Looking at producing the 1940's Radio Hour. I have some Shure 55s but I'd really like to be more accurate to the early 1940s. Any thoughts on a good modern mic with a retro look besides the 55s?
Looking at producing the 1940's Radio Hour. I have some Shure 55s but I'd really like to be more accurate to the early 1940s. Any thoughts on a good modern mic with a retro look besides the 55s?
As you probably know, the 55S was from the 1960s. I don't know of any modern production mics that are styled after mics from the '40s so when I designed a production where we needed a mic that looked like it was from that era, we got a Shure 700A Crystal and replaced it's insides with a Countryman ISOMAX 2, which sounded and looked awesome. If you can't afford to go that route (IIRC, it cost about $500 between buying the 700A and the ISOMAX 2), the 55s is decent and most audience members don't know what old mics look like so they won't really notice that it is a '60s design.
Idea 2 is that if you have some fabrication skills you could put together a decent "old microphone" shell with some thick wire mesh, windscreen foam, metal tape, and assorted hardware. Just slip any (I'm imagining a wireless lav.) microphone inside it, and if desired glue a cable on the bottom and run it off stage.