Good Dynamic Handheld Mic In $100 Range
 

Looking for a good, natural sound with good resistance to handling noise. Application is spoken word of men and women who are inexperienced mic handlers.

You could try a Sure 58 for $100 or Beta 58 for $160. I've used the Beta for voiceovers. They are both pretty good.

There are a lot of choices in a dynamic mic in that price range.

I like my AKG D230. It's around $130 at B&H. I was amazed at the quality. The spoken word was much better than a sennheiser ME66.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=128222&is=REG

The EV635 is right at $100 mark

Anyone know anything about how the Beyerdynamic M58 sounds?
Is it true that a larger diaphragm on a dynamic gives a warmer sound? That AKG you have Bryan seems to have a good-sized diaphragm (at 50mm) compared to some others I see mentioned. The EV635 is 36mm and the M58 is 40mm. How do you think the D230 would work for voiceovers?

Personally,I think the AKG would be great. Maybe not compared to a large diafram condenser but like I said , to me it sounds better than the ME66.

For years I have sworn by the SM58 as a vocal mic. Whenever possible I choose it for spoken voice applications, either on a podium, mic stand or handheld. It's also good and rugged, will last a lifetime.

Mike, are you talking about the M58? Or who makes the SM58?

Mike refers to the shure sm58. It's considered a standard for live vocals. Many singers bring around there own Neumann km105, these are also very poplular. But very expensive for a stage mic.

Same mic Rob was suggesting.

The SM58 is a cardioid mic. I'm looking for an omni. Thanks anyway, though.

Oh yeah, Dave, the Shure SM58 is definitely a cardioid. Your initial request didn't mention anything about directionality. Actually I usually avoid omnis except for lavaliers.

Okay. Here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to order three mics
and compare them myself. Then I'm going to write a mini review
here so anyone interested can see how they fare regarding
sensitivity, sound quality, susceptiblity to wind noise, et cetera.
I looked at that Neumann but it wasn't omni. I considered a Sanken until I saw it costs $2300! I guess I'll just have to listen
for myself. I bought a mic once (ME64) on advice of another and
I've never been that happy with it. Here are the ones I'll compare: AKG D230 (thanks Bryan), EV RE50N/D, and Beyerdynamic M58. Should be getting them in next week.

P.S. For what it's worth, I checked the frequency response specs on these mics. The Beyer looked good and the AKG was as good or trailing by a notch. The EV was rocky. I look at it this way: A listen is worth a thousand words. I'm looking forward to getting them all together. I'm used to doing audio comparos: sound cards (TerraTec), mics, speakers (Swans). I'll get to the bottom of all this and I'll let you know what's up.

Ah yes, listen before you buy, that's what I used to tell folks when I managed an audio store and people would come in all fired up to buy some speaker they had read about in a magazine. They were all set to make a buying decision without ever even listening to the product. That's when I would walk them over to my demo wall and start switching on different pairs of speakers, saying "forget about woofer diameter, 2-or-3-way, horn or dome or cone tweeter, or even that magazine article, which ones do you like the sound of?" It makes equal sense to actually demo mics and choose the one that sounds best. A listen really IS worth a thousand words.

And a listen could save you a thousand dollars as well. Just look at anyones closet or basement shelves.