra type show", I should have just said "Oldies show". While I sing Sinatra, Dean Martin, Tony Bennett songs, I also do many others, like Elvis, Neil Diamond, etc.

What I'm aiming at is the "oldish" look. However, being a microphone, it also has to sound good. For my solo gigs I'm using a TC Helicon Correct unit, a Lexicon MX200 for reverb/delay, and a small Euroracks mixer. With this setup, I hope to be able to get the Shure 55 to sound right.

[Dave Burris]

With this setup, I hope to be able to get the Shure 55 to sound right.

I'm not sure what you mean by "sound right" but I generally think it's a bit troublesome to try to make a mic sound other than it sounds. Mileage may vary...

[TimmyP1955]

Try to find a Heil Fin on eBay.

[flwolf]

You are right about that. I meant to make it sound right for me, my voice and the type of songs I intend to do with this mic. I have been in recording studios for years, I know a little about mic charactristics, although I'd never call myself an expert. Working with microphones, especially for recording, is an entire science all by itself. Then again, one can also overdo it. For an amateur recordista to buy a $5,000 Neuman mic is most likely overkill.