Today we’re looking at two competitors, the RE20 vs SM7B. Both are celebrated mics, often used similarly for radio, podcast, and voiceover. That’s not all they can handle, though, with the RE20 becoming a a favorite on low-end instruments like bass guitar or kick drum. The SM7B is a common mic for vocals, especially aggressive styles like rap or metal, and it’s even sometimes used on guitar amps.
We’ll compare the two and see which is the better all-around option for your home studio!
Electro-Voice RE20
The RE20 is undoubtedly one of the most recognized broadcast microphones ever made. It debuted in 1969 and was initially meant as an alternative to condenser mics for movie sound and recording. Thanks to some very clever design features, however, broadcasters discovered the RE20 was perfect for clean, crisp voice capture.
Part of what makes the RE20 ideal for broadcast is its Variable-D technology that’s able to mitigate proximity effect and a substantial internal pop filter. That means a radio personality can get in close to the mic without introducing boomy lows or accentuating plosives. This, and the RE20’s ability to withstand extremely high SPLs, also make it an excellent mic for bass amps and kick drum. The low-end reproduction is second to none, without any of the muddiness that comes from proximity effect.
The overall frequency response enhances the low end spectrum, flattering any vocalist using it with additional richness and warmth. The mids are slightly dipped between 400 Hz up to 5k, and there’s a gentle bump starting at 5 kHz and extending all the way to 18 kHz. This creates pleasant brightness that is, again, extremely flattering on anyone’s voice. To summarize the sound you’re going to get out of an RE20, it will be pronounced lows and highs, which tends to always sound great.
As far as build quality goes, the RE20 is a rugged, all-metal design. There shouldn’t be any reservations as they pertain to durability and quality assurance.
At a glance:
- Price: $399 – $450
- Polar Pattern: Cardioid
- Frequency Response: 45 Hz – 18 kHz
- Type: Dynamic
Shure SM7B
The SM7B‘s origins go back to 1973 when Shure unveiled the first generation SM7. Design for the microphone began with the notion of taking the already famous SM57 and making it even better. As we all know, the 57 can record just about anything, so the original SM7 was supposed to be a universal microphone as well.
Despite that, it was typecast as a broadcast mic for years—probably because of its built-in foam pop filter—until Bruce Swedien and Quincy Jones recorded Michael Jackson’s Thriller vocals with it. Swedien was one of the first engineers to bring the SM7 into the music studio and have tremendous success with it.
The SM7 remained unchanged from 1973 until 1999 when the SM7A was released. In 2001, the SM7B debuted with only minor adjustments—Shure has stated that all 3 versions of the mic perform identically.
In terms of the RE20 vs SM7B, the latter’s frequency response is quite different. The SM7B features a slight low cut from the bottom up to 700 Hz, and remains pretty flat across the midrange from 700 to 4 kHz. Finally, there’s a dip and drop around 12 kHz that reduces some of the presence in the very high-end. The sound you’ll get from an SM7B is a controlled low-end, natural and accurate midrange, and a tame high-end. It’s quite natural and accurate overall, without any hype in the lows or highs.
At a glance:
- Price: $399
- Polar Pattern: Cardioid
- Frequency Response: 50 Hz – 20 kHz
- Type: Dynamic
RE20 vs SM7B: The Verdict
While both excellent microphones, the Shure SM7B is generally more favorable as an all-around project studio microphone. You probably wouldn’t grab it to record acoustic instruments, but you can definitely record great sounding vocals and guitar amps—after all, it is a souped-up SM57!
To review, the RE20 has a boosted low-end and high-end, with moderately scooped mids. The SM7B has a modestly tucked low-end, flat midrange, and presence cut at 12 kHz. The flat mids and un-hyped lows/highs make the SM7B the most natural sounding of the two, which means it potentially has a wider range of uses than the RE20.
On paper, these are both outstanding microphones. Historically speaking, the RE20 remains an untouchable broadcast mic, whereas in the studio, engineers tend to keep it on low-end instruments. The SM7B excels at spoken and sung vocals, and it usually gets more varied use in the studio on a wider range of instruments.
In this RE20 vs SM7B shootout, our money is on the Shure. As always, though, independent research is the way to go for music equipment. Everyone hears differrently and has different taste; you may find a clear winner for yourself!
