The Battle of the Shure SM7B vs. Its Fake Dupe
Have you ever bought something online, thinking you scored a fantastic deal, only to realise later that it might not have been what it seemed?
Well, that's exactly what happened to me with the Shure SM7B microphone.
Today, I'm sharing my story of how I ended up with two fake SM7B microphones and the results of an audio battle I conducted between the real deal and its dupe.
Trust me, you’ll want to read this before your next microphone purchase.
It all started when I was browsing Amazon. As someone who enjoys buying audio gear on Amazon, I was thrilled to stumble upon the Shure SM7B microphone listed at a sale price of around AU$400. Knowing how expensive these microphones usually are ($800+), I thought I had found an absolute bargain. Without hesitation, I hit that 'Buy Now' button and even decided to purchase two, convinced that this was a once-in-a-lifetime offer.
The seller seemed reputable, bolstered by a plethora of positive reviews. I was ecstatic about my new microphones until I started using them in my studio. Oddly enough, I wasn't as impressed as I had expected to be. Despite the SM7B's stellar reputation, the sound quality felt off to me. Deciding the microphones just weren't a good match for my voice, I listed them on Facebook Marketplace.
And then it all started to unravel.
A potential buyer reached out, excited to get a great deal on what I assured him was a fantastic microphone. He purchased one microphone, came and picked it up and I was a happy camper thinking I’d just given this guy such a good deal and it would suit his voice better than mine.
But soon after, I received an alarming message from him claiming I had sold him a fake. He was furious and even threatened to involve the police if I didn't respond immediately.
My first reaction was that of utter denial. It looked like the real SM7B and what kind of terrible person/company would sell fake microphones online?
Ah, how naive I was. I know you’re sitting there laughing heartily at me.
His accusation stirred my curiosity. I went down the YouTube rabbit hole, watching videos that demonstrated how to spot a fake SM7B. To my dismay, I discovered subtle differences: the plug on my microphone didn't align perfectly, and the colour was slightly off. There were also key differences in the diaphragm of the mic when I took the outer casing off to inspect more closely.
Oh, the shame.
Realising I had indeed bought fakes, I felt awful. I promptly refunded the buyer, but then thought, "Why not turn this into a learning opportunity for others?" So, I decided to conduct an audio battle between the real Shure SM7B and its counterfeit counterpart.
What did I find? Well, the differences were noticeable, but surprisingly, not outrageous. The fake SM7B lacked warmth and bass, sounding somewhat thin and sibilant. On the other hand, the real SM7B had a fuller, richer sound, although still more bass-heavy than I prefer.
So, what’s the takeaway here?
If you’re strapped for cash but want the appearance of owning a Shure SM7B, you might be tempted to go for a dupe. However, based on my experience, it’s not worth it. The audio quality simply doesn’t match up, and for the same price, there are better, authentic options out there.
If you're in the market for a microphone around the $400 range which is what the dupe cost me, skip the fakes. Consider mics like the sE DCM8, Shure MV7 or the Rode Podmic. These offer high quality at a similar price point without compromising on authenticity.
To avoid the mistake I made, always be cautious when shopping for high-end audio gear online. Steer clear of deals that seem too good to be true; they usually are. Stick to trusted sellers and always authenticate your gear.
I’ve certainly learned my lesson. I’m still trying to get a refund from Amazon. The seller has since shut up shop online and there is no way of contacting them.
Woe is me.
Transcript:
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[00:00:00] Brianna: Today we are doing a battle between, no, they're not the same microphone, although you may think they're the same microphone. We have the Shure SM7B. Versus the Shure SM7B fake, the dupe version of the Shure SM7B. Let me tell you a story about how this happened in the first place. I was on Amazon, and I love shopping on Amazon.
[00:00:25] In fact, all the links that I provide are always in Amazon. I saw this microphone come on the floor. sale on Amazon for like 400. And I was like, Oh my God, I know how expensive the Shure SM7B is. It's got like a sale price on it. I'm buying it. And in fact, I bought two. This store had a bunch of reviews, all like good reviews.
[00:00:48] Nothing was bad that I could see. I was really happy with the price and I thought, I've got myself a bargain. This is so great. So I purchased this microphone and I started using it, uh, in my studio and work, and I thought, I don't really love this. I'd been told, I'd seen that, you know, the SM7B was everywhere.
[00:01:08] And. I wasn't really happy with it. So I thought, look, this microphone just isn't for me. The quality of it, how it sounds for me wasn't right. So I decided to sell my microphones because I just wasn't using these. So I put it online, uh, on Facebook marketplace and I had a guy reach out to me and want to buy one of them.
[00:01:28] And I said, look, you're getting a great deal here. This is a fantastic microphone, just doesn't suit my voice. I got a message from him and he said, Hey, you've sold me a fake. You need to reply to me within, you know, 30 minutes or I'm calling the police. And I was like, woah man, chill out. Firstly, I didn't know there were fakes and surely it's not a fake.
[00:01:50] I got it from a good seller and all the things. So I felt really bad, but also confident that I hadn't sold him a fake. Then I went on YouTube. And I started [00:02:00] looking around like, okay, well, what is this fake thing? Have I actually done this by mistake? There were enough videos there on YouTube that show you whether the microphone is actually a fake of the Shure SM7B.
[00:02:11] So I'm not going to go through everything there, but the things that you could probably look at just off this video, the lead is actually coming out a little bit. from the microphone on the fake. It's definitely not the same connection point as the other proper SM7B. You'll also notice that the color is slightly different.
[00:02:29] So we've got a really black color versus something that's a little bit more gray on this one. Turns out I had in fact sold him a fake and I felt super bad. I said, look, man, totally come around. I'll give you your money back. I'm so sorry. I didn't realize there was such a thing as a fake. And I just felt awful.
[00:02:47] But then I thought, hang on, it's probably a really good idea to do a review of the fake versus the real so that you can have a little bit of a look at what the differences are. I'm going to do a few tests. I'm going to do some pops, some sibilance, I'm going to sing into these microphones and then you're going to be able to hear any differences.
[00:03:05] Make sure you pop your headphones on and let's go. Popping the popcorn and sizzling the sausages. Popping the popcorn and sizzling the sausages. Popping the popcorn and sizzling the sausages. Popping the popcorn and sizzling the sausages. If Moses supposes his toes are roses, then Moses supposes erroneously.
[00:03:33] If Moses supposes his toes are roses, then Moses supposes erroneously. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday Dear Brianna, happy birthday to you. What did you hear were the [00:04:00] differences with these two microphones? Could you hear differences? Let's get into what I think about this situation.
[00:04:07] First thing I'll say though is that it, you know, it's not. Far off, like it's not a ridiculous difference in sound. I guess if you were strapped for cash and you wanted to look like you have an SM7B, then you could still get the fake, but I don't like that. Now, if we listen to this SM7B, the fake one, I feel like it's got Not much going on in the bass.
[00:04:31] It definitely doesn't give me much warmth. It gives me a bit of like sibilant more of that sound. It feels and sounds like it's just lesser quality. And that's me using like a completely unbiased sort of ear. When I'm reviewing microphones, I like to really just review what the sound sounds like, not Thinking about how much something costs or whether it is a fake or not.
[00:04:52] It just doesn't sound as nice. It doesn't sound as clear. It sounds like it's a bit bland, a bit boring. So that's that one. Now over here to the SM7B, you can hear that there's a lot more depth. It feels a lot warmer. It does have too much bass for me I don't love the amount of bass that theSM7B gives my voice, but it sounds a lot better than the fake one.
[00:05:15] It handles the sibilance better, and that's probably the main differences. How does it handle the pops? I mean, we've got two different pop filters on here. Both of them handle the pops really well, but the sound just isn't as good out of this microphone as it is out of this one. Microphone. This has much less going on.
[00:05:34] Can you hear the difference? I hope you can hear the difference between these two microphones. If you're in the market for a SM seven B, just get the real SM seven B. Please be very cautious shopping on Amazon for the SM seven B, make sure that you are paying the right price. You're not gonna get a half price deal.
[00:05:55] And it be the real microphone . I know that now and I can tell you that [00:06:00] firsthand. If you like this kind of content, please learn from my mistakes and like the channel, subscribe to the channel, leave some comments. Could you hear the difference? Like, really, could you hear the difference? What about these microphones?
[00:06:14] Do you like? Do you not like? Would you go, look, I have no problem shopping a dupe, shopping a fake, if it means that I get it at a lesser price, it sounds good enough, that could be something that you're looking at doing. But, for the price point of four hundred and something dollars, This isn't the one I'd buy.
[00:06:31] I wouldn't buy a fake of this SM7B. I would buy one of the other 450 price range microphones that I've also reviewed and battled on this channel. I have a recommendation for the SE DCM8. I've done a review. I've done a battle between the SM7B and the DCM8. I would highly recommend. That microphone, uh, for a direct competitor.
[00:06:54] There's also the Shure MV7. There's other microphones in that price point that mean you don't need to stoop to the fake. You can get a high quality mic for that price point. If the SM7B brand doesn't need to be something that you adhere to. So go and look through the content. I hope you find something that's really valuable for you.
[00:07:13] Reach out to me at bambymedia.com if you want any further info about what we do. And thanks for being here.
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