Quite simply put, this mic is the gold standard for live performance microphones. It works equally well for vocals, guitars, guitar & bass amps, wood and wind instruments, and drums. Are there better mics for each of these applications? Sure...but you'll pay dearly for them and end up with 20+ mics you'll only use once in awhile. The SM57 is a powerful dynamic mic which you can use for pretty much anything...do yourself a favor and buy a dozen.