You cringe as he practically eats the microphone. You can barely watch as he encourages audience members to scream into the mic. Afterwards he returns your mic, still operational but considerably wetter and unhygienic.
Microphones are subject to an inordinate amount of abuse, especially in live music. Grilles and foam windscreens can become saturated with saliva, clogged with lipstick, and will absorb the smell of cigarette smoke prevalent in most clubs. Regular cleaning of your microphone will not only improve its performance, but is also good hygiene. This document provides several simple yet effective techniques for cleaning microphones.
Dynamic Microphones
The best way to clean a microphone is to remove the grille. Most vocal microphone grilles simply unscrew, e.g., SM58, BG3.1. If the grille doesn’t slide off easily, gently rock it back and forth while pulling it away from the cartridge. Do not pull sharply or with excessive force, since that could damage the cartridge or separate it from the microphone housing.
Once the grille is removed, it can be thoroughly cleaned without damaging the mic. Since most of the offensive material on the grille comes from the human body, plain water should be a sufficient cleanser. Adding a mild detergent (dishwashing liquid) to the water will act as a mild disinfectant and remove odors absorbed by the foam windscreen.
To remove lipstick and other material stuck in the grille, use a toothbrush with soft bristles. In some models, the foam windscreen can be removed from the grille, but this is usually not necessary since water will not damage the grille. Most Shure microphone grilles have a nickel finish that makes them resistant to rust, and replacing the foam windscreen can also be difficult and time-consuming.
Found an interesting item to clean microphones at NAMM 2010. Mic Check is a product that is supposed to “nuke the nasties” (their term).
A professional mic clean product that comes in a small sealed envelope similar to some of the hand wipes.
From their web site it is priced at $.99 each or $9.95 for a box of ten (10).
http://www.checkthatmic.com