SM7b or RE20

G

ggrantly

Veteran
I am in the market for a announcer oriented dynamic mic. This mic might do double duty for music vocals. I tried a Heil PR40 but didn't much care for it. I already have a nice selection of phantom powered condensors including the AT4050 which is a very good sounding mic.

Seems like the two obvious choices below $500 would be the SM7b and RE20. I have some other EV mics and like the company. Realizing that both these mics would likely be good choices in their class, I understand that the ears will be the final arbiter. If you have used one or both of these, I'd like to hear your thoughts regarding not only audio quality but other attributes. Are there other mics I might want to look at?

TIA,
Grant
 
I have used both mics, but only own an RE20 at the moment. (I've been seriously thinking about adding an SM7B to my fleet.) I find that in choosing a mic for narration recording, more than in many other types of sound work, it's important to match the microphone to the talent's voice and the intention and mood of the product. Ideally, you'd have several different mics and audition all of them before deciding which to use for a particular speaker.

But in general -- neither of these microphones is as clinically accurate as a small-diaphragm condenser, nor do you really want them to be. They're both rather colored -- which can either add or detract from your tracks, again depending on the specific voice and your intentions. The SM7B is a little flatter, overall, and has some upper midrange lift that adds clarity and articulation to many voices. The RE20 is a classic radio announcer's microphone -- emphasizing the low end, with a darker and more "serious" sound that, to me, seems at its best when it stands alone and isn't mixed with too many other tracks. It doesn't lack for highs, though, and handles sibilant sounds very naturally. The "Variable-D" design does a good job of minimizing proximity effect in the RE20, but it starts with a robust bottom even before you move closer. The SM7B is more sensitive to proximity effect and therefore can be played with a little more to vary the sound by changing the distance to the subject. In very, very broad terms, the RE20 tends to sound better with male voices and the SM7B with females -- but there is so much individual variation in voices that I wouldn't put too much stock in this observation.

If you dislike the Heil PR40, which is intentionally designed to sound a lot like the RE20 (but tends to have more proximity effect), then you might not care for the EV mic that much either. I think your best strategy might be to get an SM7B and borrow or rent an RE20 if it comes up short on a particular voice.

Another alternative would be to get the RE20 and also one of the cheaper Shure dynamics like an SM57 or SM58. The SM7B uses a variant of the same capsule design as those two hand-held mics, and sounds much the same -- the main differences being that the SM7B is physically better designed for use in an announce booth or radio studio, and for controlling wind and handling noise and proximity effect. But you can probably get very similar results with one of the handhelds if you're careful with setting up your shock mounts, pop filters and such.

Hope this helps. There's no such thing as one perfect mic for every purpose!

- Greg
 
Greg,

Thanks for your time to pass on some very insightful comments. In broad terms, my research shows that the SM7B is used a bit more for female vocals and maybe the RE20 a bit more in the booth. But as you say, no mic does everything. I'll be wanting to decide if I might prefer one of the two over the AT-4050 or 4053b. Besides, you can always rationalize another mic, right?

Grant
 
You know, about the only way you are going to tell is to try them. What I like is irrelevant to your needs. I suggest taking your recording to the store and trying each of them before buying.

The interesting thing is most of the copies are based upon the RE20, that probably means they think it is more popular. I have the MXL version (Another RE20 clone), and it beats my big condenser U87 clone for my voice, but the U87 clone is far more accurate and I certainly would use it for female voices.

Do understand that the big broadcast dynamics are all "Voice of God" mic's (Makes what you are saying sound so very important). If you do not want that effect you do not want to use these mic's.
 
A couple of thoughts, the SM7B is good at noise rejection, so if you don't have a super quiet environment to record, it can be a life saver. One other thought is, the SM7B is power hungry. Depending on the Mic-Pre you are plugging into, you may need to use a signal booster like a Cloud-Lifter with the 7b. I used it with a Focusrite Saffire Pro 40, the Cloud lifter was a big help to keep the noise floor down. I would definitely buy the Cloud-Lifter/SM7B combo again.
 
graywolf said:
You know, about the only way you are going to tell is to try them. What I like is irrelevant to your needs. I suggest taking your recording to the store and trying each of them before buying.

The interesting thing is most of the copies are based upon the RE20, that probably means they think it is more popular. I have the MXL version (Another RE20 clone), and it beats my big condenser U87 clone for my voice, but the U87 clone is far more accurate and I certainly would use it for female voices.

Do understand that the big broadcast dynamics are all "Voice of God" mic's (Makes what you are saying sound so very important). If you do not want that effect you do not want to use these mic's.
Click to expand...

I actually like the "voice of god" for a lot of VO situations. Either one will probably fill my needs which include more rejection than my powered condensers have. But I am also curious about which one might be more versatile and which one has a better reputation for reliability.

Grant
 
Regarding reliability, they are both dynamic microphones which means they are very robust and have almost nothing to break except the foam. The RE-20 has a foam insert behind the screen that floats the cartridge away from the outer shell.

I've had a pair of both the SM7 and RE-20 for 40 years. The have survived the highly oxidizing effects of a house tenting for termites. The foam in the RE-20 was destroyed, but a simple replacement and it works fine. They both are very reliable. I'd remove reliability as a point of your decision process.
 
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I'd agree with that. Dynamic microphones from all the name brand manufacturers are pretty much indestructible in normal use, and will be reliable for decades.

I did lose four SM58s in a flood in my home in the early '90s. Water seeped into the supposedly "airtight" case they were in and I didn't notice they were soaking wet until I went to use one about a month later. The paint peeled off in big sheets and three out of the four didn't make a signal at all; the one that still did was very distorted. But that's a pretty extreme form of torture.

- Greg
 
Well, Grant, from what I get from reading the web, the Shure is used a lot more for music recording, it is a favorite for bass instruments. While the Electrovoice is used more for male voices work. I would think the indicates the SM7 is somewhat more versitile, the RE20 being somewhat specialized.
 
The RE20 is actually very popular in music recording for micing upright acoustic bass, kick drums and electric bass cabinets. These applications play on its strong low end and resistance to overloading at high SPLs. (Don't get me wrong -- I'm a huge Shure fan and own about eight of their microphones.)

- Greg
 
From that GS thread, it appears that it depends on which one you actually have. It looks like you are just going to have to buy both (grin).
 
My thoughts.... Either mic would be a good addition to your mic locker. The only time I really use my SM7 or MD421U now is mainly for VO work when I travel out of town and keep an away portable VO kit with me. I used the RE20 for many years at radio stations I worked at. I would avoid it if you are after the VOG type sound, as it was designed to minimize the proximity effect.

Let me offer up this question..... Would you get more mileage out of your current Condenser Mics if you put the money you were going to spend on a new Dynamic Mic toward your current booth acoustics?

Just thinking out loud.

Dave
 
David W. Jones said:
My thoughts.... Either mic would be a good addition to your mic locker. The only time I really use my SM7 or MD421U now is mainly for VO work when I travel out of town and keep an away portable VO kit with me. I used the RE20 for many years at radio stations I worked at. I would avoid it if you are after the VOG type sound, as it was designed to minimize the proximity effect.

Let me offer up this question..... Would you get more mileage out of your current Condenser Mics if you put the money you were going to spend on a new Dynamic Mic toward your current booth acoustics?

Just thinking out loud.

Dave
Click to expand...

David,

I'm very happy with my condensers, both the AT4050 and 4053b, I'm looking for a little more rejection at times and or just a different sound...I mean you can always rationalize a new mic right? My little home studio is always a work in progress and have the 744 for stand alone recording and a Motu box for a computer interface. Both pre-amps are plenty good for what I do. I whip out some acoustic panels when needed, but for most things it's a decent space, being fortunate to live in a quiet location....except for the Navy Growlers that play overhead at times. I have begun to do some smaller music recording and would like a dynamic to fill out my locker for vocals or drums as well as VO.

Grant
 
I understand.

If you don't need it this second, I would keep a watchful eye out for used Dynamic mics on places like ebay. Also keep an eye out for promotional deals on new. Every so often you see a great price on SM7B/CloudLifter combos at places like Sweetwater.
 
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