Best first can — 5.56?

I don't know much about suppressors tbh but $500-800 sounds like a lot! That could buy some nice silver instead lol. But seriously, my buddy has one and says go multi-cal for your first so you can use it on different guns.

Wait hold up - you said 5.56 in the title but .22 LR in the body? Those are very different cans my friend. If you're mainly shooting .22 LR out of that Shield Plus, neither the Thunder Chicken or Mod 9 are ideal. The Mod 9 is a pistol can and won't handle rifle rounds well. For dedicated .22 LR I'd look at something like a Dead Air Mask or SilencerCo Sparrow 22. Way quieter on rimfire and you'll actually hear the difference.

Been selling cans at shows for years - multi-cal is definitely the way to go for your first. But like Matt said, you're mixing up calibers here. The Thunder Chicken will handle both .22 LR and 5.56 if that's what you're after, though it's not optimal for either. At your budget range also look at the Rugged Obsidian 9 - solid can, lifetime warranty, and I see them go for around $650 at shows. The wait times are what kill ya though... still 4-6 months even with eForm 4.

Yeah you need to figure out what you're actually suppressing first. .22 LR and 5.56 require totally different approaches. If you want one can for both, you're gonna compromise performance on the .22 side big time. I've worked on tons of suppressed guns and honestly? Get a dedicated .22 can first if that's what you're shooting most. Something like a Dead Air Mask HD - runs about $400, stupid quiet on rimfire, and you can always get a rifle can later. The multi-cal route sounds good in theory but you end up with a can that's mediocre at everything instead of great at one thing.

Facts. I switched to the same thing about 8 months ago and it was a game changer.