Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsGreat mics for the weekend warrior!
Reviewed in the United States on April 12, 2014
I am a hobbyist / semi professional musician. I have played music and ran sound in local beer dives and festivals for over 25 years, so this is the POV that this review is coming from - the proverbial "weekend warrior" (what 99% of performing musicians are).
First of all, you can't beat the price on these mics. They come in a handy case along with three mic stand clips. You will want to transport these mics in the case. They are not "bulletproof", nor can you "hammer a stage together" with them like some of the myths surrounding more expensive, professional microphones. I take care of my equipment, so I cannot vouch for how much abuse they will take.
I have never written an equipment review before. What possessed me to do so in this case is that last weekend my band opened up for another local band who didn't have enough material to cover four hours, so we split the door. Anyhow, we used the other band's PA equipment including mics. Fortunately, I am a singing drummer so I always bring my own mic, cord, and stand. I have used these Behringer's for almost a year, and I have been pleased with their performance so far. I packed a Behringer for this gig.
The other band had a nice sound system (too bad they don't know how to run sound), including a whole host of Shure SM58's. I haven't directly compared the SM58 to the XM1800S yet, and I can say with authority that I am very happy that I brought the Behringer. The sound quality on my Behringer was crisp and clean. The SM58 has always been "mid happy" IMHO, and can sound muddy very quickly, especially when the sound guy is not very experienced. I am a "set it and forget it" guy. I am too busy singing and playing drums to be knob dicking the sound board all night. The Behringer XM1800S meets my needs very nicely.
In summary...
Great price!
Handy case!
You can never have enough mic clips!
Crisp and clean sound!
On/off switch to confuse the guitarists!
Not going to take the abuse of a $100 Shure SM58!
The perfect mic for the weekend warrior, beer dive working musician!
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!