Thanks for watching friends! If this video helped make your decision, these amazon links give me a small commission. Its how I keep this channel afloat for the time being, so its a great way to support the vids! Amazon: SM7B - amzn.to/3lL4REV NT1a - amzn.to/3sojfoY Sweetwater: SM7B - imp.i114863.net/QOx3A3 NT1a - imp.i114863.net/EaYv22
You can really hear the wall reflection from the NT1-A. I've owned both and I sold my NT1-A then got donated the SM7B and I fell immediately in love. I feel like the SM7B highlights my vocals the best.
2 years ago when I started messing around with mixing I would never have heard any difference. Now I can spot the wall reflection difference with the NT-1A in that acapella section. Quite surprising! (well, not at all after your clear explanation at the beginning!)
OMG - thanks for that shoutout! You made me blush! This, again is a great comparison of two microphones. With two microphones that sound this different to each other, it is a good showcase on the importance of the sound qualities of a microphone might be interested in - or not. I also liked your take on the use of a pre-preamp, like the Cloudlifter CL-1 or Fethead a lot. There really is no point for many people in buying a Fetlifterhead (Hi Julian!). However, your explanation on the internal workings of a condenser and a dynamic microphone might - to some - be a bit misleading, due to your use of the word "capsule". So I found it important to adress this matter. You talked about a capsule not being present in a dynamic microphone. The capsule is the element of a microphone, that actually is supposed to pick up the vibrations - in one way or another. The Shure SM7B is based on the Shure Unidyne III capsule design, the same as the SM57 and SM58. So yea, pretty much any microphone has some kind of capsule. With that i suspect you meant to talk about the membrane. But even that would be false, as dynamic AND condenser microphones both need a membrane to be vibrated by sound. So I am a bit confused here on what you actually meant. Since however I am positive, that you do know the differences, please forgive me to actually explain the different capsule designs again. (Only the capsules, the internals of the microphones are different from each other as well, but that's neither here nor there. A dynamic microphone for a start consists of a membrane, picking up the sound and starts to vibrate. The vibrating membrane is connected to a coil which moves along a stationary magnet. This creates an oscillating current in the coil and thus the signal. This technique needs quite a bit of power on the sound to actually create a signal. This makes this design less sensitive to quiet sounds or sounds from further away or coming in off-axis. The membrane on a condenser microphone is being vacuum-metallized to make it conductive. A condenser microphone capsule needs power to create a magnetic field is cast around that metallized membrane and the membrane's movement causes the magnetic field to oscillate. This causes the current flow needed to create the magnetic field to oscillate as well, creating the signal. This technique is far more sensitive to quiet sounds or sounds from further away or coming in off-axis.
I love the sound of condensers in treated environments so much. Unfortunately for me that just is not an option though given that I record in my dang bedroom and have roommates and live on a street and have a big ass sliding glass door street-side lol. But lots of dynamics still sound super good. I've noticed also that some people's voices just sound better through different styles of mic -- so it really is somewhat case by case. Great video, man. Edit: also, I use the Rodecaster with the SM7B and have no issues or need for a coudlifter or whatnot that I can tell. But I am definitely no audio expert.
Nice! If you were looking for a "condenser" like dynamic, the RE20 or RE320 is great at that in my opinion, I've got a few vids on the RE20 is you wanted some samples of this :)
So… I tried both instore and was recommended the NT1A due to my “higher” vocals. Yup, it’s the one I ended up buying. The Shure would be soooo good for podcasts or broadcasting though, but I’ll be using the Rode for singing purposes.
I feel like they misguided you in this case, if you have higher vocals the sm7b would be perfect as it is a darker mic thus balancing things out , on the other hand the nt1a is really bright so bright vocals + bright mic could really get messy
So I bought an NT1A and a Shure SM58 for recording aggressive rap vocals (my voice is quite bassy) and honestly the NT1A is surprisingly good for the price point. It does the job really well and I don’t have a “treated” room for sound dampening. The Shure is actually quite disappointing in comparison but it could be because my room is “untreated” or it doesn’t suit my voice.
I’ve had so much trouble with the SM7b on my voice. I have a lot of build up in the low mids of my voice and the Shure just tends to accentuate that so there’s a lot of mud that takes lots of corrective EQ. The Rode NT1a ended up sounding better for me out the box.
Another great vid! I had the NT1-A, now use the NT-1. (Voice actor/Narrator) I have never liked the NT1-A for vocals at all, but on string instruments, the detail is superb. Carolina is great, I know she doesn't like the Shure, but I still think it sounds better for her than the Rode. I imagine the NT1 might be a great fit for her. Great perspective on the cloudlifter situation.
She has got high pitch voice and I think SM7b gives a darker and smoother tone and is more complimentary for her. NT1-A boosts the high parts of her voice resulting in more distracting sibilance. NT1-A sound more like listenning to her in real life rather than behind the radio. But I think for males with baritone voices it wouldn't have the same results. Rn I definitely prefer SM7B
Thanks for a great, informative review. I would have guessed the Rode was mic1 on the acoustic! Continuing my sibilance obsession, it would be useful to do a "She sell sea shells etc." test on all mics.
Both awesome mics. I like the vocals on the NT1 better even tho I think the difference is not that big. Strings on the SM7B sound better to me, I just like it more (the difference is quite noticeable). And I read in some of the comments bellow has a completely opposite opinion. So, I think it's all about personal preferences and taste.
SM7B is very quiet, requiring a Mic amp for almost any application. Add a mic amp to the price of the SM7B. I think there's a lot of people out there that buy the SM7B and expect to connect it directly to their laptop. That being said. The SM7B is priced well comparable to a equivalent quality mic. I think it sounds as good or better then Mics costing thousands. With the SM7B you are saving money on the mic, but need to buy a mic amp or better interface. Still less then other options of similar sound quality.
Wow directly to a laptop? Yeah in that situation you'd most certainly need an amp! I'm not even sure how I would make that set up work. I suppose I disagree on the idea that you need a mic amp for EVERY situation though. I mean yeah you'll need a preamp obviously, but not always an external source of gain. I did this video all without an external source of gain, just the interface gain and it was peaking well above optimum levels, minimal noise. But to each their own, an external amp can do nothing but help if you want to spend the money :)
@@AudioHaze well that’s the common complaint about the SM7B; it’s a quiet mic. With the mic becoming trendy now, I’d expect more complaints popping up online. I’m sure there’s a XLR to 3.5mm adapter out there. Tascam used to make one and it could even provide phantom power if needed. You did a excellent job describing the differences in the mics and I didn’t even think about how interface noise can alter the mic. I look forward to your videos and see big things for the channel. The vocalist has a beautiful voice. Personally thought she sounded a bit bright with the Rode. Call me a Shure fanboy....
The NT1A compliments her higher range at certain notes, but the SM7B definitely adds more uummpphh to her lower register, and in any song that is good combinations to have. She probably realizes by now that she needs both mics to produce the sound she wants sonically throughout a track / project.
Dang, I definitely preferred the NT1A for her voice but the guitar surprised me. I thought they were reversed. The sure was the winner to my ears. Interesting. I do like the Shute for podcasting.
AWESOME TUT as always! 🏆🔥Should have gotten the damn SHURESM7B just like instinct told me to instead of getting the RodeNT1A! Recorded vocals over and over countless times, from different distances from the mic, even angling the mic and all .. but no matter what the brightness and harshness just kills the recording. Recorded inside a SOUND BOOTH And all!!! Not to mention that the audio interface gain knob was changed (countless times in order to not get that bright harshness). Spent months trying to fix this problem. There is no way to EQ the harshness. Even with Maximus.😭 No GOOD. What a nightmare! ShureSM7B it is! Wouldn't it be epic if they created a microphone that picks up the full presence of your voice along with the bright tones but without all of the strong peaks of sibilance. That would be a game changer 4 sure!
i upgraded from a MXL 770 to a Nt1a for my music (i make really bassy/dark 808 filled rap music) and my friend has a sm7b that he uses solely because he doesn’t have a good recording environment. in post, even with my lower-frequency leaning music, the nt1a has been nothing but phenomenal to use
Your voice makes both sound good so it's an unfair comparison :) Srsly tho excellent video, I appreciate the time you put into this, it was very very helpful 👊
bro the Nt1 imo is the best mic under 1000. like fuck! its flat tone is just amazing its so easy to work with it bc any preset will sound pretty much how the preset was intended to sound...
Great video and important topics. I use the NT-1 now on our female soprano singer as the NT-1A sounded so harsh in the highs. I've never used a SM7B as I picked up an Aston Stealth, but still getting used to that as the gain is rediculous in active mode and I'm struggling getting it not to clip 😖
If your voice has sibilance is the rode nt1A recommended for voiceovers ? I am using a rode procaster but considering a rode nt1A cause my volume is not that much. I am a male btw but my voice has the occasional sibilance and click that i have to remove in post.
@@TheFinalRevelation1 For a normal voice over I'm sure the NT1A would be fine. My issue is with a female soprano singer who hits some quite high notes and sometimes with a lot of power.
I’d sacrifice some room noise with the Rode in exchange for that self noise, vintage hissing sound the Shure makes. More definition and detail of the voice with the Rode too
Good review of the two mics but I feel that the singer was hitting higher notes on the NT1-A and singing lower ones on the Shure SM7B, a fair comparison would to sing the same/exact phrases on both mics for more comprehensive review. Nevertheless, great content👍
I liked the clarity of the NT1A on the voice, but I feel like I would be eq’ing it until it sounded a lot like the sound of the SM7B. I’m not sure whether it would be easier to add what I want to the SM7B or to take away what I don’t want from the Rode. Guitar was absolutely no contest whatsoever IMO, with the Rode winning by a landslide. Unfortunately, I play guitar and I own the SM7B lol
Any tips for equalizing the rode nt1a? You achieved quality vocals with soft shines, when I record hard and painful, other times I have a lot of bass despite recording properly, Thank you very much, sorry my English, great video.
I didn't do any EQ'ing in this one :) on mic reviews I don't really EQ the mics to represent them accurately, that being said room placement and vocal prep matters a lot to a good take! I have a video about that called "Mic position matters" or something to that effect that should help if you'd like to check it out :)
Somehow i am more unsure, if i should buy the Shure. Like, i own a NT1A but i love how the shure sounds, when someone with a deeper voice, talks into it. I have a deep voice, but man.. 360 bucks.
I think it depends more on if you have any dynamic mics in your collection, if you don't both with help you in different ways. So you'll have a more flexible studio
The RODE NT1A sounds displeasingly shrill on loud vocal sections, thus making it a little jarring on the ears, while the SHURE SM7B maintained impeccable roundness at the high frequencies even in louder high-pitched vocal sections, thus producing a warm & rich & smooth tone all round. Re Acoustic Guitar: I prefer the RODE NT1A. It gave a more natural, less-muddy sound, with impeccable low-mids clarity & exciting top-end sparkle.
The sm7b sounds like a great pick for my meditation videos. So all I need is the sm7b & scarlet interface and I'm good to go? This can be used with audacity?
Nice review.. I own both.. Im a singer.. Love 'm both.. Depends on what im singing.. With soft voice the rode suites me better but With harder vocals the SM7b is the best.. Great voice at the end of the vid.. Love it.. 🎉
As someone who's owned both mics and I literally wanna sell my shure and get the rode nt1a back 😂. I have a cloudlifter but when it comes to recording a guitar that's quietly played, it's horrible. The vocals are very rugged. Yes, I'm no pro so I don't really know how to mix but that's my point. Rode nt1a sounded so much better and it was very easy to mix/record. It's so hard to record accoustic guitar with shure sm7b. Maybe cause it's I use Scarlett solo but, idk.
Informative video txs. Just to wrap it up, were you saying that I could get the advantages of the Shure SM7b (in terms of shielding against noise) by buying the Behringer (or better MOTUm2 or whatever) and avoid a preamp (Cloudlifter or Fethead)? If I understand it correctly, my Phantom power, which I use between my condensor Microphone Headset and the piano (with the built in Audio interface: Steinberg Yamaha), can NOT work as a preamp. I looked it up, and it said, that the Phantom power is some extra current before the Preamp. Hmmm, I have not taken more time to dwell into this. SO in short: SHure SM7b + Cloudlifter OR Shure SMb7 + Audio interface MOTU? THing is I have the Yamaha DGX 670 Digital piano's Audio interface already. But someone tried to convince me it would not be sufficient. COuld you clarify this please? ;-)
Completely different sound. SM7b would be right decision for some kind of music genres and type of voices. It makes almost ready sound. But Rode takes more details on lows. And overall dynamics are better with this mic
Forgive my ignorance, but instead of using a cloudlifter couldn’t you record at a lower level and then increase the clip gain afterwards? Or would the noise still be there?
Oh you absolutely could! Check out what Lajos said in one of the comments below this one. The only difference is some of us aren't working with recording audio so I try and keep them in mind. Most people who subscribe here are audio engineers and musicians, but a bunch of other viewership is streamers and content creators just looking to buy a mic. Streamers especially don't have that capability, so I try and emphasis the levels situation under the assumption not every is working in post processing 🤷🏻♂️
I have a deep bass male voice. My low tones are very punchy, but my high notes are not as pretty. Which one is the best for me? If I buy the sm7b, will my bass shine more but instead my treble will be more muted? Thank you!
Thank you for the great video. I'll keep it short, so that I waste as little of everyone's time as possible :) I'll be using my mic for YT videos, podcasts and voice overs, with a first generation Rodecaster Pro. My voice skews towards the lower range, and I'll recording from home in a moderate to low noise environment. Shure7B?
Lately I've been experimenting with simply recording lower. Now I might be completely noise-deaf, but there doesn't appear to be a whole bunch of difference between recording at proper levels and 20dB lower on at least the Presonus Studio 24c (and the scarlett 2i2). For live applications there isn't much of a workaround for proper gain, but would it make sense to do that and boost in post where there's no need for immediacy? I'm mostly poking around because even with the dynamite (and definitely the cloud lifter) sm7b falls into the 'exponential' final part of the gain knob. The lightest touch pushes it 12dB, very hard to nail.
I completely and 100% agree with you. There's nothing wrong with recording cold as long as its not too extreme. Boosting in post is always an option and doing so often saves you the risk of building up more noise floor than what is necessary (and clipping too!). I think the issue is not all of us are in the business of making music with microphones, or even processing audio at all. Lots of people want to use the SM7B for streaming and recording videos. Many people's approach is to plug in and hit record. The audio you hear in the video is the audio they are recording, exactly. Thats why I try and stress the levels situation. But to people in the business of processing audio, couldn't agree more. It's an interesting situation because I find the individuals subscribing are typically audiophiles and engineers, but a large portion of viewership are just people in the market for a mic. So I have to straddle the line between audio tech talk and basic guidelines and concepts ya know?
@@AudioHaze I'm definitely in the enthusiast camp and if my wife's judgment is to be trusted, have all the microphones I will ever need. I'm here for the unfiltered opinion and to check out audio gear I would probably not pick up on my own (untreated room, condensers are _brutal_ to this place). Just for the laugh I put together an Sm57 with the presidential wind foam, an SE dynamite and a focusrite 2i2 to see what the noise levels are like with or without. No activator: gain at 12 o'clock, boosted 41 !! dBa, noise level peaks at around -51dBa, whereas se dynamite: gain same place, boosted 9-ish dBa, noise level peaks at around -50dBa. The noise sounds a smidge grittier without it, despite no measurable difference in levels, but I don't think it's actual self-noise, rather, it picks up my computer fans. I went and normalised both clips to -14 LUFS for youtube levels and for the life of me can't tell them apart, and that's an affordable interface at a sub-optimal setting boosted either 9 or 41 dBa on a microphone I'm not allowed to use for vocals. By the time the clips are through low-cut and a 2:1 compression to my ears they might as well be bit-equal. For my corporate meetings I'll keep using the cloudlifter (pearls, swine, etc.) for my own youtubing... might use the dynamite for portable recorders with more unforgiving noise levels but that's about it...
I'm shocked! Where do you find these beautiful people who sing so wonderfully? Carolina is incredible. By the way, very interesting that you mentioned that Carolina doesn't like Sm7b because I immediately preferred it over NT1a. NT1a sounds good, but unremarkable and I really don't understand why people enjoy those pronounced highs. They rarely sound nice. Sm7b, on the other hand, gives Carolina incredibly nice sense of presence. More often than not the difference in sound doesn't make much impact. But here the difference is very noticeable. I heard it immediately on my PC speakers (not professional monitors, just entry level decent speakers for 100$) and then I even checked it on my headphones though audio interface. I'm just a music enthusiast and a singer-songwriter. So, I don't have much expertise in music production. But my taste tells me that if a person already has naturally pronounced highs and less pronounced tender lows and mids they should use mic that would bring that part of the voice that is concealed to let it shine. NT1a does nothing for Carolina's voice. Sm7b makes it very charming and captivating. I'd say it's, of course, more complicated. For example, my favorite female voice until this point was Soccer Mommy's voice. She has incredibly wonderful lows and some very interesting highs. You would want to compliment both sides of her voice. Sometimes a person (I think I fall into that category) has somewhat nice and interesting lows in their voice that should be accentuated more because otherwise the best part of their voice is "not there". But with that being said I think with Carolina the choice between these two mics is obvious. It's even painful for me to hear NT1a after Shure in this comparison lol. By the way, the presence I mentioned earlier might has something to do with... yes, as you said many times, room treatment.
Haha she's my roommate! We both study at the same college. That's why its easy to find singers, lots of talented vocalists to show off here :) and interesting! To be honest I enjoyed both microphones on her voice, but I struggled with the levels a little bit because the NT1a liked to peak higher than the Shure, I wonder if some of the harshness is caused by the varying dynamics of the NT1a? I've done sessions with Carolina before and found the SM7B to be too dark on her voice, but I agree with you in this video it has a nice presence that evens our her range nicely.
That's funny, I think the highs on the Rode sound way way more beautiful than the Shure. It sounds so much more powerful and full bodied, whereas the Shure almost tones down the power of the high notes and sounds less impressive. The Rode sounds WAY more pleasing to my ears! I wonder if men's and women's ears are tuned to tolerate different frequencies?
@@mikeball4665 if the background sound is the issue reduce gain or take out cloud lifter all together. I had the same issue, Shure sm7b shouldn’t pick up that much noise being a dynamic mic
Not a fan of the SM7 at all. It’s such a hype mic for people that want to sound like a radio DJ. Especially when they put their lips all the way to the foam. Put the SM7 on a kick drum or low tom and put the NT1 on the singer or acoustic guitar. Also look at the SSL 2 interface for a nice, quiet, pro-of ding preamp. 👍🏻
That would be due to the need to crank the preamps in order to bring the sm7b to proper levels. The cloudlifter section of this video talks about that. Specifically, the Motu M2 should have enough gain where this wouldn't be a problem (although I don't own one personally so I can't speak to personal experience). I also have another video where I discuss alternative microphones that don't have this issue: ruclips.net/video/PFba93OLLig/видео.html Hope that helps :)
My focusrite solo 3rd gen has hissing issues if I bump the gain to near max. My friends in discord be like, "bro your mic" and I'm like what? And turns out it's making a hissing sound. Sucks. Wish I could turn it up to audible levels without having to have noise or hissing.
nt1 a putting all room sound in record. sm7b more clean. if you have a acoustic room nt1 a good. i have a one but i like sm7b sound. because nt1a high sounds and mouth sounds not good for me.
Thanks for watching friends! If this video helped make your decision, these amazon links give me a small commission. Its how I keep this channel afloat for the time being, so its a great way to support the vids!
Amazon:
SM7B - amzn.to/3lL4REV
NT1a - amzn.to/3sojfoY
Sweetwater:
SM7B - imp.i114863.net/QOx3A3
NT1a - imp.i114863.net/EaYv22
You can really hear the wall reflection from the NT1-A. I've owned both and I sold my NT1-A then got donated the SM7B and I fell immediately in love. I feel like the SM7B highlights my vocals the best.
2 years ago when I started messing around with mixing I would never have heard any difference. Now I can spot the wall reflection difference with the NT-1A in that acapella section. Quite surprising! (well, not at all after your clear explanation at the beginning!)
OMG - thanks for that shoutout! You made me blush! This, again is a great comparison of two microphones. With two microphones that sound this different to each other, it is a good showcase on the importance of the sound qualities of a microphone might be interested in - or not. I also liked your take on the use of a pre-preamp, like the Cloudlifter CL-1 or Fethead a lot. There really is no point for many people in buying a Fetlifterhead (Hi Julian!). However, your explanation on the internal workings of a condenser and a dynamic microphone might - to some - be a bit misleading, due to your use of the word "capsule". So I found it important to adress this matter.
You talked about a capsule not being present in a dynamic microphone. The capsule is the element of a microphone, that actually is supposed to pick up the vibrations - in one way or another. The Shure SM7B is based on the Shure Unidyne III capsule design, the same as the SM57 and SM58. So yea, pretty much any microphone has some kind of capsule. With that i suspect you meant to talk about the membrane. But even that would be false, as dynamic AND condenser microphones both need a membrane to be vibrated by sound. So I am a bit confused here on what you actually meant. Since however I am positive, that you do know the differences, please forgive me to actually explain the different capsule designs again. (Only the capsules, the internals of the microphones are different from each other as well, but that's neither here nor there.
A dynamic microphone for a start consists of a membrane, picking up the sound and starts to vibrate. The vibrating membrane is connected to a coil which moves along a stationary magnet. This creates an oscillating current in the coil and thus the signal. This technique needs quite a bit of power on the sound to actually create a signal. This makes this design less sensitive to quiet sounds or sounds from further away or coming in off-axis.
The membrane on a condenser microphone is being vacuum-metallized to make it conductive. A condenser microphone capsule needs power to create a magnetic field is cast around that metallized membrane and the membrane's movement causes the magnetic field to oscillate. This causes the current flow needed to create the magnetic field to oscillate as well, creating the signal. This technique is far more sensitive to quiet sounds or sounds from further away or coming in off-axis.
I just love how rich and nice the NT1 sounds, when I become a quadrilionare I will have a few in my collection
Money well spent my friend :)
I love the sound of condensers in treated environments so much. Unfortunately for me that just is not an option though given that I record in my dang bedroom and have roommates and live on a street and have a big ass sliding glass door street-side lol. But lots of dynamics still sound super good. I've noticed also that some people's voices just sound better through different styles of mic -- so it really is somewhat case by case. Great video, man.
Edit: also, I use the Rodecaster with the SM7B and have no issues or need for a coudlifter or whatnot that I can tell. But I am definitely no audio expert.
Nice! If you were looking for a "condenser" like dynamic, the RE20 or RE320 is great at that in my opinion, I've got a few vids on the RE20 is you wanted some samples of this :)
Try putting your mattress against the wall behind your condenser mic, it soaks up a lot of the sound for reflection.
So… I tried both instore and was recommended the NT1A due to my “higher” vocals. Yup, it’s the one I ended up buying. The Shure would be soooo good for podcasts or broadcasting though, but I’ll be using the Rode for singing purposes.
Good choice, just make sure you got a nice room to record in :) or at least not a super reverbant one!
I feel like they misguided you in this case, if you have higher vocals the sm7b would be perfect as it is a darker mic thus balancing things out , on the other hand the nt1a is really bright so bright vocals + bright mic could really get messy
@@Anonymous-dh4fl yes Sir, i think the same..
She was such a good singer I forgot to listen to the mics. Oops.
So I bought an NT1A and a Shure SM58 for recording aggressive rap vocals (my voice is quite bassy) and honestly the NT1A is surprisingly good for the price point. It does the job really well and I don’t have a “treated” room for sound dampening.
The Shure is actually quite disappointing in comparison but it could be because my room is “untreated” or it doesn’t suit my voice.
Let me hear some of that aggressive rap
I’ve had so much trouble with the SM7b on my voice. I have a lot of build up in the low mids of my voice and the Shure just tends to accentuate that so there’s a lot of mud that takes lots of corrective EQ. The Rode NT1a ended up sounding better for me out the box.
Another great vid! I had the NT1-A, now use the NT-1. (Voice actor/Narrator) I have never liked the NT1-A for vocals at all, but on string instruments, the detail is superb. Carolina is great, I know she doesn't like the Shure, but I still think it sounds better for her than the Rode. I imagine the NT1 might be a great fit for her. Great perspective on the cloudlifter situation.
Thanks man! And yes the NT1-a is greattttt on strings, just like the c414. I'm trying to convince her on the rode but idk if she's there yet haha
She has got high pitch voice and I think SM7b gives a darker and smoother tone and is more complimentary for her. NT1-A boosts the high parts of her voice resulting in more distracting sibilance. NT1-A sound more like listenning to her in real life rather than behind the radio.
But I think for males with baritone voices it wouldn't have the same results. Rn I definitely prefer SM7B
i agree for latin music the extra low is good as it helps the vocals sit better with the whats most lokely going to be a flamenco guitar
Once again the NT1-q vs sm7b blind test surprises me. I honestly thought the #2 mic was kinda muffled or missing something, less present than the 1st.
Interesting!
Thanks for a great, informative review. I would have guessed the Rode was mic1 on the acoustic! Continuing my sibilance obsession, it would be useful to do a "She sell sea shells etc." test on all mics.
Both awesome mics. I like the vocals on the NT1 better even tho I think the difference is not that big. Strings on the SM7B sound better to me, I just like it more (the difference is quite noticeable). And I read in some of the comments bellow has a completely opposite opinion. So, I think it's all about personal preferences and taste.
SM7B is very quiet, requiring a Mic amp for almost any application. Add a mic amp to the price of the SM7B. I think there's a lot of people out there that buy the SM7B and expect to connect it directly to their laptop.
That being said. The SM7B is priced well comparable to a equivalent quality mic. I think it sounds as good or better then Mics costing thousands.
With the SM7B you are saving money on the mic, but need to buy a mic amp or better interface. Still less then other options of similar sound quality.
Wow directly to a laptop? Yeah in that situation you'd most certainly need an amp! I'm not even sure how I would make that set up work.
I suppose I disagree on the idea that you need a mic amp for EVERY situation though. I mean yeah you'll need a preamp obviously, but not always an external source of gain. I did this video all without an external source of gain, just the interface gain and it was peaking well above optimum levels, minimal noise. But to each their own, an external amp can do nothing but help if you want to spend the money :)
@@AudioHaze well that’s the common complaint about the SM7B; it’s a quiet mic. With the mic becoming trendy now, I’d expect more complaints popping up online.
I’m sure there’s a XLR to 3.5mm adapter out there. Tascam used to make one and it could even provide phantom power if needed.
You did a excellent job describing the differences in the mics and I didn’t even think about how interface noise can alter the mic. I look forward to your videos and see big things for the channel.
The vocalist has a beautiful voice. Personally thought she sounded a bit bright with the Rode. Call me a Shure fanboy....
@@jakp8777 you call it bright, but I thought it sounded more natural. The SM7B added to her lower registers that which is not there in real life.
That's why they brought out the MV7 USB
The NT1A compliments her higher range at certain notes, but the SM7B definitely adds more uummpphh to her lower register, and in any song that is good combinations to have. She probably realizes by now that she needs both mics to produce the sound she wants sonically throughout a track / project.
Thanks for this awesome review! Caroline's voice gave me chills! Soo beautiful 💕
vale! loved her singing very much
Dang, I definitely preferred the NT1A for her voice but the guitar surprised me. I thought they were reversed. The sure was the winner to my ears. Interesting. I do like the Shute for podcasting.
Glad I could help a bit!
Had the same experience!
AWESOME TUT as always! 🏆🔥Should have gotten the damn SHURESM7B just like instinct told me to instead of getting the RodeNT1A! Recorded vocals over and over countless times, from different distances from the mic, even angling the mic and all .. but no matter what the brightness and harshness just kills the recording.
Recorded inside a SOUND BOOTH And all!!!
Not to mention that the audio interface gain knob was changed (countless times in order to not get that bright harshness). Spent months trying to fix this problem. There is no way to EQ the harshness. Even with Maximus.😭 No GOOD. What a nightmare! ShureSM7B it is!
Wouldn't it be epic if they created a microphone that picks up the full presence of your voice along with the bright tones but without all of the strong peaks of sibilance. That would be a game changer 4 sure!
Super thorough comparison, this was very helpful thank you!
Thanks so much glad I could help!
Wow, I wasn't expecting much difference, but the NT1-A sounds natural on her voice, and she sounds muddy through the SM7B.
Oh yeah totally different mics!
This comparison was soo good, Im glad I saw this vidio before picking one of them, definetely, I´ll go for the Rode for musical purposes
Great vidio!
Enjoy the Rode my friend!
i upgraded from a MXL 770 to a Nt1a for my music (i make really bassy/dark 808 filled rap music) and my friend has a sm7b that he uses solely because he doesn’t have a good recording environment. in post, even with my lower-frequency leaning music, the nt1a has been nothing but phenomenal to use
Nice!
Best video ive found when considering the two mics. Thank you! Purchasing the Rode.
Good stuff mate thanks for detailed info on both mics 👍
Glad you like it :)
Your voice makes both sound good so it's an unfair comparison :) Srsly tho excellent video, I appreciate the time you put into this, it was very very helpful 👊
bro the Nt1 imo is the best mic under 1000. like fuck! its flat tone is just amazing its so easy to work with it bc any preset will sound pretty much how the preset was intended to sound...
Yeah the flatness of the NT1 really helps So much!
SM7B sounded so more pleasant at high end for the female vocal imho. On NT1a it almost hurt my ear on more energetic parts.
Yeah I definitely think the NT1a can get a bit glassy
Great video and important topics. I use the NT-1 now on our female soprano singer as the NT-1A sounded so harsh in the highs.
I've never used a SM7B as I picked up an Aston Stealth, but still getting used to that as the gain is rediculous in active mode and I'm struggling getting it not to clip 😖
If your voice has sibilance is the rode nt1A recommended for voiceovers ? I am using a rode procaster but considering a rode nt1A cause my volume is not that much. I am a male btw but my voice has the occasional sibilance and click that i have to remove in post.
@@TheFinalRevelation1 For a normal voice over I'm sure the NT1A would be fine. My issue is with a female soprano singer who hits some quite high notes and sometimes with a lot of power.
I love the sound picked up by the Shure, but own the Rode. The road is a damn good mic though.
I’d sacrifice some room noise with the Rode in exchange for that self noise, vintage hissing sound the Shure makes. More definition and detail of the voice with the Rode too
Nice! That's definitely a good way to look at it :)
This vocalist is crazy good. Wow! Kudos.
WHERE'S THE BEEF?
No idea, btw please review the Hyper X solocast
It's all bunched up in the back of that nasty old can you call an SM7b, mister.
It's just so BEEF.
Good review of the two mics but I feel that the singer was hitting higher notes on the NT1-A and singing lower ones on the Shure SM7B, a fair comparison would to sing the same/exact phrases on both mics for more comprehensive review. Nevertheless, great content👍
I liked the clarity of the NT1A on the voice, but I feel like I would be eq’ing it until it sounded a lot like the sound of the SM7B. I’m not sure whether it would be easier to add what I want to the SM7B or to take away what I don’t want from the Rode. Guitar was absolutely no contest whatsoever IMO, with the Rode winning by a landslide. Unfortunately, I play guitar and I own the SM7B lol
Yeah the NT1a for me is a bit bright for my tastes (and not in the way I usually prefer, can be a bit harsh on voice) it is killer on acoustic though!
Ill trade you man, I dont play live instruments but man does this mic just pick up freaking everything
Just get an SM57 then.... :-P
But then again the CAD TSM411 is a snare mic but is sounds a bit better than an SM57.... and an SM57 sounds a bit better than an SM7b...
Any tips for equalizing the rode nt1a? You achieved quality vocals with soft shines, when I record hard and painful, other times I have a lot of bass despite recording properly, Thank you very much, sorry my English, great video.
I didn't do any EQ'ing in this one :) on mic reviews I don't really EQ the mics to represent them accurately, that being said room placement and vocal prep matters a lot to a good take! I have a video about that called "Mic position matters" or something to that effect that should help if you'd like to check it out :)
In terms of appearance, SM7B looks more attractive, In terms of sound especially vocals , I always lean towards to condenser Microphones.
Somehow i am more unsure, if i should buy the Shure.
Like, i own a NT1A but i love how the shure sounds, when someone with a deeper voice, talks into it.
I have a deep voice, but man.. 360 bucks.
I think it depends more on if you have any dynamic mics in your collection, if you don't both with help you in different ways. So you'll have a more flexible studio
The RODE NT1A sounds displeasingly shrill on loud vocal sections, thus making it a little jarring on the ears, while the SHURE SM7B maintained impeccable roundness at the high frequencies even in louder high-pitched vocal sections, thus producing a warm & rich & smooth tone all round.
Re Acoustic Guitar: I prefer the RODE NT1A. It gave a more natural, less-muddy sound, with impeccable low-mids clarity & exciting top-end sparkle.
excellent reviews. I have the nt1-a .. have had them for years.
The sm7b sounds like a great pick for my meditation videos.
So all I need is the sm7b & scarlet interface and I'm good to go? This can be used with audacity?
Nice review.. I own both.. Im a singer.. Love 'm both.. Depends on what im singing.. With soft voice the rode suites me better but With harder vocals the SM7b is the best.. Great voice at the end of the vid.. Love it.. 🎉
As someone who's owned both mics and I literally wanna sell my shure and get the rode nt1a back 😂. I have a cloudlifter but when it comes to recording a guitar that's quietly played, it's horrible. The vocals are very rugged. Yes, I'm no pro so I don't really know how to mix but that's my point. Rode nt1a sounded so much better and it was very easy to mix/record. It's so hard to record accoustic guitar with shure sm7b. Maybe cause it's I use Scarlett solo but, idk.
Looking for a microphone for my wife. These videos have been really helpful!
wow that voice is divine carolina 😍
Informative video txs. Just to wrap it up, were you saying that I could get the advantages of the Shure SM7b (in terms of shielding against noise) by buying the Behringer (or better MOTUm2 or whatever) and avoid a preamp (Cloudlifter or Fethead)? If I understand it correctly, my Phantom power, which I use between my condensor Microphone Headset and the piano (with the built in Audio interface: Steinberg Yamaha), can NOT work as a preamp. I looked it up, and it said, that the Phantom power is some extra current before the Preamp. Hmmm, I have not taken more time to dwell into this.
SO in short: SHure SM7b + Cloudlifter OR Shure SMb7 + Audio interface MOTU? THing is I have the Yamaha DGX 670 Digital piano's Audio interface already. But someone tried to convince me it would not be sufficient. COuld you clarify this please? ;-)
I swear the guitar segment is just Intra Venus by Ne Obliviscaris but slowed down.
Nice clip, thank you
I would like to ask you which microphone is the best between them for voiceover and audio content Nti 1A..sm7B
I would say SM7B is better for voice-overs and podcasting.
Completely different sound. SM7b would be right decision for some kind of music genres and type of voices. It makes almost ready sound.
But Rode takes more details on lows. And overall dynamics are better with this mic
I agree! Super different mics for different occasions and environments and voices
Forgive my ignorance, but instead of using a cloudlifter couldn’t you record at a lower level and then increase the clip gain afterwards? Or would the noise still be there?
Oh you absolutely could! Check out what Lajos said in one of the comments below this one. The only difference is some of us aren't working with recording audio so I try and keep them in mind.
Most people who subscribe here are audio engineers and musicians, but a bunch of other viewership is streamers and content creators just looking to buy a mic. Streamers especially don't have that capability, so I try and emphasis the levels situation under the assumption not every is working in post processing 🤷🏻♂️
@@AudioHaze Quite thoughtful
Fantastic! Thank you!!
Nice one. Carolina has sweet, airy vocals.
She definitely does :)
I have a deep bass male voice. My low tones are very punchy, but my high notes are not as pretty. Which one is the best for me? If I buy the sm7b, will my bass shine more but instead my treble will be more muted? Thank you!
Thank you for the great video. I'll keep it short, so that I waste as little of everyone's time as possible :) I'll be using my mic for YT videos, podcasts and voice overs, with a first generation Rodecaster Pro. My voice skews towards the lower range, and I'll recording from home in a moderate to low noise environment. Shure7B?
Her voice definitely sounded better with the Rode. I felt like it was a flatter frequency response over the whole range and could hear overtones
Melodious singer and handsome dude did a nice review. 😀
Thanks!!
I prefer the nt1 for ur vocals nd the female singer's vocals
Thank you so much !
Thanks for watching!
Have you done a comparison with the 5th gen NT1?
Comparison between At 2035 vs at 2020 vs rode nt1a vs rode nt1
I could do that!
You should compare D421, Tbone SC500 with Sm7b.
Lately I've been experimenting with simply recording lower. Now I might be completely noise-deaf, but there doesn't appear to be a whole bunch of difference between recording at proper levels and 20dB lower on at least the Presonus Studio 24c (and the scarlett 2i2). For live applications there isn't much of a workaround for proper gain, but would it make sense to do that and boost in post where there's no need for immediacy? I'm mostly poking around because even with the dynamite (and definitely the cloud lifter) sm7b falls into the 'exponential' final part of the gain knob. The lightest touch pushes it 12dB, very hard to nail.
I completely and 100% agree with you. There's nothing wrong with recording cold as long as its not too extreme. Boosting in post is always an option and doing so often saves you the risk of building up more noise floor than what is necessary (and clipping too!). I think the issue is not all of us are in the business of making music with microphones, or even processing audio at all. Lots of people want to use the SM7B for streaming and recording videos. Many people's approach is to plug in and hit record. The audio you hear in the video is the audio they are recording, exactly. Thats why I try and stress the levels situation. But to people in the business of processing audio, couldn't agree more.
It's an interesting situation because I find the individuals subscribing are typically audiophiles and engineers, but a large portion of viewership are just people in the market for a mic. So I have to straddle the line between audio tech talk and basic guidelines and concepts ya know?
@@AudioHaze I'm definitely in the enthusiast camp and if my wife's judgment is to be trusted, have all the microphones I will ever need. I'm here for the unfiltered opinion and to check out audio gear I would probably not pick up on my own (untreated room, condensers are _brutal_ to this place). Just for the laugh I put together an Sm57 with the presidential wind foam, an SE dynamite and a focusrite 2i2 to see what the noise levels are like with or without.
No activator: gain at 12 o'clock, boosted 41 !! dBa, noise level peaks at around -51dBa, whereas
se dynamite: gain same place, boosted 9-ish dBa, noise level peaks at around -50dBa. The noise sounds a smidge grittier without it, despite no measurable difference in levels, but I don't think it's actual self-noise, rather, it picks up my computer fans. I went and normalised both clips to -14 LUFS for youtube levels and for the life of me can't tell them apart, and that's an affordable interface at a sub-optimal setting boosted either 9 or 41 dBa on a microphone I'm not allowed to use for vocals. By the time the clips are through low-cut and a 2:1 compression to my ears they might as well be bit-equal. For my corporate meetings I'll keep using the cloudlifter (pearls, swine, etc.) for my own youtubing... might use the dynamite for portable recorders with more unforgiving noise levels but that's about it...
@@LajosNagy Nice test dude!! Just further proof there's so many different ways to do something :)
Will the avid mbox work with the sm7b ?
I'm shocked! Where do you find these beautiful people who sing so wonderfully? Carolina is incredible.
By the way, very interesting that you mentioned that Carolina doesn't like Sm7b because I immediately preferred it over NT1a. NT1a sounds good, but unremarkable and I really don't understand why people enjoy those pronounced highs. They rarely sound nice. Sm7b, on the other hand, gives Carolina incredibly nice sense of presence. More often than not the difference in sound doesn't make much impact. But here the difference is very noticeable. I heard it immediately on my PC speakers (not professional monitors, just entry level decent speakers for 100$) and then I even checked it on my headphones though audio interface.
I'm just a music enthusiast and a singer-songwriter. So, I don't have much expertise in music production. But my taste tells me that if a person already has naturally pronounced highs and less pronounced tender lows and mids they should use mic that would bring that part of the voice that is concealed to let it shine. NT1a does nothing for Carolina's voice. Sm7b makes it very charming and captivating.
I'd say it's, of course, more complicated. For example, my favorite female voice until this point was Soccer Mommy's voice. She has incredibly wonderful lows and some very interesting highs. You would want to compliment both sides of her voice. Sometimes a person (I think I fall into that category) has somewhat nice and interesting lows in their voice that should be accentuated more because otherwise the best part of their voice is "not there". But with that being said I think with Carolina the choice between these two mics is obvious. It's even painful for me to hear NT1a after Shure in this comparison lol.
By the way, the presence I mentioned earlier might has something to do with... yes, as you said many times, room treatment.
Haha she's my roommate! We both study at the same college. That's why its easy to find singers, lots of talented vocalists to show off here :)
and interesting! To be honest I enjoyed both microphones on her voice, but I struggled with the levels a little bit because the NT1a liked to peak higher than the Shure, I wonder if some of the harshness is caused by the varying dynamics of the NT1a? I've done sessions with Carolina before and found the SM7B to be too dark on her voice, but I agree with you in this video it has a nice presence that evens our her range nicely.
That's funny, I think the highs on the Rode sound way way more beautiful than the Shure. It sounds so much more powerful and full bodied, whereas the Shure almost tones down the power of the high notes and sounds less impressive. The Rode sounds WAY more pleasing to my ears!
I wonder if men's and women's ears are tuned to tolerate different frequencies?
I really love the shure sm7b but i cant afford it💔
Yeah even the used ones hold their value really well :/ the sm57 is an awesome alternative!
7:21 "these microphones" 🤣 forgot to add a fix subtitle for this haha
Hahha my b
My experience with noise with both mics are actually quite opposite, the Shure picks up more background noise. Whereas the rode doesn’t pick up a lot
Hm interesting, does the sm7 have a cloudlifter by chance?
@@AudioHaze yes it is connected to the cloud lifter, it probably does because I am an engineer and compress the hell of vocals lmao
@@mikeball4665 Ah that may do it, the added gain may pick up a lot as well, just guessin tho
@@mikeball4665 if the background sound is the issue reduce gain or take out cloud lifter all together. I had the same issue, Shure sm7b shouldn’t pick up that much noise being a dynamic mic
Actually i can hear room noise on sm7b and the nt1a is very quite.
interesting!
thank youuu
What about a Volt 276; for the sm7b?
what about the rode nt1 and the shuremv7x? im wondering which one i should get
Those are super different mics as well! Whats the purpose? Podcasting? Music production? Hows your room and environment?
amazing video thanks and amazing singer
Thank you so much!
Comparing the SM7 and the NT1a is like comparing lemons to brussel sprouts.
Yeah for sure I agree, thats why the name of the title is what it is :)
@@AudioHaze Yes, thank you. I've heard others claiming they were comparable too. It's lunacy.
Rode wins in terms of retention of sound fidelity. It just sounds clearer
Nice! Definitely much brighter
im a bit late but i truly dislike the quality of my vocals on the rode nt1-a, was thinking of upgrading to the sm7b but not sure if its worth it
Use SM 7b for Podcasts.
Use NT-1A for Singing-Vocals.
what mic pre are you using?
She sound great
Motu M2 is the goat
I almost understand the girl's singing😂😂
Haha nice, getting spanish lessons huh?
with SM7B what interface you used while recording this video.
Scarlett 18i20 2nd gen :)
Not a fan of the SM7 at all. It’s such a hype mic for people that want to sound like a radio DJ. Especially when they put their lips all the way to the foam. Put the SM7 on a kick drum or low tom and put the NT1 on the singer or acoustic guitar. Also look at the SSL 2 interface for a nice, quiet, pro-of ding preamp. 👍🏻
Nice recommendations!
“Pro-of ding”? “Pro-sounding” is what auto-correct stole from me. 😆
Qué canción es la que canta la chica al último?
I sadly saw the shure mic is not connected 😮
Great singer!
NT1A win
Shure so much fuller and ... industry standard-y... like, it sound familiar
Hi, I was about to buy the sm7b.... but what is that white noise when you use it? The nt1A sounds so clear without the hiss
That would be due to the need to crank the preamps in order to bring the sm7b to proper levels. The cloudlifter section of this video talks about that. Specifically, the Motu M2 should have enough gain where this wouldn't be a problem (although I don't own one personally so I can't speak to personal experience). I also have another video where I discuss alternative microphones that don't have this issue: ruclips.net/video/PFba93OLLig/видео.html
Hope that helps :)
My focusrite solo 3rd gen has hissing issues if I bump the gain to near max. My friends in discord be like, "bro your mic" and I'm like what? And turns out it's making a hissing sound. Sucks. Wish I could turn it up to audible levels without having to have noise or hissing.
Hm, what mic are using with it?
@@AudioHaze totally forgot to mention sm7b even though my whole comment regarded it 🤣
Put a windscreen on the NT1 and see what happens.
The air boost on NT1A is annoying
Yeah definitely not for everyone I know
sm 7b more warm and thick in the mix
has anybody tried the Klark Teknik mic booster? They are only $35.
I haven't but thanks for the info!
Wow nice voice 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
out of the topic, i all in love to her...
nt1 a putting all room sound in record. sm7b more clean. if you have a acoustic room nt1 a good. i have a one but i like sm7b sound. because nt1a high sounds and mouth sounds not good for me.
rode nt 1 a have a light sound
Most people have a fake sm7b ill lut money that is a fake sm7b
O, also you can get a rep shure and cloudlifter for about 180$
whoa she prefers the NT1A??? Thats crazy. . . Guess sound is really subjective.
Indeed it is :)
Worth pointing out that you weren't speaking as close into the NT1 as you were into the SM7B.
The Sm7b's capsule is further back from the mouth, it's at the very start of the windscreen, not the tip, could be the reason why