SHURE SM87 PROFESSIONAL VOCAL MICROPHONE
When most people is the music or broadcasting business think of a brand name for a microphone, one of the first names that probably pops into their heads is the brand name Shure. The most recognizable Shure microphones are the ever popular SM57 and SM58. But there are also many other great microphones in the Shure SM series, and I shall be reviewing one of them here today. The microphone I am review today is the Shure SM87A Professional Vocal Microphone. The Shure SM87A lists for $350.79, but it can be had from most large musical instrument chain stores or from large Internet retailers for a discounted price as low as $249.99.
The Shure SM87A Professional Vocal Microphone is a “condenser” microphone with a “supercardioid polar pattern.” The term “condenser” refers to a type of microphone that requires an external electrical power source to make it function properly. Condenser microphones have a conductive diaphragm with a small charged plate behind the diaphragm. The plate is “charged” by connecting the microphone to a preamp which sends a DC current to it. Changes in air pressure resulting from a sound source cause the diaphragm to move, which results in a AC current being formed in the plate, which in turn causes the current to flow to a small preamp which is built into the microphone, and ultimately this signal travels through the microphone wire to a recording device or amplification system. Because the diaphragm of the average condenser microphone will tend to be thinner and lighter than the diaphragm of a typical dynamic microphone, the average condenser microphone will tend to reproduce a more “lifelike” sound. This is of course a generalization, and not a hard and fast rule.
The Shure SM87A is a microphone with a “supercardioid polar pattern.” This means that it is a very unidirectional microphone, and it will tend to pick up the sounds that it is being pointed at, and it will tend to minimize or reject sounds that are coming at it from the sides or from the rear of the microphone. This makes a microphone with a supercardioid pickup pattern ideal for use in situations where extraneous background noises need to be minimized. Thus the SM87A is a great choice for home recording studios, where the room that the recording is taking place in may not be ideally acoustically designed or reinforced, or for live situations where one wants to minimize the sounds that may be coming from other parts of the stage or from the audience. The very tight supercardioid pattern also increases the SM87A’s ability to avoid feeding back, even in high gain applications.
Although most people think of a condenser microphone as being a very delicate thing, the SM87A, like most products in the Shure SM Series, is a very rugged, durable, and sturdy microphone, and it is very reliable. The outer casing of the SM87A is made with Aluminum, and it has a steel grille, with an attractive black satin finish. It is designed to be road tough, sturdy, and reliable, and to be used as a hand-held microphone. Of course, it can also be mounted on a stand and need not be hand-held. The SM87A is also shock-mounted, which cuts down on handling noise when it is being hand-held, as well as any cutting down on vibrations from the stage that might travel up through the mic stand. The SM87A also has a built-in three stage pop filter which will cut down on wind noises and breath noises in situations where a singer uses close micing techniques. The SM87A is also remarkably light for such a study microphone, and it weighs in at just 7 ounces.
The Shure SM87A Professional Vocal Microphone has a very smooth and very wide frequency response (50 to 18,000 Hz.) that is especially tailored to capture and reproduce warm, full-bodied vocals. The built-in wind screen and pop filter permits a singer to hold the SM87A very close to their lips, while minimizing breath sounds and air pops typically associated with close micing techniques. Shure redesigned the original popular SM87, and gave the SM87A a slightly thicker handle, for a more ergonomic feel, and yet this remarkable microphone weighs only 7 ounces.
And now, a few words about application and placement techniques for the SM87A. In cases where one wants to achieve maximum isolation from other sound sources, place the SM87A within 6 inches or less from the sound source. In cases where the sound source is a singer, one can even get closer. Like most microphones with a cardioid polar pattern, the SM87A is subject to the proximity effect. Simply put, this means that the close the microphone is to the sound source, the more the bass or low end frequencies will be accentuated. This can be very desirable in certain situations, as close micing with the SM87A will result in a warm, intimate sound. Singers like Barry White would often have their lips touching a microphone in order to maximize this effect. The SM87A has a bass response that gradually rolls off, which prevents booming or excessive low frequency sound overload when it is used for close micing techniques, and this allows the singer to profit from the proximity effect, without the possible sonic negatives associated with close micing techniques.
In situations where one is looking for a natural sound, without the enhanced low frequency response associated with close micing techniques, the SM87A should be placed between 6 inches to 24 inches away from the sound source. The further one gets from the singer’s mouth, the less “s” sounds that will be picked up as well. However, when thinking of microphone placement, it is important to keep in mind that with a microphone with a supercardioid polar pattern, the further the microphone is from the sound source, the thinner will be the sound that is picked up, and the more the sound characteristics of the environment will play a roll in the sound that is being picked up.
For example, the sound characteristics of a room that is poorly acoustically designed will be significantly more noticeable the further the SM87A is placed from the sound source that is being amplified or recorded.
Well I would like to thank you for taking the time to read my review of the Shure SM87A Professional Vocal Microphone. But now, if you will excuse me I must get back to my practicing.
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