Heil Sound PR-20

Have been playing and recording for 30+ years; I'd categorize myself as a "serious hobbyist" rather than a pro. I'm going to provide relatively a lot of details up front about the other gear that I use with this mic, so that readers will be better able to calculate how the PR20 would sound in their own setups. It may sound like wind to some, but I find such information helpful when I'm reading product reviews, so here goes:

I have around a dozen mics -- AKG, Shure SM and KSM, Cascade, Rode, EV and Sennheiser. Except for the relatively pricey KSM32, it's all "quality affordable" stuff -- think $150-$200 a whack. All this to say that, although I've managed to choose well and like to think I at least know what I like, I'm neither a snob nor an expert on mics.

I use the mics I have mainly for recording into either a Yamaha MD8 or a Korg D1600. My headphones for monitoring and mic placement alternate between Sennheiser HD570s and Beyerdynamic DT770s -- both high quality, accurate phones. For preamps, nothing snobby; an ART MPA Gold, a Bellari MP105, or a JoeMeek ThreeQ.

My preference is for mics which "capture" the actual sound of my voice, guitar, or amp (rather than imparting a lot of the mic's sonic character) and when I heard a sound clip of the PR20 on the Heil web site, I was taken with its balanced overall tone -- it sounded almost as "broadcast-ish" as its larger stablemates (the PR30 and PR40.) I thought it would be a good alternatve to my more "bumpy" dynamics, the Shure SM58 and Beta57. For the very rare and small solo live thing, I mainly wanted a more natural sound to feed into my little Passport 150 PA. The SM58 sounded ok but at the low end its proximity effect is overwhelming to the small drivers in the 150. The Beta57, by contrast, is just too bright, being primarily an instrument mic by design.

The PR20 turned out to be a good choice. It's clear and natural, with decent output. Up close, vocals get bigger overall rather than getting cruddy; you can get almost right to the grille and still not get a lot of proximity effect boom and muck. Another nice thing is that it decreases my natural (gap-toothed)sibilance problem, which the Shures (and other mics with high frequency boosts) tend to exaggerate. The PR20 actually extends farther up into the highs than most dynamics, but its flatter frequency response curve means that it doesn't cause problem frequencies to leap out at the listener.

It's well-suited for either live or recording use, although I haven't used it in a high-volume situation and so can't comment on feedback rejection or handling noise. Still, I'd expect both to be at worst comparable to other mics designed for stage use; Heil was, after all, a big name in live sound reinforcement in the '70's.

In short, the PR20 will reproduce whatever you feed into it, and make it sound good, without changing the signal much -- make sure the performance is decent and you'll like the result.

The most interesting thing about the PR20 is that it sounds like a larger mic. If like me you've always wanted to try a big dynamic such as the Shure SM7 or Electro Voice RE20 but couldn't quite bear to write the check, then this is a nice approximation at a little under half the dough. Being a "hand-held" style mic, it's also far easier to position it than a larger mic in a basket mount -- no heavy-duty stand required.

It won't cause the SM58 to go away, but at this price a lot of people may find that there's room in the budget for one of each. A very worthwhile flavor, equally useful in the studio or in the real world.

10 years in a band as front man lead vocals yada yada
Have my own home studio with Mackie 1640 Onyx w/firewire
full rack of gear and cubase sx3,Tracktion sw with Waves
Plugins etc... Have a Rhodes,GT,and Studio Projects condensors
to play with.

This Heil is a Dynamic but sounds as clear and quiet as my studion condensors really!!
I have plenty to compare it to for the band I keep a variety Audix OM7,EV ND967,Seinnheiser E935, and yeah a couple of crusty Beta 58's.

I absolutely love the way this mic sounds for my voice compared to all others,I sing Baritone and cover many of Morrison's Tunes with the doors.
This seems to keep my low end there tighter and more defined than the others with the same settings,no terrible feedback issues,I'm running through a DBX driverack PA system,a TC Electronics M1 XL,and Mackie FRS amps and the Onyx 1640 pre's powering my Stack of Yorkville Pulse speakers and subs...Holy shit with a lil bit of tweaking the TC M1 using Plates reverb ,I'm nailing Jim's notes to a "T" shakes the house.
This mic came with a Big!! leather case 3 different mesh covers,BLK,nickel and Gold Yak!!! That's not for me!! and a stand clamp..Damn impressive..
I will use this and only consider using the OM7 in it's place where a smal bar may pose a feedback issue,then the OM7 shines as long as my lips are touchin it .
Mr Heil did a super job here..You can take your Shures and go home!!
It feels as solid as a brick,and looks divine,,sounds like I'm dreaming.