(For the podcast segment I did on this topic at Home Recording Show, please click here.)

There has been much debate over how similar or how different the Shure SM57 and SM58 are against the GLS Audio ES-57 and ES-58 series of microphones. I have read several reviews and there seem to be two distinct camps forming. One group that believes that the GLS mics are every bit as good or better than the Shure counterparts and those that scoff at them as even being in the same league.

I have worked with both the Shure and GLS microphones at live sound venues. My initial impression was that the GLS mics were terrible. I was expecting to confirm this once I was able to test them side by side in the controlled environment of the studio. I was surprised to find that the GLS mics, while not a Shure replacement, are better than I had previously determined.

Here are a the tests that I conducted in the studio:

The first pair of audio tracks are the SM57 and ES-57 respectively on a clean guitar track:

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The second pair of audio tracks are the SM57 and ES-57 respectively on a distorted guitar track:

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The third group is my voice recorded simultaneously with the SM58, ES-58, and SM58a Beta respectively:

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What I noticed in the test was that the GLS Audio microphones are much more sensitive than their Shure counterparts. Less preamp gain was needed to achieve equal levels. This may be attributed to the base impedance of 300 ohms compared to that of the Shure at 150 ohms. I heard more bite in the higher frequencies and a less defined lower mid and bass response in the GLS mics.  Handling noise is also much less pronounced in the Shure models.

In the studio, if I were looking to get an electric guitar to stand out in the mix with a biting treble character, I would likely grab the GLS before the Shure. In most cases, even after these tests, I would be far more likely to use the Shure microphones for the majority of what I currently use them on.

In the live environment I would not recommend use the GLS microphones. Because of the bump in the sensitively and the higher frequency attack, feedback from the monitors is much more difficult to control. I have used them many times and some of the performers became quite difficult to accommodate. The venue that once used the GLS mics has since upgraded to the Sennheiser e835. My very first show after the switch was completely squeal free.

My final thoughts on this hotly contested topic is that the Shure and GLS Audio microphones are not interchangeable. They have different tonal characteristics, sensitivities, build materials, and specifications. At a price of about $30 each (and even less when purchased in bulk), the GLS mic is a fantastic deal. If you are just starting out in recording and your budget is minimal, this would be a great choice. I would strongly discourage anyone using them in live environments where feedback can be a problem. At the end of the day, I am sticking with my old standby microphones made by Shure.

Test notes:

The guitar tests were made by using a Fender Strat guitar signal recorded using a Countryman Type 85 DI directly into my DAW at 44.1kHz at 16 bit. The exact same signal was sent out via a Radial Pro RMP to a Marshall DSL 2000 into a vintage Orange 4×12 cabinet. The exact location on the speaker cone was marked with masking tape on the grill and the microphone was exactly two inches from the grill cloth. The same cables and signals were used for all tracks. The gain on the Focusrite Octopre was higher on the SM57 to match the output of the ES-57. No compression, filters, or EQ were used.

The voice test was made by setting up all mics very close together as seen in new coverage. I was at 3 inches away from all mics equally. All three were recorded simutaneusly with gain settings to match overall equal levels. The SM58 used the most gain, followed by the SM58a Beta, then the ES-58. No compression, filters, or EQ were used.