ksm137 love

I purchased this mike through Sweetwater a few months back and have really put it to much use. My background is acoustic music and like the other reviewers I have found this mike to work well with guitar, violin, mandolin, banjo, and even acoustic bass. I do a lot of overdubs on my own projects and it's nice to have a mike you can leave set up that works so well for so many different types of instruments. I usually record into a macpro, with Logic 8 through the Duet with no other outboard gear. I do not have experience with the high-end(priced) mikes but I think Shure is one of the best values around. (I also respect the SM7!)

Awesome mic

This is a very natural and open sounding mic. It has a slight presence bump around 4-7khz. The low end seems fairly flat maybe tapering off a bit. I bought this mic mainly for close miking hats. Turns out, it's great on acoustic instruments. Banjos and mandolins sound great. Acoustics sound good but I think the Neumann 184 still Wins. but, considering the price difference it's great. And pretty close sounding.

By far the best in class!

I have used well over a dozen different SDCs in the sub $1000/pair range and the only ones I've found worth having thus far are the KSM137s (and 141s). I kept putting off buying a pair of these, thinking they would perform similarly to the rest. I am so pleased to say I was wrong! While other mics in this price bracket have smeared transients and annoying resonances, the KSM137 is crystal clear, fast and resonant free! Smooth low end and mids, with a just right presence that is NEVER harsh, glaring, distorted or brittle, yet airy and so pleasing. Cymbals sound stellar, as do various acoustic string instruments. If you can only buy 1 pair of SDCs on a modest budget, these are it! You wont out grow them either, as even if you have popular high end SDCs in your cab, these will still find lots of use! Given that the stereo kit of these is well under $700, I find this to be the best value in SDC mics around and one of the best values in pro audio period, only to be bettered by the sub-$800 priced dual pattern KSM141s.

KSM 137

LIke another reviewer, I have been able to put this mic up against several others when recording acoustic instruments. I have found none better, even those costing hundreds of dollars more. This gives a very "uncolored" flat respsone, yet warm through both of my DAW's (Protools and Cubase). It works equally well on banjo, acoustic guitar, and mandolin. Our banjo player uses this mic in live settngs and I love it when I'm on the board. I'm now in the market for a couple more.

A gem of a microphone

I've had a rare opportunity to a-b several large and small studio condenser mic's in my home studio and compare them to other microphones in my locker. I've learned over time that you can't judge a great microphone on price alone. The Shure KSM-137 has a very smooth and warm low end with an outstanding up-front presence without getting thin, a sound quality that really caught me off guard the first time I heard it. What a gem! Hearing is believing. Of all the microphones I own, the KSM137 is without a doubt one of the most "versatile" microphones for recording acoustic bluegrass instruments that I have used. The KSM137 also sounds great in live performance applications. It is true that there is no one microphone that does every job well. But if I had to be limited to just one small/medium condenser microphone for studio or stage, the Shure KSM-137 would certainly be at the top of my list.