About Shure

The Shure Radio Company was founded almost a century ago on April 15th, 1925 by Sidney N. Shure. Shure wanted to capitalize on the emerging radio market and began by selling DIY radio part kits out of a small office in downtown Chicago. It wasn’t until the Great Depression and the crash of the radio market that the company even started to sell microphones (Petersen 2015, 46-47). Since then, Shure has become one of the most prominent figures within the microphone industry gaining immense popularity due to their innovative designs that have paved the way for artists live performances. The company prides itself on their stringent quality standards based on military specifications that they enacted in 1942 to produce microphones and headphones for war efforts (Wasylak 2020, 28-29). Today, Shure is still one the leading brands in audio technology, priding themselves on the quality, reliability, and durability across their entire product line that has expanded beyond just microphones.

Technological Specifications

One of their most notable inventions include the first Unidyne Model 55, a low -cost, convenient, cardioid dynamic microphone that is still one of their most recognizable microphones in history partly due to its use from both Michael Jackson and Frank Sinatra. (Petersen 2015, 46-47). In addition to the Unidyne 55, Shure created many other “firsts” in the industry like the first handheld wireless microphone system, the Vagabond 88, in 1953 and the first headworn mic for musicians, the SMI 0, in 1979 (Wasylak 2020, 28-29). Each time Shure released a new product a new standard was set within the industry that enabled artists to move more freely around the stage and produce higher quality sound during live performances.  

The Shure Unidyne Model 55C

“Unidyne Model 55C.” Unidyne Model 55 and the Museum of Modern Art, Shure, 29 Jan. 2019,