SM 7 B : Very pleased

I've used my SM7B in my home studio for vocal recording and for some live recordings too. It sounds full and smooth and has a very high quality reproduction of the vocal sound. It has a tight cardioid pattern and the off axis bleed doesn't sound half bad so it's suitable for live recording. I encourage vocalists to sing fairly close to the mic in live recording situations and it handles this well without excessive proximity effect or popping. You will need to give it a lot of gain, so you need a decent preamp both live and in the studio. My only dislike is that the vocal sounds ready-compressed. This works fine if you are recording certain types of music like rock, or pop, but I find that aspect unsuitable for folk or country songs where you can lose a little of the expression of the vocalist and I prefer to use a condenser for these sessions. I also found some vocalists reluctant to sing through it for live recording, simply because it looks clunky. Overall though, this is a great mic to have in your armoury and it's not too expensive either.