Behringer XM1800s vs Shure SM58

One costs $100, and the other is under $20.
One is the gold standard for handheld mics, and the other...well...is under $20.
Can the cheapest possible microphone actually compete with the rugged Shure SM58?
I guess we will find out...and this might shock you.
US Links -
Buy the Shure Sm58 - amzn.to/3dmtRhm
Buy the Behringer XM1800s - amzn.to/34Tsp22
Canada Links -
Buy the Shure SM58 - amzn.to/3lxHr4u
Buy the Behringer XM1800s - amzn.to/33SlPK9
UK Links -
Buy the Shure SM58 - amzn.to/2SVn4Sh
Buy the Behringer XM1800s - amzn.to/2GWADhV
My Patreon - www.patreon.com/user?u=28535375
Time Stamps
00:00 Intro
01:25 Differences Between Mics
02:45 Capsule Differences
03:18 Wiring Differences
04:17 Capsule Comparison
04:38 Handheld Comparison
06:01 Who Should Buy This Mic
06:31 Treated Audio Mic Comparison
07:32 Should You Buy?
08:19 Outro
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My Gear -
Mics - RODE NT2A - amzn.to/2WWQTnn
- TZ Audio Products Stellar X2 - amzn.to/3gHTj0X
Mixer - Arturia Audiofuse Studio - amzn.to/33kSBnq
Secondary Boom Arm - amzn.to/2WBhveB
Camera - Canon T7i - amzn.to/2X3yTYi
Lenses - Canon 50mm 1.8 - amzn.to/2LxiI0k
Canon 24mm 2.8 - amzn.to/2zF96Ok

[@TheMarc1k1]

Amazingly helpful! Thank you for helping me reach a conclusion on these Behringer mics, looking at the stupidly good cost of three of the XM1800's I could hardly believe it was true, assuming they sounded any good, your video essentially confirms that they'll be really useful for exactly my purposes.

[@snockmusic666]

Don't really care what this guy is talking about, just love his voice so much...

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Awww...thanks! One of the benefits of being a voice for hire! Cheers and thanks for watching!!

[@kenmecone8010]

Of all the channels I track for mic reviews, I find yours the most informative, and fun. I use an SM58 and an SM57 for voice and instrument recording for my podcasts and music stingers.

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Thank you! That is some high praise. Thanks for hanging out and watching! Cheers!!

[@TheMaijicalKingdom]

When you spring for the SM-58, just know, it’ll be around for the next couple of decades, and it’s resale value is guaranteed!!!

[@EvertonSebben]

So true!

[@mikemeengs5720]

Yup...even after getting dropped dozens of times.

[@KenTeel]

Resale value ? .... it's a hundred dollar mic.

[@christianmejia4839]

AWESOME and very informative. Thank you!

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Thanks for watching!!

[@danielrickettsmusic]

I bought Behringer a Europort speaker system and realized that they give you one of these microphones as a package deal. I agree with you, I can’t tell a huge difference between my 58 and this Behringer Mic when I singing to it…. And I didn’t have to change anything with EQ or levels or anything.

[@lincolnvandegriff]

After listening to this on my phone speakers, I looked at the comments to see if I was right after my preference to mic A being the higher quality Shure, and I was surprised to see that mic A was the cheaper mic. I checked it out on my headphones and sure enough, mic A did sound flatter, and I preferred mic B. Awesome comparison, keep up the great content!

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Thanks man! Thanks for watching!!

[@anthonyderuyver6995]

I heard in a split second that B was the shure, I am listening on studio monitors though

[@BadChizzle]

Mic battles are fun... and get a lot of views. I remember when the Neewer NW700 came out. Everyone was doing shootouts. Some still do. Also... the Pyle PDMIC78 and their 58 clones were big sellers. Fun stuff! Guys are still putting the Pyle 57 on drums, as you can cover snare and toms on your kit very inexpensively. Also... a situation where handling noise is a non factor. Though, in that area, the Pyle mics do pretty well. On another subject, It surprised me to learn many well known “higher” end mics have no transformer. Some... like the 7B sound great, but don’t have such a low output, as the capsules generate much more output. Mics are in general a fascinating subject. So many out there these days... Thanks for the video!

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Cheers! Yeah...there is also a lot of misinformation out there about mics and quality. People like to get it in their head that the more they spend...the quality goes up by the same amount. Mics are finicky...and are a lot closer than people realize. Especially if their audience is consuming their content through earbuds. Its the flavour of the mic that matters...not the price

[@BadChizzle]

@@DarkCornerStudios Many engineer/producers would agree, given that they still almost all preach getting the right sound at the source before tweaking. Flavor matters!

[@Gearjunkie35]

Behringer is noticeably brighter. Shure has a low end bump. For stationary mic stand recording on guitar amps might be more noticeable. Thanks for doing this. Very well done

[@BadWilf]

Loving the videos. Subscribed 👍

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Thanks Wilf!

[@mespap273]

Good Review, Man !!! 👍👍👍

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Cheers!!

[@jeffreysturgill7668]

Thank you it was quite helpful, need mics for a small open mic that things could sometimes disappear from yet still wanted a reasonable service from

[@_LadyLuciana]

Woah that handling noise test at 05:14 was all I needed to decide. I’ll pay the $99 lol

[@bionicbastard]

Couldn't hear you at first....Both mics were too quiet. I had hit the mute button on my end. I can tell you, however, when muted both microphones sound the same. 〰️Wow! I chose mic B! Amazing!

[@Crustaceous]

Hey Aiden! Long time no see! I always love watching your videos when I need to relax. Still love that voice of yours 😊

[@DarkCornerStudios]

lol...thanks man! Should start a line of yoga videos and such...or some sort of relaxation line...

[@Crustaceous]

@@DarkCornerStudios I'm not into ASMR but I know alot of people into that kind of thing. Lol

[@DarkCornerStudios]

@@Crustaceous I thought about it...I have done some "audiobooks"...bahaha

[@Crustaceous]

@@DarkCornerStudios hey man times are tough and you gotta get bread on the table. You do what you must 😂

[@ThatGuyShannon]

great comparison... and a way to isolate the "handling noise" a bit on the Behringer is to actually melt wax into the base like the Shure has. It will actually absorb much of that noise (it will still be there of course, but much less). Costs maybe a dollar for a cheap candle and you will actually improve that issue immensely.

[@CJ-sw8lc]

Thanks for the review! Do you think the Behringer would work okay for recording tambourine and shaker parts for a rock album, or is that a terrible idea...??

[@DarkCornerStudios]

That's a great question. Give it a shot...see what happens. I shall get my tambourine and shaker tests ready for my next review... Lol. Good luck!

[@velvetonecustomshop5026]

Tambourine is notoriously hard to record! Ribbon mics do the best job, small diaphragm condensers tend to do the worst.. if you wrap some fabric over the behringer (or other dynamic) it kills the presence boost a little… I use a wool sock :) unless your room is god awful, don’t get very close to the mic with tambourine. Try off axis of the polar pattern a bit… tambourine should sound natural as possible. Good luck!

[@Gearjunkie35]

Just scored 2 XM1800s" with case for $29 delivered. Camt wait to blend it with the SM57...the low bump n presemce here may balance the 57.. Thanks for the review.

[@robbiesworld9156]

You and Podcastage are without a doubt my go-to reviewers on all things microphone. 👍🏾

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Amazing! That is fantastic to be mentioned along side of Podcastage He is legend

[@s.e.m8202]

Is the XM1800s considered to be a high impedance output microphone?

[@dooshmasta]

I wonder if you fill the behringer with wax it would reduce the handling noise.

[@christiansass]

good stuff... I come looking for a neat worker bee vs stellar x2 comparison but this has me intrigued and wanting to see you make a SM7b :)

[@DarkCornerStudios]

That video is VERY soon...got the gear all ready to go!

[@florispoignie]

I would say, de MIC B sounds better after eq, but which one is it? Nice test!

[@Alan11Al]

Hi Dark Corner, I have Shure SM58 and Shure PGA58 and I want to record perfect quality using Zoom H6. However, I want to know what is the optimum filter setting for podcasts on the Zoom H6 in terms of compressor/limiter/etc effects builtin with the device. I would appreciate the efforts in advance. Thanks.

[@h.r.t.s9627]

I'm not an audio expert and don't have a Zoom H6 but these are settings that usually work for spoken word situations: I'd say try to set your compressor threshold ay something like -18 or -16 db with an attack at 5 - 10ms and release of 60-100ms. Your volume should be around -12 to 6 db so set a limiter at -1 so you never clip no matter how loud you are. In terms of EQ, seatch up sm58 eq settings and tweak them to your voice but keep in mind that you should try to cut frequencies you don't like before boosting ones you do.

[@SPben2308]

For live music behringer for vocalist is it gonna be ok? Or better go for shure. Im currently buying for low budget church.

[@DarkCornerStudios]

I know a lot of people that are happy with their behringer. I wouldn't get anything other than the xm8500 though...the xm1800s is horrible.

[@colauty2598]

Band i were in, lead singer had his own sm58, the other 3 xm1800s super cardoid mics were backing vox and a whistle, they never made the horrendus noise on handling like the one on here, however, they were used on stands, we hada couple Cd's live, and they they held up well, I bought a sennheiser e845 couple months back its buggered aaarggh, the xm1800s after years of use are all still going, sods law 😊, -

[@DJUwU]

*very noticeable to me. I was even able to hear the switches in between comparisons without on screen display of which mic was which. Shure sounds much cleaner if you are doing live work for very talented singers. Behringer is well worth it if you are just doing podcast and twitch stuff*

[@IC4nia]

Dark Corner chief, how about the differences when recording outdoors or in an acoustically-unattended room/environment? (10x for your video and correspondence bud!)

[@DarkCornerStudios]

I will take those tests into consideration!

[@MrLfarah]

At 5:00. Shure has the cardioid pattern. The Berihnguer has the super cardioid pattern. That's why we noticed the difference. Another point I noticed is that in 90% of your video, your mouth is always in the direction of Shure. You speak with your head turned to the right.

[@randykendrick2351]

The law of diminishing returns apply to mics as well.

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Mose do than most things! Cheers and thanks for watching!

[@Jessie_Jungle]

What have you done with your sound recorded from XM mic to sound so clear??

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Nothing... When I do work the audio...an eq...and some light compression

[@Jessie_Jungle]

@@DarkCornerStudios but thats what u have actually said in the video - Treat them, Turning knobs... Cause I have exactly same mic, but obviously, sound is not so good.

[@thedillonsmith1]

That handling noise from the XM1800s is burned into my brain lol. I've been using that mic for everything for about 6 years now

[@leewightman8619]

I have an xm800s got it from my friend he had a pack of 3 so gave me one iv not used it yet but I have tested it out it sounded not to bad

[@DarkCornerStudios]

This video is almost at 100 likes. Guess I am gonna be tearing apart my SM58...lol

[@HeinrichFreimann]

?

[@HeinrichFreimann]

What about XM8500 ?

[@DarkCornerStudios]

@@HeinrichFreimann I have been meaning to get my hands on an xm8500 for quite some time. I will do that soon and put together a comparison video soon! Cheers and thanks for watching!

[@GodOfMetal103]

can you show the sm58 vs Sennheiser E-845S dynamic mic or just Sennheiser E-845

[@DarkCornerStudios]

It is on the list!

[@GodOfMetal103]

Nice

[@georgephiri8974]

are the behringer mics good for podcasts?

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Yeah...they will do...though not if you are handling them. I would go for the xm8500 over the 1800s though. The 1800s was really a bad sounding mic

[@davidsillars3181]

I can't give this 500 likes,I would if I could. I got the Behringer and have to say I don't get that much handling noise. The cable I've been using was made by the BBC test room for an akg that I used with the Sony Pro Walkman. Someone "borrowed " the akg ,a standard bcast mic in the 80s, can't remember the number, so I wanted an interview mic to plug into my field recorder. The Behringer is very quiet but incredibly clean, ie no audible self noise even at high gain. I'm impressed with it. Here it's 15 pounds Sterling, I mean Aiden! that's outstanding value. I'm sure the Sure, (sorry I can't help being a smart ass) is a "better" mic in many respects but for budget no worries if you loose it, the dog eats it, your guest is sick over it , I say get it! Okay have to go help with someone's Spanish home work. Hasta la vista baby! Oh your production values,your presentation skills are a quality benchmark. I hate you. Xxx

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Sorry to disappoint you...lol. Its true...the more you spend on equipment is more of a statement of your ability to spend money than it is your overall sound. I do love these things...but I am curious why mine has such horrible handling noise...I have a pack of 4...and they are all the same. Perhaps a bad batch?

[@davidsillars3181]

@@DarkCornerStudios I'm going to check mine again. The cable is pretty fancy and I have tested the mic on the field recorder and really didn't notice any handling noise. Of course there could well be variations in batches with Chinese made gear. I might get the Shure next Audible royalty if there's any spare cash! 😭

[@DarkCornerStudios]

@@davidsillars3181 We used them as a 3rd mic at the station when we had interviews...almost impossible to get that noise out in post.

[@conartist267]

I know the 1800 made more noise but you were moving your figures up n down more. Your hands were static on the sm58

[@dylanlalondemusic]

Phew... the high frequency detail on that behringer mic is making me nauseous! It is really not reacting very well to your sibilance. The little bump it's giving reminds me a lot of what it sounds like when you've got a slight phase cancellation issue. I'm noticing a bit of a difference on the low end as well but the high-end is really what's been drawing all of my attention. Definitely prefer the sound of the 58, hands down. Though for the price... it would be hard to blast someone for buying the XM1800S over it.

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Yeah...didnt want to stomp that in post. had to let the purity shine through...lol. All around it isnt bad though...and yeah...probably not the test to drop the de-esser from my prod chain

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Also...not fair using YOUR ears for these tests...bahahaha

[@user-zp4br5nq3r]

Huge difference in sound imo

[@Epicdude012]

mic b is the sm58?

[@justinvlogs4590]

Blind guess is that mic b is the sm58.

[@lylyluvda916]

DSLR Shooter sent me here. Thanks for this! Subbed to you, too

[@williampercival3472]

VONYX VX 1800 dynamic microphone 🎤 is excellent

[@beanman2206]

To me the shure has a much nicer top end and better overall clarity

[@Firas_Patov]

I guess (A) mic is the behringer, the letters (T & SH) are kinda different and little annoying for my ears,, btw im listening from the speakers of mobile phone.

[@CHRADIO100]

very good 1800 s

[@MA-iridium]

Immediately I can say Mic B is the Shure... if it is not I am out of the singing business!😄

[@CornelLazar]

My guess is that mic B is SM58

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Good guess...what gave it away?

[@dk-records]

@@DarkCornerStudios the low end is a bit more present

[@sounddesires8506]

its totaly obv as its way more balanced. and totaly cheesy strategy to get comments... just give the a b answer.. we are here to get info on the comparison.. not to waste time

[@7Wolfleader]

@@sounddesires8506 Dude, if you can't hear the difference between the two, there is no reason to go up in price. That's the whole point of these comparisons. Otherwise, if you just want to be handheld into a desicion, just buy the most expensive gear you can get. It is pretty obvious that the more expensive kit will be better. But keep in mind that diminishing returns is huge, especially in audio gear, thus the true reason of comparing products with a huge (1:5) price percentage difference.

[@yoitzdiggychannel3042]

it been hit 500

[@gillihansmobilewelding]

The transformer does not boost the signal. It matches impedance, cleans the signal, and maintains rolloff frequency. 😮

[@DarkCornerStudios]

It's really easy to get the answer to this by going to the Shure website. In their knowledge section is a bunch on transformers. And yes...they are used to step up voltage...as well as impedance

[@gillihansmobilewelding]

@@DarkCornerStudios Mains transformers are used to step up voltage. The 57 and 58 do not. Otherwise, when everyone who insists on ruining their 57 and 58 by doing the youtube mic mod, the gain level would drop, and it does not. In fact, it gets louder because the abrupt hi-cut is gone. Try it for yourself.

[@DarkCornerStudios]

@@gillihansmobilewelding I did...and yeah...it did. I LITERALLY have a video on it

[@gillihansmobilewelding]

@@DarkCornerStudios NO

[@Hakucho64]

Guessing mic A is the Behringer.

[@kutnersuicide]

Late to the party but the 58 isn't the gold standard. It's an ok mic. The reason it's still so popular is only because of the sturdiness.

[@dogmosatchmo]

If 98% of recording and performing artists use the SM58 and have for decades, it is literally the definition of gold standard. No matter what you tell yourself.

[@kutnersuicide]

@@dogmosatchmo Well make that 50% (being generous) of performing artists and 5% of recording artists and you'd have a clearer picture of reality.

[@kutnersuicide]

​@@dogmosatchmo Make that 50% of performing artists and 5% of recording artists and you'll have a more realistic picture of the numbers.

[@kutnersuicide]

More like 50% of performing artists (being generous) and 5% of recording artists.

[@kutnersuicide]

Make it 50% performing and 5% recording...

[@Mismo619]

Liked and sub

[@silanceksav4684]

B is shure

[@thethunderbulll]

Mic B sm58 mic A behringer....

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Not sayin you are right or wrong to start...lol Just gonna let this one hang here for a bit

[@thethunderbulll]

If i would be wrong then no one should purchase sm58!!😂... Anyway, there was significant difference was there even non edited version....

[@DarkCornerStudios]

@@thethunderbulll You consider that significant?

[@thethunderbulll]

@@DarkCornerStudios not in proportion to the price but, definitely considerable while listening... But i m not an expert... Clarity of voice was better in sm58... Also would love to see comparison of sm58 va xm8500

[@DarkCornerStudios]

@@thethunderbulll Working on that one... As for quality between the two...as a content creator, without direct comparison...do you actually think the differential actually matters? ESPECIALLY for a podcaster...who is probably mixing the final audio down to 96kbps?

[@Ramss_Oficial]

B sounds better

[@user-zi8bm9fx1t]

Take respect from Russia

[@user-dr5ou5fs6p]

Vodka, seliodka, valenky!)

[@supreme3376]

Ok shure have that thing inside whose protect inside components behriger is empty

[@DarkCornerStudios]

There are no components inside the behringer

[@supreme3376]

@@DarkCornerStudios I whas ment that Glue stuff what is in shure

[@Infinity9_]

69th comment hehe

[@DarkCornerStudios]

Nice!

[@coldhardtruth333]

It’s not..

[@choosers5177]

Ypu keep your mouth tilted to the sure.