Shure 55S aka the Elvis Mic

bluesman · Post by **bluesman** » Fri Jun 13, 2008 12:35 pm

Is anyone using the Shure 55S for any recording application. Im talking about the original, not the reissue. It is also sometimes referred to as "The Elvis Mic." I have used these in years past when it was easily the best microphone in my collection & the recordings that were made with it still sound fine. I still own a few of these & some EV664's that are in simi retirement....I want to get inspired....Tell me how you are using yours.

Mane1234 · Post by **Mane1234** » Fri Jun 13, 2008 8:06 pm

I haven't used one in a while but when I did it was for vocals. The singer in my last band always sounded pretty decent through one. I've seen them used out front on a drum kit before. Nice mic for gettin that old school vibe going as well as those EVs you mentioned.

kinger · Post by **kinger** » Sat Jun 14, 2008 1:19 pm

I borrowed one from a buddy awhile back to record some vocals where I wanted a vintage vibe; it definitely delivered on that application, though I found it too coloured to use on a regular basis. His mic has seen better days, so one in better shape might sound far different.

bluesman · Post by **bluesman** » Mon Jun 16, 2008 12:50 pm

Thanks for those responses!

floid · Post by **floid** » Mon Jun 16, 2008 1:08 pm

i've used one front of kit a few times to very nice effect - the supercardioid response let me shine the thing around like a spotlight until i found exactly what was missing from the other mics on the kit. messing with the impedance switch changes a whole heck of a lot too.

tony_tomlinson · Post by **tony_tomlinson** » Wed Jun 18, 2008 2:59 pm

A while back I used one on a session recording bass of all things. It was laying there.... I needed a mic... and there you have it. I can't tell which songs I recorded the bass (Fender bass through an Ampeg B-12) with an SM-7 and which I used the 55.

The old 556s are great (I think that's the one... it's the bigger unidyne model). They do color the sound a bit but they've proven their worth over the past 60 years. We used one for guitars and harmonica on our last record. In fact, there were times when it was the only mic in the room picking up everything. Most importantly, they look cool.

calaverasgrandes · Post by **calaverasgrandes** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 1:02 pm

correct me if I am wrong. Is the 55S a ribbon or dynamic?
This guy I know says he has one, and that its a ribbon. I always thought it was just another Shure dynamic?

thunderboy · Post by **thunderboy** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 1:06 pm

floid wrote:...the supercardioid response...

For clarity, the original 55S was what Shure called "ultra-cardioid". Slightly more directional than cardioid, but not as directional as hyper- or super-cardioid, and not exhibiting the rear lobe associated with those patterns.

The new 55S (series II) is cardioid, and uses the SM58 capsule.

jt

thunderboy · Post by **thunderboy** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 1:10 pm

calaverasgrandes wrote:correct me if I am wrong. Is the 55S a ribbon or dynamic?
This guy I know says he has one, and that its a ribbon. I always thought it was just another Shure dynamic?

Definitely a moving coil dynamic (ribbons also being classified as dynamic). Maybe he has a 330? It doesn't really look like a 55S, but it sounds like your pal is already confused, so...

jt

ubertar · Post by **ubertar** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 4:27 pm

calaverasgrandes wrote:correct me if I am wrong. Is the 55S a ribbon or dynamic?
This guy I know says he has one, and that its a ribbon. I always thought it was just another Shure dynamic?

It's a dynamic. But sometimes there are weird things... I have one of those old "rocketship" Shure mics... they made a crystal model and a dynamic. This one's a ribbon. I contacted the Shure tech people, and all kinds of mic experts, and no one was sure what to make of it. It's possible it's a home brew (the insides, not the case) but there are numbers stamped into the metal or stamped in ink on all the parts, the ribbon is corrugated, and everything seems custom made for the case. So it's possible your friend has some kind of freaky anomaly too.

Aj · Post by Aj » Fri Jun 20, 2008 4:42 pm

Intrigued by this thread.

I have a dead mint 1952 Shure 55S. Even the inner grill cloth is immaculate. Looks like it was barely used. It's also marked "multi-impedence" - whatever that means for this mic, I know not.

Only problem - it uses one of those old weird three prong cables, which I don't have. So I've never used it. People routinely oooh and ahhh over it, but I never actually thought it might sound good until this thread. Any ideas on a source for an XLR conversion cable for this thing?

Aj

calaverasgrandes · Post by **calaverasgrandes** » Fri Jun 20, 2008 4:46 pm

check ham radio suppliers. They have a lot of those 3 and 4 prong plugs.

crowley · Post by **crowley** » Wed Jun 25, 2008 6:39 am

Try looking up

Amphenol 91Mc3M

DigiKey may even have that connector. I have a couple of them here, somewhere.

I always thought the Elvis mic was this one - the bigger 55C - definitely a dynamic.

http://microphonium.blogspot.com/search?q=55c

percussion boy · Post by **percussion boy** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 2:18 am

The new SOUND ON SOUND has an interesting writeup, with pictures, on how Gabriel Roth records the Dap stuff. He sometimes uses a Shure 55 between snare and hi-hat; he apparently favors one or two mics to cover the whole kit.

Oh, and he uses a gigantic Trident board. You could borrow one or something.

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Shure 55S aka the Elvis Mic

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