RECORDING November 2024 - 50

REVIEW
Shure SM4
Home Studio Microphone
An innovative and affordable new condenser
mic for the home studio and beyond
REVIEW BY AARON J. TRUMM
A
ny new studio-focused microphone from Shure is big news,
especially since its previous large diaphragm offering was more
than a decade ago. With the SM4, Shure is back in the studiocondenser
game with a new super-affordable microphone designed to
offer quality sonics for home studios or anyone on a tight budget.
SM4 Overview
The SM4 is a large diaphragm cardioid
condenser. Shure touts it as being specifically
designed for use in home studios.
The mic measures 2.05 " x 5.89 " and has
a sleek black body made of zinc with zero
pads or filters.
The fixed cardioid-patterned SM4
sports a 1 " dual-diaphragm brass capsule
that exhibits a uniform cardioid pickup
pattern with impressive off-axis rejection.
The mic is available in a basic package
that includes a hard swivel mount and a
zipper pouch, or in the SM4-Kit, which
features a custom shock mount, detachable
magnetic pop filter and a robust zippered
carrying case.
Sound
The SM4 has a 20 Hz to 20 kHz frequency
response that starts with a gently
controlled low-end with a downward
slope from around 200 Hz. It has a super-flat
midrange that leads to a 2-3dB
upper mid-peak centered at 4 kHz. This
is followed by a high-end presence boost
starting at 6.5 kHz with a +6db peak at
18 kHz. Sonically, this gives the SM4 an
even, clear and detailed response overall
that will place upper-end sources and vocals
front and center in a mix.
Modern Innovation
More than just another clean, clear
entry-level utility mic, the SM4 introduces
50 RECORDING November 2024
some handy innovations that are especially
helpful for home studios, whether for
recording, podcasting or video production.
Most significantly, the SM4 employs
patent-pending Interference Shielding
Technology designed to help the mic
reject and ignore radio-frequency (RF)
noise common in home (and pro) studios
from cell phones, laptops, wi-fi and even
old-school radio towers.
This RF system in the SM4 consists of an integrated
pop filter and mesh Faraday cage
that shields the mic. In addition to providing
RF protection, this dual-purpose problem
solver also functions as a built-in pop filter.
Space Saving Magnetic Pop
Protection
Of course, you can also add the external
A4PF pop filter found in the SM4-Kit
($70 more). It is designed to snap into
place magnetically on the aforementioned
A4SM shock mount (it needs the
shock mount to work) and sits less than
1 " in front of the mic capsule.
This system is so space efficient that I
wondered if it would even be effective
since a traditional pop filter usually sits
around 3-5 " away from the mic. But
there's a lot of slick engineering here-
it's not just a space-saving compromise.
The external pop filter has two layers,
a metal mesh combined with a fine cloth
layer. Unlike most flat pop screens, it's also
curved, which plays a role in diffusion.
Combined with the internal pop filter/RF
shield, it does a fantastic job eliminating plosives.
From day one, after recording several
songs' worth of vocals, I haven't had to worry
about plosives or errant t's at all.
Mic of Many Hats
A good entry-level/utility condenser
needs to be a " mic of all trades " that is
useful in a variety of contexts, and the
SM4 is exactly that. It captures nice full
lows coupled with shimmery highs but
with a notable lack of harshness.
On many of my vocal takes, the sound
was so well balanced right out of the box
that there was little need for added EQ
trickery or sonic surgery, certainly no
more or less than I employ with more expensive
vocal mics.
The well-executed built-in pop filter also
makes this condenser useful for horns,
guitar cabs and other sources prone to
moving a lot of air. It's also an excellent,
detailed, yet smooth option for acoustic
guitars and spoken word material.
If you produce podcasts and YouTube
content, the SM4 is definitely worth a look
and may even be a better choice than the
Shure SM7B or some other competitors.
I say this because, especially for video,
the SM4 seems to have less of a proximity
effect than so many other mics. Although
there are certain voices you might want
to lean into that chesty-radio voice, I've
so often reached for a high pass on video
vocals that I would be more prone to make
the SM4 my go-to for video content-it's
also very " camera ready " looking.
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