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with a bright and forward openness that is solid but not too harsh. • The SM81 is comparatively subdued and mushy in this use. • The Pro 37R, an indie-rock favorite, is the brightest and most aggressive of the bunch. • The KM84 is the classic of the group, with nice smoothness that is quite natural in a mix. The 181 showed a firm crispness and great smooth shank sound; it’s now neck and neck in the race for my new favorite hi-hat mic. For a mono overhead, I put up three 181s in omni, cardioid and bidirectional, along with a KM84 and two largediaphragm Shure KSM44s, one set to omni and one to cardioid. I also tried this same grouping on the front of kit. On overheads, I liked the Beta 181’s omni capsule the best. It was open and smooth and competed surprisingly well with the KSM44. While it was not as smooth and natural as the KM84, it had its own charm that I quite liked. It was a tighter forward sound that still had an airy touch. The one capsule that did not work well in this placement was the bidirectional mic; I have used bi-directional ribbon mics in this particular room with great success in the past, but for some reason the reflected sound

off the ceiling gave the mic a very blurred and comb-filtered sound. On the front of the kit, however, the bidirectional mic was my favorite. It had a nice tight smoothness and crack that sounded great compressed and mixed into the full kit mix. Other sources Although most of my time with these mics was spent on all things kit, I did spend some time with the Beta 181 family on acoustic guitar, electric guitar and vocals. In each instance I found them a very nice solid rock’n’roll set of mics. While they would not be my first choice for a classical or delicate solo guitar recording, these work wonderfully on big strummed chords, both as a single cardioid mic just off the sound hole, or better yet as a pair of supercardioids, kind of a soundhole-and-12th-fret positioning but more as just a spaced pair about 6" to 12" back from the instrument and panned in stereo. It’s a huge full ballsy sound. This mic is a natural on guitar cabinet. Again it’s a nice forward yet smooth tone, without the over-bright tendencies of many modern large-diaphragm mics. Plus, thanks to their shape, they are easy to place on the cabinet, including the old “hanging down by the cable in front of the speaker” trick.

Lastly, on vocals, although I was not expecting much (as I am not usually a SDC vocal fan), this mic has a nice forward and punchy tone that is well suited to aggressive vocals that need to pop in a mix with a touch of weight. While probably not suited for jazz or delicate vocal work, they again offered a great rock’n’roll tone. Conclusions Shure has done it again. For one thing, bringing back two old classics in a nicely improved form that does not alter what they once were, just making them better. For another, introducing the new Beta 181, a design so new and different that (subject to some good old-fashioned experimentation) will quickly find one or more niches in people’s studios and on stage. Prices: Beta 91A, $299 ($239 MAP); Beta 98A/C, $249 ($199 MAP); Beta 98AD/C, $286 ($229 MAP); Beta 98AMP/C (as reviewed), $336 ($269 MAP); Beta 181 with any one capsule), $624 ($499); extra capsules and/or mic bodies, $311 ($249) each More from: Shure, www.shure.com

http://www.shure.com http://www.GreatRiverElectronics.com http://www.GreatRiverElectronics.com http://www.greatriverelectronics.com/MixMaster

Recording - August 2011

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