Shure
SM7B
Dynamic · Cardioid · 50–20,000 Hz · a rider regular
- At −59 dBV/Pa it needs roughly 60 dB of clean gain; the reason inline preamps exist as a product category is largely this microphone.
- Two switches on the back set bass roll-off and presence boost; the curve drawn here is the flat setting, with both off.
- Descended from the 1973 SM7, which is the microphone on Michael Jackson's Thriller vocals.
Frequency response
Redrawn from Shure’s published response graph (approximate, ±2 dB) on the fixed MicSense scale — 20 Hz–20 kHz, −20 to +15 dB — so two microphones can be compared at a glance. No image is copied; it is a guide to the shape, not a measurement. Drawn for: flat setting: bass roll-off off, presence boost off (solid curve); dashed roll-off and dotted presence curves not used. The maker’s graph (Frequency-response graph on the shure.com product page (image served from products.shureweb.eu)).
Polar pattern
Generated from the first-order directivity formula for cardioid. It illustrates the pattern type — it is not a measurement of this individual model.
Specifications
| Manufacturer | Shure |
|---|---|
| Model | SM7B |
| Type | Dynamic |
| Form factor | Side-address |
| Polar pattern | Cardioid |
| Frequency range | 50–20,000 Hz |
| Sensitivity | 1.12 mV/Pa · -59.0 dBV/Pa |
| Max SPL | — not published by the maker |
| Self-noise | — none (passive capsule) |
| Impedance | 150 Ω (for inputs rated 19–300 Ω) |
| Connector | XLR3M |
| Powering | None (dynamic) |
| Weight | 765 g |
Specifications: Shure datasheet · last checked 2 Oct 2026. These are the maker’s published figures for this model. A dash never means zero: “not published by the maker” means the maker’s documents give no figure; “not yet checked” means MicSense has not confirmed one yet. Spotted an error? Tell us.
MicSense notes
| Price tier | Pro |
|---|---|
| Introduced | 2001 |
Price tier and “a rider regular” are MicSense’s own judgement, not the maker’s.
What it gets used for
- Broadcast
- FOH vocal
- Lectern / podium
MicSense tags microphones by the job on a live stage, not by studio category — so you can filter for “kick in” or “monitor vocal” instead of working backwards from “large-diaphragm condenser”.
SM7B alternatives: closest in published specs
Based on published specifications only — always listen at soundcheck. These are the microphones in the MicSense library whose datasheet figures sit closest to the Shure SM7B’s for the same live job, with the reasons. It says nothing about how they sound.
Not compared for the Shure SM7B: max SPL not published by the maker.
-
Electro-Voice
RE20
- Same job: broadcast, lectern / podium
- Same type: dynamic
- Same cardioid pattern
- Same form: side-address
- Similar published response shape (≈ 1.4 dB apart on average, 100 Hz–10 kHz)
- About the same output — within the datasheets’ tolerance
-
Shure
SM58
- Same job: broadcast, FOH vocal, lectern / podium
- Same type: dynamic
- Same cardioid pattern
- Similar published response shape (≈ 1.8 dB apart on average, 100 Hz–10 kHz)
- Handheld instead of side-address — mounts differently
- ≈ 5 dB more output — about 5 dB less gain
-
Sennheiser
MD 421-II
- Same job: broadcast
- Same type: dynamic
- Same cardioid pattern
- Similar published response shape (≈ 2.5 dB apart on average, 100 Hz–10 kHz)
- End-address instead of side-address — mounts differently
- ≈ 5 dB more output — about 5 dB less gain
Compare it against the alternatives.
MicSense lets you put up to four microphones side by side — spec table, overlaid response curves and polar diagrams on one screen. Free with a free Squaresmile account.