Any thoughts on these things? I always see the Cloudlifter mic activator bundled with the SM7b mic on the internet. I am about to buy an SM7b, but wondering about the booster and if it is BS or not. I am picking this mic up mainly for aggressive vox recording.

1. Are they necessary if you've got good preamps?
2. Does a DIY kit besides the Bumblebee exist out there that I am not seeing in my searches?

Thanks!

I use a booster (Simply Sound SS-1) with my SM7 and ribbon mics and yes, it does help if you don't have 70 or 80 dB of available gain on your mic pre. With my Neve 1081 or API 312 clones, it's not necessary, but I've used it on a mobile rig into a cheaper USB interface preamp and it was the only way I could get a decent signal without boosting up the self-noise of the interface preamp.

I have one of those dynamite lifters. I use it on really quiet sources, or with really unsensitive mics like some of the weirder ebay mics I have that came from Dictaphones etc... I use it with my cheapo MXL ribbon if I ever think that thing is worth using. It isn't bad on bass cabs.

I have one of the little Soyuz Launchers - kind of like a dirty cloudlifter. I love the thing and would happily have a box of them. Makes Beta 57a’s sound wild. Would love to feed it a fathead but am still looking for one at a reasonable price

Ryan Zepaltas wrote: Sat Jul 10, 2021 10:18 am 1. Are they necessary if you've got good preamps?
Thanks!

Depends on the preamp and the source material, but I'd say it's definitely worth a shot without one. I've used a SM7 for a long time and never used a booster.

It's so odd that SM7B-into-interface (sans lifter) became the default and most iconic way for people to record vocals/podcasts on their own even though it's such a bad pairing for the reasons we're talking about.

Update - I used the launcher last night on a regular 57 set in an over-the-shoulder position for acoustic guitar (along with an Omni in front). Very detailed low end moves forward, ahead of the usual mid bump of a 57. Kind of like going mining for deeply buried sparkles. Also noisy as fuck. You are going to want shielded cables

Definitely worth it, I think, for me anyway (very on and off home studio use). I have a Cloudlifter and a Cloudlifter Z and the latter especially is good for dialing in good vox sounds using something like an SM7B, which even with its filter settings rolling off lowend can be kinda flat. A caveat, IIRC, is that your preamp needs to have phantom power, though.

DaveA wrote: Mon Jul 12, 2021 6:27 am Definitely worth it, I think, for me anyway (very on and off home studio use). I have a Cloudlifter and a Cloudlifter Z and the latter especially is good for dialing in good vox sounds using something like an SM7B, which even with its filter settings rolling off lowend can be kinda flat. A caveat, IIRC, is that your preamp needs to have phantom power, though.

Slightly off topic, but would you be willing to open up and share some pics of the insides of the Cloudlifter Z? I've got some of the standard cloudlifters which have unused header pins on the board and I suspect the Z just has the pot and switches attached to those pins on the same board. Might be a simple way to do a DIY upgrade to the CL-1 to make it a CL-Z

I think the sound quality of them is pretty low.
I have used many of the options out there and nothing beats a nice preamp.