Pyle Dynamic Microphone, Karaoke Microphones, Cardioid Plug In Xlr Mic, Wired Handheld Coil Singing Microphone, Professional Music Vocal Moving Mics, Compatible w/ Karaoke Machine-Speaker-Amplifier

I have a pair of SM 57's ... these are not SM57's ... but they come close enough to be the bargain dynamic microphone I hoped they'd be.SM57's are great at being a robust dynamic microphone that'll do just about anything at a pinch but they ain't really fantastic at anything and in no way justify the price you'll pay, these cheap copies on the other hand are worth every penny, I've been using them alongside my 57's to mic my drum kit, fender amp, as vocal mics and occasionally as a hammer and they totally hold their own, with some careful EQ you can get them sounding nearly the same ... as long as you use something other than the rubber covered enema pipe that comes in the box...Just buy some...

I mostly record electric guitars via modelling plugins, primarily Amplitube or Bias, but I wanted a decent mic for those rare occasions when I might want to record my little Marshall. For all I'd use it, it didn't make sense to splurge on an SM57, so this seemed like a good alternative - and for the most part, it is. It has quite a similar character to the 57, with the same brash midrange, but perhaps a little more scratchy in the high end. This is easily compensated for in EQ, though.My biggest caveat is this: I'm not sure if it's stated anywhere in the literature, but this mic has an UNBALANCED output, rather than the balanced output found in an SM57. This is perhaps why it's supplied with an XLR>jack lead rather than XLR>XLR. For most applications, this won't matter, but I found it caused problems with a dual mic setup using a Rode NT1-A in the rear of the guitar cab, and the Pyle with an XLR>XLR lead. My Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 interface, like most similar devices, supplies phantom power across all inputs. When engaged for the Rode, this caused a significant rise in noise and loss of signal quality for the Pyle mic. It could have been worse - phantom power can destroy an unbalanced mic. The info could be a lot clearer on this point. It was easily worked around, however, by simply using the XLR>jack lead.A quick google found a simple mod to turn the Pyle's output to balanced, but given the ease of just using the supplied lead, I'll probably not bother with that.All in all, this is a good value, and very usable, microphone.

I have given this microphone five stars because for the money it is brilliant. It sounds good and like the excellent SM57 it copies, it is a very good general purpose microphone. I've not used it yet on toms, snare or guitar cabinets, but I assume it will handle such roles well. I always preferred an SM57 on vocals to the almost ubiquitous SM58 provided the singer had a pure sounding voice, and I'm guessing that this mic will perform well in such a role too.It is far more feedback resistant than I dared hope; on test I could use it extremely close to and almost on axis with nearfield monitors without feedback, which is excellent. Incidentally, for anyone who has used an SM57 on snares, a role to which it is quite well suited although not as well suited as the sublime Sennheiser MD441, this cheapo Pyle Pro copy does have a distinct advantage. The SM57 top is held in place by a copper spring clip and all too often an over-enthusiastic drummer would knock the end off with his sticks,resulting in searches on hand and knees on the stage after the gig. Frequently, the clip would be lost and would result in a long wait for my supplier to obtain spares for me. This mic seems to be free of clip fastening. I've not discovered how the end is fixed but it does seem sturdier than on the mic it copies.This mic does have one significant disadvantage though which may not effect everyone, but as an avowed lover of capacitor mics, this microphone does not like phantom power. As yet I haven't found out why, but used on a desk with global phantom power, there is a distinctive mains-like hum. Using the mic with an active DI box enables the use of the mic noiselessly with phantom power switched on, but it does tie up a DI. A warning applicable to any mic as well as this one is that under no circumstances should you try and fit a male XLR connector to replace the 1/4 inch jack. The cable itself is totally unsuitable for use on a balanced microphone, but if anyone tried wiring a male XLR onto the cable in the same fashion as the female XLR, will end up destroying this (and any) microphone if connected to phantom power with the supplied cable. If uncertain of this warning, check 'phantom power' on t'internet.In summary, it does seem remarkable that anyone is able to manufacture a microphone of this quality, ship it half way around the world and sell it for under a tenner. Despite that, this is a perfectly useable mic and looks to be sturdily enough constructed to make it quite reliable in use. The 15 foot microphone cable is fairly naff, but the microphone itself would still be a bargain at twice the price.