Shure VP 88

[Ty Ford]

Yes I do. It’s a curious choice for a VO mic.

My review of the VP-88 is in the Online Archive in the Mic Reviews folder.

Regards,

Ty Ford

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[Will Salley]

I have one. It’s a M/S stereo mic with a built-in matrix so it will output a L/R signal. Being a M/S mic, it could be used as a mono VO mic using the front element. However, I could think of about two dozen models that would work better and many of them are less expensive. The VP 88 has a lot of self-noise, which is multiplied (x2) when run in stereo mode.

Some VO mics I like are:

AKG 414 – my fave for vo
AKG C3000 – affordable but very useable for voice
EV RE-20 – sometimes boomy but legendary
Neumann TLM-49 – warms up tiny voices well

I’ve also read very good things about the M-Audio Sputnik but don’t have any personal experience with this mic.

System Info – G5/Dual 2 – 10.4.8 – QT v7.1.3 – 8GB ram – Radeon 9800Pro – External SATA Raid – Decklink Extreme – Wacom 6×8

[Rodney Morris]

I’ve used the VP-88 in the past for field stereo recordings, but never as a VO mic. Doesn’t mean it can’t be done, but there are much better choices for vo mics.

The AKG C414 is good mic, which I used for years until I tried the Neuman TLM103. However the 103 lacks pickup pattern flexibility (cardioid only) and is a bit too sibilant for many female voices. Some of the best VO I’ve heard was recorded using a Sennheiser MKH416 (overhead mic placement). Heck, in a pinch, you could even use a Shure SM57 (with windscreen) and get very acceptable results.