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What type of mics are you guys using on the congas? I use SM57's and LP/Shure claws and have been pleased with the sound, but the 57's are not holding up very well at all. The heads on the mics are getting loose and if you attatch it to anything that vibrates/resonates (a conga), you hear it rattling in the speakers (not good). Repair work isn't much cheaper than buying a new mic, so I was looking at other alternatives. How about a Shure Beta 56? They are pretty expensive. What else is out there?

kmmurrdog,
SM57 is the defacto industry mic for not falling apart. You can hammer a nail with it.
I find it odd that they would give you that vibration. Have you tried putting some tape or something in there too isolate the vibration?
SM57 are known for congas and percussion for live. Alot of studios use them for recording too but IMO there are so much better alternatives.
I have used: 421(Sennheiser)they are known to be good for congas-especially segun and tumba, 408(Electro Voice) give good nuances-new model is 468? D2,D3 (Audix) these are kinda like the EV's(sound wise).
Try Sennheiser e604, you can beat it with a stick without breaking, and they sound great!!
Those are dynamic mics, that are most used for live (cheap, indestructible, sound good), but you can also try condensors too. They are used more in the studio because they capture more across the frequency, and is said to capture more transients. They are more expensive and are more fragile.
Mainly they come in 2 catagories: LD large diaghram and SD small diaghram. SD gives you more flat & accurate translation

with the possibilty of more noise and less volume.
LD gives you more flattery and volume level, but not as accurate.

I have used the mic claws too, and found they do vibrate somewhat, especially on the quinto if you play with it tilted. If you can , a stand would be much better.

Tony



Edited By Tonio on Sep. 08 2003 at 18:46

sorry everyone...just realized that I posted this in the wrong forum. Oh well...

In terms of the claw, I like the added bass response you get having the mic attached to the drum. Sure, it is a little artificial, but when I'm playing with just myself and an acoustic guitar, I need every bit of low end I can get out of my bass strokes.

I have put a strip of electrical tape around the head of the mic on one or two of them...I can't really tell you how it affected the sound. I haven't paid enough attention. If I used a stand in place of the claw it probably wouldn't be an issue since it wouldn't be vibarting with the drum.

Has no one else had this problem? I know plenty of folks must be using 57's on claws, right? I don't think I'm that hard on my mics.

The Beta 56 is looking very attractive, but they run $150. Ouch.

KM

Hey Kmmurrdog, I use the SHURE SM57's. The head of the mic come that way. I thought that I had a defected mic, but the sales person of SamAsh told me that's the way they are. As stated, SM57's are made especially for percussion instruments. I hear at lot of people complain about the claws not clamping properly or moving around the drum, maybe you should use a mic stand. I assume you use two mic's. I only use one with a stand in the middle the conga and tumba and it sounds great!