Shure SM11
A dynamic lavalier that weighs less than a third of an ounce and was built to survive live television.
Overview
The SM11 is one of the smallest dynamic-element lavalier microphones Shure has made. The company's own period advertising made the pitch plainly: it was designed to be heard, not seen. The "less than a third of an ounce" figure is the one to remember. A dynamic capsule that light is unusual, because most lavaliers of the era that chased this kind of discretion went the condenser route and dragged a battery pack along with them. Shure's angle was a desk microphone's reliability in a lavalier body, with no batteries and no unnecessary wiring to fail at the worst possible moment.
The pitch was aimed at broadcast and stage work, where a lavalier that quits mid-segment is a real problem. Shure's Studio Sound (July 1977, p.107) advertising from the launch period said as much, noting that other mini-mics might be fine at first but had a reputation for sudden failures - sometimes on the air. The SM11's answer was a high-quality dynamic element plus a field-serviceable design, so a mic that did act up could be dealt with on location rather than shipped back to a bench.
The specifications are modest but sensible for the job. Frequency response runs 50 to 15,000 Hz, which is plain full-range speech reproduction rather than a hyped curve. The polar pattern is omnidirectional. That is the right choice for a body-worn lavalier, since talent moves and turns and a cardioid clipped to a lapel would swing in and out of its own pickup. Impedance is listed as 150 ohms (200 ohms actual), intended for connection to microphone inputs rated at 25 to 200 ohms, so it mates with the broad middle of the console and tape-machine inputs it was built to feed. Hum pickup is quoted at less than 35.3 dB equivalent SPL in a 1 millioersted field. That matters because a lavalier sits close to lighting rigs and video cable runs.
Shure supplied the SM11 as a system rather than a bare capsule. The package included a specially designed lavalier assembly, a clip-on clasp, a tie-tack assembly, and a connector belt clip. That is the mounting hardware a wardrobe or sound department needs to get the mic onto a person and keep it there. Collectors chasing a complete example should look for all four pieces, since loose accessories are the first thing to go missing and the hardest to replace.
The SM11 was still in the catalogue five years after launch. It was a fixture of broadcast and stage audio long enough to turn up in studio equipment inventories of the period.
The SM11 is not a studio vocal mic. It is light, tough, hum-resistant, and serviceable. For anyone restoring a period broadcast or stage setup, or wanting a dynamic lavalier that does not need a battery, it fits the job.
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