BehringerXM8500 Ultravoice Dynamic Cardioid Vocal Microphone

Last year I was commissioned to produce an Album. Mic'ed up the Drum Kit with appropriate Mics for Bass Drum and Snare etc, then used a couple of Shure SM58s for Toms and fill. The recording sessions went fine save for one of the SM58s getting broken! They ain't cheap to replace, and I prefer to keep them back for Vocals etc. Not wanting to fork out for another SM58 to use on Drums, I searched around and discovered these. At that price I thought I'd give them a go. Guess what? Barely any discernible difference in the recordings. They are well built, no frill, good reproduction sound and the nearest I've found to the increasingly expensive SM58s. At this price - perfect for general workhorse tasks in the Studio and on Stage. Fine for live Vocal work. Maybe not the shimmer of a Shure SM58 Beta, but they give ordinary SM58s a run for there money. A good investment for newbies Singers too.I have a fair bit of Behringer stuff, normally bought where I anticipate gear might get damaged; i.e. Live. I have a Behringer Bass Combo - reliable as hell; a Studio Pro FX Unit bought 20 years ago, and my Lexicon takes Second place to it when doing Re Mastering Work. Recently I bought a Behringer Neutron Analogue Synth - brilliant. I have a Moog Prodigy, a Roland SH1000 and a Novation Bass Station -it's up there with them in terms of sound, but more reliable. What I'm saying is, if you are a 'Brand' person, and have the money, then buy your preferred Brand. But if you want something to do the job at a decent price, then give these serious consideration

The Behringer Ultravoice XM8500 is virtually as good as a Shure SM58. I own both and although the SM58 has a slight edge in performance it is marginal, when the price is taken into account £100 for the SM58 £15 for the XM8500 you can see why this XM8500 gets great reviews, just take a look on YouTube. I tried them back to back and the XM8500 performs superbly I would gig with this microphone without hesitation. It has slightly more gain than the SM58 at the same gain settings so sounds louder without distortion. Highly recommend a true bargain and the foam inlay hard plastic case offers secure protection.Having used the XM8500 for a couple of days now I have a few extra observations compared to the SM58. As mentioned before the XM is more sensitive (louder) than the SM58 and the XM has a bit more bass response where as the SM has slightly more emphasis on mids and highs, so they have slightly different characteristics, both sound really good, just a bit different. I have compared these two microphones back to back, but used in isolation both mics are really good and in a live setting I would be happy with either, 99% of any audience would not distinguish any difference between them.

Updated Review:Since I wrote my first review I've been listening to a lot more dynamic mics on reference headphones (so the flaws have nowhere to hide). I've listened to a lot of other SM58 clones of varying quality (one by Chord is worth a look). I've also been listening to more expensive dynamics e.g. SM7b, Rode Procaster and the Beyer M201.Why only 4/5? The handling noise. If you are using in a stand, then consider this a 5/5.My B+ 85% rating was partly my amazement you could get a half decent mic at this price point! If it cost £100 rather than £15 I'd be more critical. I stand by my original review because price is relevant for most people. BTW the study construction is still holding up well.XM8500 Review:This is a competent vocal microphone for a surprisingly low price. Taken on its own terms, ignoring price, this is an ok mic with excellent construction, ideal for something like a podcast or backing vocals. When I use the term "ok" I mean that it doesn't have any glaring problems, but it isn't stunning (other than the price). It is a good choice for rooms that have not been acoustically treated. It doesn't pick up much noise from the sides or behind, so that minimises echo or feedback if using with a PA system.Is it as good as the industry standard hand-held dynamic vocal mic, the Shure SM58? Not quite, but surprisingly close...* The bass proximity effect is slightly more evident, so it booms a bit if very close (especially male voices).* The mid-range is slightly less distinct than the SM58, but can be fixed with EQ. In general I don't like mics to require EQ to sound right, but it's relatively minor.* There is marginally more handling noise than with the SM58, but it is a non issue with a stand or boom arm.* Much like the SM58 it doesn't handle plosive sounds ("p" and "b") very well. The easy solution is a foam pop filter on the mic. Foam pop filters are cheap, like a couple of quid (or less if you get a few).Technically it's better to stop the pop sound before it reaches the mic, so if the mic is on a stand in a home studio, putting a pop filter in front works well. However the convenience of the foam option may suit more people.With those points I am being VERY picky and noticed them in a side by side comparison with SM58.+ Good for noisy environments and rejecting off axis sound (i.e. noise from behind/sides)+ Warm vocals+ Relatively clean audio+ Very solid construction in metal housing (feels similar to Shure SM58)Good choice for a podcast, mobile DJ, home studio, schools/universities. In top end professional work the SM58 is the industry standard and to some extent "expected" if you are playing gigs. However, with the money saved you can buy a decent mic stand and think about whether you want a mixer, or audio interface for feeding the sound into your computer.Yes the Shure SM58 is a bit better, but not 5x better! This is a classic example of diminishing returns. All the weaknesses can be worked around. That said the SM58 has been surpassed with some great mics from Seinhesier and AKG's D5 (at the mid point between this mic and the SM58). But if you are on a budget then this is the best "cheap mic" you're likely to find.My photo shows the Behringer (left) next to a Shure SM58 (right) for the purposes of comparison. The foam pop filter to the left fits either mic.