I still haven't totally settled, but I guess I'll check around for maybe some used 935, 58, 57, etc., maybe to  save a coupla bucks.

You're gonna use it for the rest of your life.

It's gonna end up being enjoyed for pennies per day.

Have fun!


all the best,
mike

Used mikes! Yuck! Dog slobber. 

I have my own mike,, nobody else has every been allowed to use it.
Even though my highest recomondation for a workhorse mike is a SM7 or a Beta SM7 there are many many great mikes out there, but if your talking about starting a collection they are a great starting point. 

My vocal mike for live gigs is a Audio Technica that has no modle number on it , the decal fell off. It was $125 and sound exactly like a beta 58

Hi David-

The SM 57 is something that you will always be able to use. It even comes in handy as a hammer (just kidding). The only other one at $99 that I'd consider is the Audix i5. It's similar but a little brighter. I have one of each, and I really like them both. The 58 is targeted at hand-held vocals, and it has been maybe the most live performance vocal mic of the last 30 years. I'm personally not sure about this, but I have read that it's really the same mic as a 57 but with the steel mesh cap and windscreen. You might want to verify this information.


Best of luck.

Shure have frequency plots for the SM57 and 58 on their website.

There's not that much between them, but personally I find I use a 57 on instruments/guitar cabs in preference to a 58. Which seems a pretty common practice.

Both are industry standards for a reason, both last decades if not abused too much (and they can both stand quite a bit of abuse). If I only had the one, personally I'd go for the SM57 as I find it more useful/flexible overall.

Don't bother paying extra for a Shure with a switch, on/off switches on mics rarely come in very useful and lead to mics being turned off accidentally at just the wrong moment.

What tlw is saying is so true, I have a friend who's set of 57 and 58's where purchased second hand by him in the mid 70's. We A/B'd them with my newer ones and they sound identical 
 The wind screens were just filthy so we washed them. 
These mike where tossed in a suitcase full of cables for most of there life,,, never looked after. That's why we like them. As I said there are 1,000 of great  mikes out there, but nothing like these. They are not great, just legendary.   

And a big thing for me is the gain before feedback rejection that few mikes can claim.

Tlw,, there is a difference in the pre amps inside them with a low cut on the 57?? I believe other than that they share the same barrel and diaphragm.I think you can exchange the top parts. The main idea is the 58 has the pop screen. But add a windsock to a 57 and ther eya go/