The Bent Sm57 Trick

ndecarmine · Post by **ndecarmine** » Tue Apr 07, 2009 11:29 am

As a drummer who has recently gotten into engineering, I have to say thanks for posting this. I've watched engineers re-position kits on a number of occasions, and as a drummer I cant imagine anything more frustrating than having things moved around, even slightly, in a setup you've taken forever to get 'just right'.
If the musicians aren't comfortable, how can you make a good recording?

cjmnash · Post by **cjmnash** » Tue Apr 07, 2009 8:49 pm

i wonder if this could be taken a step further and extend the wires a few feet (with good quality shielded cable) so the base can be on the floor, and the capsule part could be positioned snugly next to the snare drum.......

-chris

snoopy23 · Post by **snoopy23** » Wed Apr 08, 2009 6:38 am

cjmnash wrote:i wonder if this could be taken a step further and extend the wires a few feet (with good quality shielded cable) so the base can be on the floor, and the capsule part could be positioned snugly next to the snare drum.......

-chris

I would be concerned about altering the signal impedance or quality by sending it through a significantly longer distance from the diaphragm to the capsule, not to mention the possibility of an audible time delay? If it works, it would be great, though!

drumsound · Post by **drumsound** » Wed Apr 08, 2009 1:10 pm

snoopy23 wrote:
cjmnash wrote:i wonder if this could be taken a step further and extend the wires a few feet (with good quality shielded cable) so the base can be on the floor, and the capsule part could be positioned snugly next to the snare drum.......

-chris
I would be concerned about altering the signal impedance or quality by sending it through a significantly longer distance from the diaphragm to the capsule, not to mention the possibility of an audible time delay? If it works, it would be great, though!

You don't worry about time delay running down the mic cables do you...?

snoopy23 · Post by **snoopy23** » Wed Apr 08, 2009 1:19 pm

hmmm, good point.

Albro Swift · Post by **Albro Swift** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 11:53 am

I wonder if you could use some 90? pvc pipe to reinforce the angle? If the mic fit into the pipe it'd be alot easier to tape down. Or maybe you could even find some large heavy-duty heat shrink to hold it all together...

Archmart · Post by **Archmart** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 2:20 pm

Hey Hey!

FWIW... If you talk to the top mic guru at Shure, he'll tell you that the acoustic cavity (in the body of the mic) in the 57 (or 58) is actually very intentional and has a notable effect on the sound. This came up in asking his opinion about replacing the the transformer with a Tab/Funkenwerk. He made a point about making sure to not alter the size of the cavity, basically needing to fill it up with something similar to the material that I had thought was just to keep the transformer from knocking around in there.

Archmart

digitaldrummer · Post by **digitaldrummer** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 10:33 pm

paging Mr. Joly....

rwc · Post by **rwc** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 11:18 pm

drumsound wrote:
red cross wrote:You can still find SM56s on ebay. Easier than ripping apart your 57s.
Or even better use an EV 408/468, or ATM23he, mics that actually sound good!

I was waiting for this.

I can't think of a single thing I record I hate so much as to use a 57 on it.

Scodiddly · Post by **Scodiddly** » Sat Apr 11, 2009 10:40 am

I don't think noise would be a big deal - the wiring between the capsule and the transformer is even lower impedance than the transformer output.

Interesting about the cavity size being important. I wonder if there's any effect from that on the "no transformer at all!" mod.

Archmart · Post by **Archmart** » Sat Apr 11, 2009 10:55 am

Scodiddly wrote:Interesting about the cavity size being important. I wonder if there's any effect from that on the "no transformer at all!" mod.

I think the same idea of plugging up the cavity with some equal amount of epoxy or something would be recommended.

blimey48 · Post by **blimey48** » Sat Apr 11, 2009 12:00 pm

Albro Swift wrote:I wonder if you could use some 90? pvc pipe to reinforce the angle? If the mic fit into the pipe it'd be alot easier to tape down. Or maybe you could even find some large heavy-duty heat shrink to hold it all together...

i actually played a gig recently where the sound guy had done this. thought it was a great idea!

drumsound · Post by **drumsound** » Sat Apr 11, 2009 3:11 pm

rwc wrote:
drumsound wrote:
red cross wrote:You can still find SM56s on ebay. Easier than ripping apart your 57s.
Or even better use an EV 408/468, or ATM23he, mics that actually sound good!
I was waiting for this.

I can't think of a single thing I record I hate so much as to use a 57 on it.

MY BROTHER!

T-rex · Post by **T-rex** » Sat Apr 11, 2009 7:31 pm

Am I crazy or wasn't there an article in an old tape op about this? Or maybe the first tape op book?

johnny7 · Post by **johnny7** » Sat Apr 11, 2009 8:44 pm

Yes, you are correct! It is an old trick...

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