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Post by thirdeye on Jul 16, 2021 12:29:02 GMT -6
I'd grab a Unidyne 57 if they weren't so overpriced. +1! I got mine for $149 a little over two years ago, just before prices got too out of hand. I wouldn't pay the $250 I see them go for now! Out of the five or six 57s we have, our Unidyne III 57 is my favorite though, so glad I got it. Less peaky at the top end and smoother sounding. We use it on speaker cabinets mostly. A month before I bought the Unidyne III 57, I got a KM84 for $810. Ha!! I did put a new capsule on it though. |
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Post by thirdeye on Jul 16, 2021 12:36:46 GMT -6
Well, I sold it. I'll look around for an SM57, maybe one with the Tab Funkenwerk mod. Chad at Signal Art does a mod to 57s. Haven't heard it, but I'd like to have him mod one of my 57s someday. Signal Art 57/58 Mod |
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Post by Guitar on Jul 16, 2021 13:50:47 GMT -6
You can get a brand new Shure 545SD for $91, not many people talk about these. But it's "that mic." Says Unidyne III on the side. Sweetwater has them, I got one on eBay too.
Has some sort of plastic in the capsule that the SM57 doesn't have, as well as a switch.
I have two and they sound slightly different. Some SM57s are known to sound different also. These are even cheaper than the SM57.
This could be a separate thread, but I like the 545SD on guitar amps, it's flatter in the mids or something like that, compared to the 57. I prefer the 57 on vocals.
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Jul 16, 2021 14:21:50 GMT -6
You can get a brand new Shure 545SD for $91, not many people talk about these. But it's "that mic." Says Unidyne III on the side. Sweetwater has them, I got one on eBay too. Has some sort of plastic in the capsule that the SM57 doesn't have, as well as a switch. I have two and they sound slightly different. Some SM57s are known to sound different also. These are even cheaper than the SM57. This could be a separate thread, but I like the 545SD on guitar amps, it's flatter in the mids or something like that, compared to the 57. I prefer the 57 on vocals. The new ones use the made in Mexico Cartridge, not the same as the old ones. |
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Post by lpedrum on Jul 16, 2021 15:02:42 GMT -6
You can get a brand new Shure 545SD for $91, not many people talk about these. But it's "that mic." Says Unidyne III on the side. Sweetwater has them, I got one on eBay too. Has some sort of plastic in the capsule that the SM57 doesn't have, as well as a switch. I have two and they sound slightly different. Some SM57s are known to sound different also. These are even cheaper than the SM57. This could be a separate thread, but I like the 545SD on guitar amps, it's flatter in the mids or something like that, compared to the 57. I prefer the 57 on vocals. The new ones use the made in Mexico Cartridge, not the same as the old ones. True. But it is a different cartridge than the 57. I like my USA 545 on snare. |
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Jul 16, 2021 16:47:38 GMT -6
The new ones use the made in Mexico Cartridge, not the same as the old ones. True. But it is a different cartridge than the 57. I like my USA 545 on snare. I believe it is the same Mexican Cartridge, the story goes that when Shure moved production to Mexico they replaced all the tooling with new tooling to make production easier. No one at Shure would ever admit to this, but if put an old USA unidyne IV next to a modern Mexican made Capsule you see a bunch of tiny changes. |
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Post by Martin John Butler on Jul 16, 2021 17:26:54 GMT -6
Those Unidyne iV's are crazy priced. Just how good are they for $900?
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Post by Guitar on Jul 16, 2021 17:54:34 GMT -6
True. But it is a different cartridge than the 57. I like my USA 545 on snare. I believe it is the same Mexican Cartridge, the story goes that when Shure moved production to Mexico they replaced all the tooling with new tooling to make production easier. No one at Shure would ever admit to this, but if put an old USA unidyne IV next to a modern Mexican made Capsule you see a bunch of tiny changes. You're right they'd never admit it. They claim these mics have been the same for decades, other than age wear and tear. But it's a different capsule to an SM57, or something in the cardioid chamber, I've never taken them apart, they have confirmed some difference. I wish I could quote the specifics, it's on another forum. I just think the Mexi 545SD Unidyne III deserves more mention as an alternative to the SM57 people always buy. |
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Post by drbill on Jul 16, 2021 18:36:13 GMT -6
IMO you'll be better off with a 57. Even better off with a Unidyne or 545. I agree with EricN - for the most part -  . I used to have half a dozen of those. Never warmed up to them. Didn't sound good on drums to me. Or guitars. |
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Jul 16, 2021 18:38:58 GMT -6
Those Unidyne iV's are crazy priced. Just how good are they for $900? Maybe 2-300 $900 is insane. |
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Jul 16, 2021 18:41:22 GMT -6
I believe it is the same Mexican Cartridge, the story goes that when Shure moved production to Mexico they replaced all the tooling with new tooling to make production easier. No one at Shure would ever admit to this, but if put an old USA unidyne IV next to a modern Mexican made Capsule you see a bunch of tiny changes. You're right they'd never admit it. They claim these mics have been the same for decades, other than age wear and tear. But it's a different capsule to an SM57, or something in the cardioid chamber, I've never taken them apart, they have confirmed some difference. I wish I could quote the specifics, it's on another forum. I just think the Mexi 545SD Unidyne III deserves more mention as an alternative to the SM57 people always buy. We never pushed the 545 simply because there was far more $ in selling 57’s, if somebody needed a switch a cable with a switch was a cheaper option and it was easier to replace a cable than the switch. |
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Jul 16, 2021 18:46:15 GMT -6
IMO you'll be better off with a 57. Even better off with a Unidyne or 545. I agree with EricN - for the most part - . I used to have half a dozen of those. Never warmed up to them. Didn't sound good on drums to me. Or guitars. As ugly as the 548 is it did the 57 thang but had a lot of original SM7 vibe if that makes sense but not a $900 dollar mic. Hell I remember selling B-stock UM70’s for $800! Now with that as my sub $1k standard how many basic dynamics do you think I’ll put in the $900 range😁 Maybe lack of COVID is messing up peoples brains! |
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Post by robschnapf on Jul 17, 2021 6:03:08 GMT -6
I recently did a record where all vocals were with the 1000E or RE16.
Sounds cool.
For 57s I buy crimson yellow or orange handles and 545 capsules wire the two wires to the capsule and viola
Great mic.
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Post by ericn on Jul 17, 2021 7:03:57 GMT -6
I recently did a record where all vocals were with the 1000E or RE16. Sounds cool. For 57s I buy crimson yellow or orange handles and 545 capsules wire the two wires to the capsule and viola Great mic. Rob, I’m actually kind of shocked nobody has started to build a reproduction Unidyne IV V cartridge for modern 57/ 58s. |
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Post by Martin John Butler on Jul 17, 2021 7:31:44 GMT -6
I recently did a record where all vocals were with the 1000E or RE16. Sounds cool. For 57s I buy crimson yellow or orange handles and 545 capsules wire the two wires to the capsule and viola Great mic. Rob, that's kind of interesting.. can you elaborate? How do you get a 545 capsule? Does Shure make them? What are the "handles" you're referring to? We're not all DIY mic modders ;-) |
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Post by bikescene on Jul 17, 2021 7:51:46 GMT -6
I recently did a record where all vocals were with the 1000E or RE16. Sounds cool. For 57s I buy crimson yellow or orange handles and 545 capsules wire the two wires to the capsule and viola Great mic. Rob, that's kind of interesting.. can you elaborate? How do you get a 545 capsule? Does Shure make them? What are the "handles" you're referring to? We're not all DIY mic modders ;-) Shure sells the cartridges separately: R45 (545), R57 (SM57), and R59 (SM58) for about $70. |
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Post by Martin John Butler on Jul 17, 2021 9:09:03 GMT -6
Thanks bikescene, and welcome to the forum.
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Post by robschnapf on Jul 17, 2021 12:58:13 GMT -6
I got the bodies from Crimson Audio and then R45 (545) capsules from Marketek.
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Post by Guitar on Jul 17, 2021 13:33:24 GMT -6
If you want to buy a Crimson handle, I would recommend the nice people at Front End Audio.
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Post by bikescene on Jul 17, 2021 13:58:12 GMT -6
Thanks bikescene, and welcome to the forum. Thanks. A lot of knowledgeable people here. I’ve thought about buying cartridges and getting the Crimson handles like robschnapf mentioned. Seems like a worthy upgrade for not much more than an SM57 new. I didn’t realize the D1000E had gone up in price so much in the used market. The garage sale prices that these old dynamics used to go for made them fun to collect for quirky tones. |
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Post by chessparov on Jul 17, 2021 16:37:38 GMT -6
Well, I sold it. I'll look around for an SM57, maybe one with the Tab Funkenwerk mod. Not if Drumsound sees you first! Chris |
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Post by chessparov on Jul 17, 2021 16:40:28 GMT -6
Just kidding, I have Chad's 57/58 upgrade, in the back of my mind.
Which while not lost, gets temporarily misplaced often.
(Of course you knew this only referred to my 58!)
Chris
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Post by lpedrum on Jul 17, 2021 21:01:10 GMT -6
Currently on amps I interchangeably use a USA unidyne 57, an EV PL6 or a Mexican 57 with the yellow Crimson mod if more top end is needed. I do have to say though that I loved the sound of the large Stager on a video posted on RGO recently. If AudioScape didn’t exist I’d probably already own one!
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Post by robschnapf on Jul 18, 2021 7:59:53 GMT -6
The large Stager SR1 is a great mic on all sorts of sources. Great proximity effect so you can move it around and “tune it” on whatever the particular recording victim is.
I particularly love it on drums around floor tom/kick. Also the new SR5 cardiode ribbon is really great on gtr.
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Post by robschnapf on Jul 18, 2021 14:01:39 GMT -6
If you want to buy a Crimson handle, I would recommend the nice people at Front End Audio. Yeah I couldn’t remember where I got em but that’s the spot. |
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. I used to have half a dozen of those. Never warmed up to them. Didn't sound good on drums to me. Or guitars.
