Recording lectures.

[tweeksound]

Good questions.

All mics are directional. It's just a matter of which direction.

Cardiod - supercardiod, - hyercardiod: Picks up from just the front and rejects from the sides and back in varying degrees.

Omni directional = picks up from all directions

figure 8: picks up from the front and back but not the sides.

Then independent of polar (pickup) pattern, there is dynamic and condenser family.

The design of a dynamic allows it to be handled without as much handling noise but it's also less sensitive and often less natural sounding. But your PA and room are going to make a MUCH larger difference on the sound than any mic ever could, so don't fret that.

reducing handling noise and the great sound of the SM58 make it superb for what you're doing.
I do not recommend the SM81 for amplification. It's just what I use to record many dialog events. I do not run it through a PA system and unless under good circumstances, I would not.

A condenser's design is much more delicate and allows it to be more sensitive but also has more handling noise.
Another reason they aren't always top choice for sound reenforcement (PA) is they are more susceptible to feedback because they are so sensitive.

You might hear someone say a shotgun mic is very directional because it rejects side noise very well and thus has an almost telescoping way of pinpointing sound from a distance with pin point accuracy.

Most Shotgun mics are condensers and will also have extreme handling noise and sound best at least 2 or 3 feet from the mouth. (at least)

Every mic is different and each of them has their place.

For running through a PA system, your best bet is a dynamic like the SM58 you already have. The SM57 is also a great choice for speech. Both are similar. Little handling noise, cardiod pattern rejects rear and side sound, great gain before feedback with PA systems, great frequency response for dialog, and rugged as can be! These are the mics you see punk rockers swing around and slam on the ground and then start singing though it again.
That would never happen with any condenser I've ever used.


I'm thinking that the reason your mic sounded quieter and buzzy was you unbalanced it.
An XLR type connector is a balanced system type. A TRS (Tip, Ring, Sleeve) is as well. However a TS(Tip, Sleeve) is not.

Suffice it to say that a balanced system affords you 6dB more level and can often be much quieter by resisting hu,mm and noise.

Again, your best bet is to separate the mic and speakers so that as little sound as possible gets from the speakers into your SM58 and tell the talent most commonly heard phrase heard in a radio booth,.." Speak into the mic".

Also, if the room is very "live" or has a lot of echo (as most untreated rooms do) that will not help matters.
You might consider a better PA, acoustic treatment of some sort if it's the same room all the time, and the above.

Good luck!

[Harpmaker]

I want to sincerely thank everyone that helped me in this thread. It's MUCH appreciated!

On a similar, but slightly different, note; one of the problems I have with live recording is people either not 'speaking into the mic' at a constant distance, or changing the volume they speak at. This brings up a new question on how to use dynamic compression to limit those volume differences. Is this something that is better done live or in post-production (at the computer with software)? Any input welcome!

[tonyvdb]

Harpmaker wrote:

one of the problems I have with live recording is people either not 'speaking into the mic' at a constant distance, or changing the volume they speak at. This brings up a new question on how to use dynamic compression to limit those volume differences. Is this something that is better done live or in post-production (at the computer with software)? Any input welcome!

Its always best to do it live rather than post production as once you clip the input or distort the incoming signal you can not repair it. Compression can be your friend or your worst enemy if you don't use it right. You don't want to start compression to early or you will have problems with getting the gain you want nor do you want to have it snap on at the last second either.