Shure SM48 Handheld Dynamic Vocal Microphone

Whether you are a motivational speaker, have a podcast or are the lead singer in a rock band. This could be your microphone! Produces a GREAT sound for a disrespectfully small amount of money. Don’t know how they do it but shove your money in their hand and take off running! Great product at a good price point. One of the last true values out there. It’s a wired mic, that’s fine.. Don’t be prissy about it. Wireless is not a necessity for “all” people. Every mic I ever saw growing up was wired. If it was good enough for Bruce Springsteen and Martin Luther King, it’s good enough for you doing much less important things. Those of you who are audio engineers and can tell the ever so slight difference between mics and small incremental adjustments in sound levels. Then get the $750 mic that you’ve been looking at. For people that only have a small budget and aren’t recording or want it to be wireless or to do things with sound regular people don’t even know how to do. This is more than sufficient. I use mine with a broadcast speaker to share the Gospel of Christ, speaking and for singers to sing and the sound is warm and beautiful. Sounds like it cost 10x more than it did.

I picked up this mic because I am doing sound for a live music web series featuring solo artists all the way up to 5 and 6 piece bands. At first I bought it thinking I would upgrade later to an SM58 when I got some more cash, but honestly I am incredibly pleased with the performance of this microphone and won't be replacing it anytime soon. I read somewhere that this mic is actually better suited to recording purposes because it doesn't have a transformer built in like the SM58. Whether or not it makes a difference, I can say that it seems easier to fit in the mix than an SM58 to me. I borrowed a friends 58 to compare and I came up with an interesting conclusion. The SM48 seems to fit better in the mix with less effort. I just high pass around 180 hz and slightly boost top end around 4k to give it a little more air. It comes out smooth as butter.. With the SM58 I found myself wanting to cut a lot of mid range out because it was almost overbearing. To me, all of this makes perfect sense when discussing qualifications for a live vocal mic used by a lead singer. You would normally want that extra mid range presence in a live setting, but for recording the SM48 wins in my book. Other than sound, the main selling point is value. I expected mediocre results with this mic, especially since I picked it up for $30 but it has absolutely blown me away. I am going to buying at least 2 more in case I come across an artist with several vocalists. The build quality is also great. It's a Shure microphone, and I've never seen a poorly made Shure. For an example of the microphone in use in a live recording, check out this video: [...]

I’ve owned this microphone for over a year and have been totally satisfied. First I purchased a PGA48 for the same price, but the noise coming from handling it was bad, so I returned it. This is well insulated and sturdy…I’ve used the legendary SM58 for years and honestly I can’t find much difference when I use this that costs half the price.

First impressions—My first impression of this microphone is that it is built really well. It has a good weight to it so you know right away that even though it’s a lower cost mic, it is not a cheaply built mic. The good—The first thing I will say is that it is obviously about half the price of a Shure SM 58 mic which is why I bought it. I own both a Shure SM 58 and now a SHURE SM 48. Both have a great sound to them and a quality look and feel. I feel The SM 58 is a little more responsive when it comes to sensitivity. I like a sensitive mic and a lot of gain. I don’t like to have to have to push too hard when I sing. I sing country music and the SM 58 just seems to get it right for me. The could be better part—As I was saying above. It could be a good thing as well. The mic is not as sensitive as the SM 58 but if you are a singer that doesn’t need a mic that is super powerful or you turn your mixer up than it won’t really matter anyway. If an additional 50 dollars is worth having a sensitive mic than maybe this is not the mic for you. But if you are looking for a budget friendly mic with a great reputation behind it than I would go with this mic.

The first SM48 I received from Amazon was defective. Amazon promptly sent me a replacement after I returned the bad one. Great job Amazon! I had my replacement the next day! The replacement is working great and it sounds pretty good for a budget mic. I never expected this mic to be a high end microphone at this price point but for what it is I'm pleased with the sound quality. I run it into an old Symetrix 528E voice processor and the two work well together. I do not need a preamp for the SM48 to drive the 528. This mic would be ideal for a church that needs good PA mics on a budget or even a band that's just starting out. Although there is a slight difference in sound quality between the SM48 and it's famous big brother the SM58, most people won't hear it on a PA system or in a live setting. If budget is not a concern, get the SM58, but if your money is tight but you need a decent mic, this will do the job nicely for you.

Tride and true microphone. This is the blueprint of dynamic mics. I couldn't notice a difference between the 48 and the 58.

I have used many different microphones for instruction videos, and podcasts. For the majority of voices the Shure SM-48 is the best bang for your buck. It has a very clear sound. I would suggest it to anyone looking for a quality XLR mic on a budget.

La plupart des personnes connaissent le Shure SM58 et pour avoir tester les 2 produits, j'ai constaté que le produit était le même. Je n'ai pas vraiment vu de différence entre-eux et pour quasiment le même prix, je conseille ce micro. L'emballe est tout de même compliqué à ouvrir mais au moins il n'est pas prêt d'arrivé en mauvaise état. Testé en studio.

I have not heard the difference in sound even side by side with SM58 ...the only difference is the you have to put a little more gain.

Best choice within budget is sure

I use this microphone for public announcing at dragon boat events and for a little karaoke in the garage once in a while. It feels good in your hand and it has some weight to it. It sounds great with my QSC K12 powered speakers.