Condenser v. Dynamic mics

[Sam24]

Im trying to record a funk group (3 piece) that can get pretty loud. All I have access too are two sm57s, a mixer, and a mz-nh700.

I was just wondering what the difference is between condenser or dynamic mics. Whats the difference in quality? Which might sound better?

I have read some criticisms on the sm57s in this forum but despite this whats the best way to record with. Through the mic in? Line in? Through the mixer into the line in? How do I get stereo?

Also, if I were to buy a condenser mic could I go from the mixer to the line in or would I need a batter box?

[ghankstef]

Im trying to record a funk group (3 piece) that can get pretty loud. All I have access too are two sm57s, a mixer, and a mz-nh700.

I was just wondering what the difference is between condenser or dynamic mics. Whats the difference in quality? Which might sound better?

I have read some criticisms on the sm57s in this forum but despite this whats the best way to record with. Through the mic in? Line in? Through the mixer into the line in? How do I get stereo?

Also, if I were to buy a condenser mic could I go from the mixer to the line in or would I need a batter box?

Sounds like fun. Condensers typically need phantom power and typically are more sensitive so they need less help form the mic preamp.

Dynamics typically need more gain from the preamp and typically are better at rejecting off access noise. There are exceptions, the Heil PR 40 is a dynamic with a lot of nice condenser-like qualities

It doesn't seem to me that switching to condensers will necessarily be a magic bullet. Others may have better suggestions, I have limited live band experience

Good luck - post a sample later if you can. I love funk bands - Tower of Power

[A440]

SM57 aren't really geared for what you're trying to do. They're meant to pick up one instrument or vocal, up close. They have a limited frequency response--40 to 15,000 Hz rather than 20-20,000 Hz like your ears and MD. It's actually even more limited because they have what Shure calls a "contoured frequency response," which means they really focus on the range of vocals, above 100 Hz. They are also directional for use on stage, so they don't pick up all the noise around the one instrument or vocal.

http://cachepe.zzounds.com/media/sm57-0e44...863b801f637.pdf

If they're all you have at hand, look at this for how to place them--try the X/Y.

http://www.kellyindustries.com/articles/st...techniques.html

Into the mixer (which mixes the mono signals from the mics into stereo) and from the mixer into Line-in.

[King Ghidora]

The things A440 said are true but people still do sometimes use SM57's. Sometimes people confuse the SM57 with the SM58 which is nearly identical but the SM58 is created strictly for vocals. The 57's are tailored to a degree but nothing like the 58's. A lot of people record with 57's for their instruments and voice.

Both the 57 and the 58 are designed for live performances though. They do a superb job of limiting handling noise so they are at the top for handheld mics. They are the most popular mics on the market for live performaces.

The most important thing I can think of here is the fact that the SM57 is a balanced output mic. MD recorders use unbalanced equipment. You will have problems if you try to use balanced mics with a MD without using a conversion cable or a mixer that is capable of converting the signal. There's an article describing the differences between unbalanced and balanced equipment on this web site. You can build your own converters if you're interested. If you can solder you can find the right parts to do the job on this web site.

Condenser mics are much more sensitive than dynamic mics. That's why they are much more popular for recording. Pretty much all of the mics you will find that are designed to work with MD recorders are condenser mics. Because they are more sensitive they are harder to make into handheld mics but that's not what your question was so I won't go into that.

There are some very good mics that will work with your MD recorder. I record music pretty often with my MD recorders. I don't know if your mixer can convert to an unbalanced signal or not. It's actually pretty hard to find a decent mixer that works with unbalanced equipment. The Sign XLR-Pro Mixer is an example of a mixer that accepts balanced or unbalanced mics and puts out either a balanced or an unbalanced signal. You can actually get around the output limitations of some mixers by using the headphone out jack as the line to your MD recorder.

If your mixer handles balanced mics and has a headphone out jack you could possibly make it work with your MD recorder. If you post exactly what mixer you have maybe we can help you determine exactly what you can do with it.