Microphone advice sought.

[bloatedsack]

This is going to come across as an inane question, but they're kind I'm best at.

I need a microphone. I don't know what kind, other than "cheap." So I'm turning to you guys to possibly point me in the right direction.

It's not for music, it's actually for my Cub Scout Pack, which just lost several key members with important equipment, including the guy who brought his PA for our meetings.. That leaves us scrambling to find osmething we can use.

Basically, at the very least I'll need a mic. I know there's PA speakers in the school cafe we hold our meetings in, and I have a little 4 channel mixer if I need one. I just need to find a cheap microphone for this since it's going to be out of my pocket to buy it. I've got an ancient EV 635b which might work, I need to pick up an XLR cable to test it but I seem to remember it sounds really faint (I stole it from a radio station 20 years ago, and it was probably 20 years old then, already). I sorta hope that a new cable or ma ybe replacing the foam might clean it up, but I don't think it will.

What's the right sort of microphone I need for this that'll be:
1) Cheap.
2) Possibly available used (cheaper, and if you've got one to sell, let me know).
3) Durable.

I don't care if it's not professional grade, from some weird Chinese knockoff company (shit does Behringer make microphones?) or whatever.. It's just gotta be functional and affordable. The more affordable the better. I'm going to buy it out of pocket, and we don't have a budget to reimburse for something like that.

I literally have no idea what i'm looking for, and I'm just going to be lazy and reach out to people who may instead of having to learn all this myself.

Thanks in advance.

[Multicellular]

My sister's temple asked me to help them set up a PA with a crazy low budget. In the course of that I tested some mics. The cheapest acceptable ones I found were Shure PGA48s. Been a few years and they seem to still be working fine.

[DRodriguez]

Get a basic shure sm58 from an authorized dealer (counterfeits are numerous) they are relatively affordable. Tested to death, and literally built to handle everything. Built for live use, shure even has patents for better artificial sweat to stress test the mics. They are probably the best selling pro mics ever. And they cost $99.

You can find a mic for cheaper, but shure is good about reliability and customer service

The main issue with that ev is that it's an omnidirectional mic, which are not good with PAs. Otherwise, it should work alright.

[bloatedsack]

Two votes for Shure, although I just realized my mixer (Behringer 802) has XLR inputs, but no XLR output. I assume the PA is going to need that. I suspect our next pack meeting is going to involve alot of shouting, but we'll see what I can do.

The PGA48 comes in at a third the cost of the SM58, too. If, when I leave in another 2 years, I donate it to the pack they're getting the PGA.

Thanks for the info guys. Much appreciated.

[tremolo3]

SM58 or the GLS clone.

[popvulture]

Totally agree on the Shure. Bullet proof / good support.

You can always go super cheap with something like the Monoprice version, but I'm sure it's a get-what-you-pay for situation to say the least.

https://www.monoprice.com/product?c_id= ... 1&format=2

[rickenbastard]

SM57

[actual]

If it's just for speech, then a used 57 could be an option - unidirectional and used by every president since the 60's for speeches. As for the no XLR out, there are various adapters you can use. Might not be ideal, but it'll do the trick.

[Multicellular]

Two votes for Shure, although I just realized my mixer (Behringer 802) has XLR inputs, but no XLR output. I assume the PA is going to need that. I suspect our next pack meeting is going to involve alot of shouting, but we'll see what I can do.

The PGA48 comes in at a third the cost of the SM58, too. If, when I leave in another 2 years, I donate it to the pack they're getting the PGA.

Thanks for the info guys. Much appreciated.

Many PAs, powered monitors or power amps will accept an XLR or a balanced 1/4 cable. It may look like a guitar plug, but look closely.

TRS - suitable to connect mixer to PA. Has three contacts, just like an XLR. And if you get a 1/4 to XLR adapter, a normal one will be fine.


TS - for guitars. Two contacts. You may find an XLR to TS adapter, but this will usually lead to noise. There isn't a big price difference. You said you're new to this stuff. I've even see lots of paid sound dudes that don't seem to know this.