Recording - May 2016 - 32

Shure KSM8

are also popular since being purely
mechanical devices, it's hard to overload
them. They can handle very high SPL...
again, think snare drum and guitar cabinet.
The problem with many directional
dynamic mics is from a performance/
consistency standpoint. The proximity
effect can pose endless problems, especially for singers, because why would a
vocalist hold a handheld microphone in a
fixed spot at all times? And so, the KSM8
team set out to make a more sonically
accurate dynamic cartridge by lessening
the presence peak, losing the proximity
effect, and improving off-axis bleed.

neutron flow," so my best advice is to watch
the video on Shure's site and it will all make
perfect sense!

In history
This is not the first instance of a company grappling with proximity effect on
a dynamic microphone. The most wellknown solution to date is Electro-Voice's
Variable-D technology, found in the
RE15, RE16, and RE20.
Sound not only enters a mic from the
front, it also passes into the rear of the
microphone, hitting the rear of the
diaphragm, which contributes to the proximity effect. For a down and dirty example, take a single-pattern large-diaphragm
condenser and talk into its back side.
Almost all you will hear is low end.
In most dynamic microphones this
sound enters at a fixed distance, but
back in 1954 E-V's solution was placing
multiple entrance points down the handle of the RE15 and RE16, and down
the body of the RE20. These multiple
points eliminate proximity effect by
breaking up the sound-highs enter closer to the top, mids next and so on.
With the KSM8 Shure solved the issue
another way, by using a technique common
to condenser microphones: a second rearfacing diaphragm. Sonically this imparts the
proximity characteristics found in omnidirectional microphones. Additionally the rearhitting sound is reversed and redirected
inside the KSM8's cartridge design. I feel a
bit like Doctor Who at this point, telling folks
it's as simple as "reversing the polarity of the

three less pronounced peaks at 2.5, 4.5,
and 8.5 kHz. This makes it much more
sonically even and natural-sounding than
many standard dynamic mics, but also
still offers just enough life to keep the mic
out of faux-ribbon territory.
The mic comes in a modest yet classy
kit with a hard, zippering clamshell style
case and a soft Shure mic clip similar to
the KSM9's.

RECORDING MAY 2016

Specs
The KSM8 uses a dual-diaphragm moving coil cartridge with a cardioid pickup
pattern. It has a 40 to 16000 Hz frequency response, a 300Ω output impedance, and a sensitivity of -51.5 dBV/Pa
(1.85 mV) at 1 kHz, open circuit.
Overall it is a mid-flat mic with low-end
roll off around 110Hz, and rather than a
single 5-10 dB presence peak around 8
kHz (like an SM57), the KSM8 offers

The presentation
At its NAMM launch, product manager
John Born and the design team talked
about and demonstrated how the KSM8
worked on voice and how its tone did not
change whether you were half an inch or
half a foot from the mic. Try this with most
other handheld dynamics and cardioid
handheld condensers, and you will hear
that these small distance changes can yield
noticeable tonal and level fluctuations. The
other thing apparent at the presentation
was how natural and full the KSM8 sounded vs. traditional cardioid models which
thrust the voice brightly forward.
Then the team went on to mention how
much the beta testers who were using the
microphone at concerts and speaking
events also appreciated the natural sonic
bleed of the mic. Bleed is typically a bad
word with microphones, especially in live
use. For this reason many over-ear, lavalier,
and even podium mics use omni capsules,

because despite a heightened possibility of
feedback, they can actually do a better job
at capturing a smoother and more even
vocal performance, since omni mics are
effectively free from proximity effect and offaxis coloration.
While it has a cardioid pattern, the
KSM8 exhibits omni-like characteristics
and benefits in its off-axis rejection. The
sound that bleeds into its sides is quite
neutral, being neither thin nor hyped; it's
sonically similar to the tone and sound
of the capsule on axis.
In a live situation there will be bleed
from drums, screaming guitar cabinets,
and floor monitors. It's better to have this
bleed sound smooth and natural than
spiky and peaky in the mix when the
singer stops singing. I will jump ahead
and concur that in my time using the
KSM8 live as a vocal mic, especially on
backup singers, that I have had fewer

issues with annoying cymbal and guitar
bleed jumping out of the mix... and that
means less use of gating and fader riding.
Of course, with all of this talk of happy
bleed, consistency, and naturalness, I
could not wait to get as many KSM8 mics
as I could and mike up an entire drum kit!
Boom, thwack and bleed
Shure kindly obliged and sent me six
KSM8 mics for a week to play with just on
drums. I used a 4-piece Pearl kit with the
mics distributed as kick, snare, toms and
overheads. After tracking and side-by-side
comparison with more standard drum mic
fare that included Shure's SM57 and Beta
52A, Telefunken's M80, M81, and M82,
and Audix's i5 and D6, my first impression was that the KSM8 could not be
more different from the crowd.
First up, the sound was not as instantly
open and forward as I am used to. It
made me aware of how much we now
rely on purposely tuned drum mics and
how much the usual presence peak plays
into our modern drum sound. By contrast
the KSM8 was smooth, laid back and
even a touch dark-sounding. While it was
not a sound I would normally choose, I
found that, upon playing the tracks back
and mixing them, they take EQ quite nicely. I liked their natural tone, which would
work great for vintage R'n'B like the
Daptone sound and/or jazz.

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