Behringer XM8500

Personally, I find that most of the time there isn’t a great deal to say about microphones, however I thought it was worth reviewing these Behringers. The so called industry standard seems to be the SHURE SM58 and as I use both types, I’ll do a bit of comparison between the two. The Behringer model looks very similar in size/shape/weight but is finished in darker shades of grey, and looks/feels physically to be every bit as well made and rugged as the Shure, and both use the standard balanced XLR connector, and both are omni-directional – meaning they only pick up what you ... more

OK they are a copy of the industry standard sm58 (the most popular microphone in the world) the xm8500 (85 not 58 geddit?) in tests at the college where i work came out sounding similar - but not as crisp and realistic in the mid range. They also feedback at lower volumes than the sm58 in a Live test. We have a few come through our college, and some sounded great and some not so good. SO the checking is not as good...if you buy from a store check it through an amplifier before you buy - perhaps? They are a great first mic for the money, likely to have been built by slaves for the money (think ... more

Contrary to populist opinion amongst many "experts" I always find Behringer products to be good value for money and generally perform well. The XM8500 is no exception to this. I am "forced" to write this review because I was unable to post a brief comment on a previous review titled "Vox That Rocks" because I have not previously written one myself. So this is effectively my chance to comment :-) In the second sentence, the XM8500 is described as "an omni-directional" mic that "only picks up what it's pointed at" Not so ! It is a CARDIOID mic that has greater sensitivity to sound coming from ... more

I bought this microphone after four of my shure sm 58's broke during a show. The band did pay me a good price for the shures but I wanted something a little less expensive as it was a month of a good deal of heavier shows coming through. These microphones were much cheaper and felt just as well made and I knew my high school used to use them so I figured I'd give them a shot, in comparison they were quite a good deal similar picking up at the same frequencies as the industry standard SM58's but I noticed they did not seem as good at the lowest and top end of the spectrums. These microphones ... more