Shure is bringing back the Unidyne. In January 2014, the company said, the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers presented Shure with the Milestone Award for the Unidyne technology. (Other recipients have included the invention of the first computer, the Apollo Space program, Maxwell’s equations, the telegraph, the integrated circuit chip and Arecibo.)
To mark the award and commemorate the 75th anniversary of the development of the 55 Unidyne microphone, Shure is releasing a Limited Edition Unidyne model, the 5575LE Unidyne Limited Edition Cardioid Dynamic Microphone.
An anniversary version of the 55 Unidyne cardioid dynamic microphone, the 5575LE replicates the original design, the company said, with improvements in durability and sound quality. The serialized limited edition 5575LE features the current Unidyne III cardioid element, the classic large outer grill, vintage badging and zinc die-cast, with a silver finish desk stand. The microphone comes in an aluminum flight case with 75th anniversary logo branding, and includes two Unidyne photo prints and a certificate of authenticity. The company said 5,575 pieces of this model will be available.
Introduced in 1939, the 55 Unidyne was adopted in broadcast, public address, recording, and two-way radios. As the popularity of the 55 grew, it found its way into performance environments that would cement its status and legacy as “the microphone that needs no name,” as the company put it. The 55 Unidyne provided control of feedback and reduction of off-axis ambient sound.
The microphone will be available at a retail price of $399.
