condenser mics

[elementsrtyte]

Hey so i'm looking to spend around 150-200$ on a condenser mic and i'm wondering what would you guys that have experience with recording VOCALs recommend. whats like the industry standard for that much? I'm thinking about buying used so an ebay $200 dollars would work fine too.

 

[Shonsteez]

Save a couple hundred more, it'll make a big difference in the quality of your selection.

 

[elementsrtyte]

actually i have another question while im at it, if im currently using a firewire410 (and its preamps) for my current mic, would anyone reccommend me to first get a better set up preamps first? i am currently borrowing my buddies akg condensor mic which couldnt have cost more than 120$

 

[Sanova]

good equipment def makes the differnece, but i rock a cheap MXL 990 mic and my quality isn't too bad. Just develop a relationship with your mixing board (or digital mixer on screen) some mixing and mastering tips from the resources section =]

 

[Kontents]

^^^
Exactly Make the best with what you got and it can come out fine.

 

[samuelock]

rode nt1a.

heard nothing but good things about it.

 

[P_1]

rode nt1a.

heard nothing but good things about it.

i use this mic. it works great. but you still need to know how and where to set it up and how to work with your interface. but for the price, this mic is good.

 

[elementsrtyte]

yeaa i can mix decent now. i've been doing vocals for over a year now, so i feel that I have a pretty good grasp on it. so im just wondering what I should do now to up the quality. get a portable booth? preamp? new mic?

 

[Shonsteez]

A/D Converters make a HUGE difference, ie. (this is in your interface typically), A good dedicated external preamp aside from the ones that come on your interface will also improve your signal, as you follow the signal chain you can guess whats next, Good cables, and then of course, A good quality Mic that accepts a wide freq spectrum and bandwidth along with a decent SPL handling.

 

[elementsrtyte]

thanks for the advice shonsteez. do you know of any good ad converters that aren't going to break the bank? right now i have a m-audio firewire410.. and im pretty sure that those preamps suckkk. I would want a substantial upgrade from the pres I already have, otherwise it wouldn't really be worth it.

 

[daproduct]

if your down with the macs, grab an apogee duet..

 

[7thangel]

the 410 is old and discontinued but it's newest versions, the 610 and the bigger 2626 have been compared to rme in terms of quality in ad/da and pre's, but less features. get a separate pre when you can afford it if you're going to stick to the 410

ask yourself if you need a condenser in the 1st place. don't overlook a dynamic, such as the always reliable sm 57/58, these are proven and ultimately, you have to find a mic that fits the voice, tone, style, etc of the person using it.

one thing about the rode mics are that they're too sensitive, sometimes thin, and personally, not good for aggressive vocalists and sometime baritone/deep vocalists too.

 

[Shonsteez]

Like DaProduct said, the Apogee will provide you with great converters at a "prosumer" price but you sacrifice a lot of I/O options with that interface unfortunately. If you only need a couple Mic Line Ins, and a couple 1/4 In's then that interface would be good for you, if you plan to expand your tracking habits later on you will need to upgrade very quickly.

There really isnt an interface with "excellent" converters IMO under the 1000 dollar range maybe with the exception of the Duet, but like I said your really only paying for the converters with the Duet since you lack considerable I/O with an interface like that.

Something like the RME FireFace400 would be optimal for excellent drivers and additional I/O options. Were getting into the 1400 dollar range now so theres an obvious bump in cost for a unit like this. THIS, however is where you start to really see an improvement from your A/D.

Please keep in mind this is soley based on my educated opinion. Im sure others would easily argue the opposite, but thats my 2 cents if your looking for a SERIOUS upgrade and not something you will just need to upgrade yet once again in another 2 years.

 

[krysolite]

what about that m-audio nova. i think that was it. only 100 but from alottt of review ppl said it's as good as 300 dollar mics. like reviews from recording engineers and shit too.

 

[Shonsteez]

I dunno man, they just got into the game of making microphones not too long ago. Companies like Neumann or ElectroVoice (just to name a few) have been around for decades refining their designs and making excellent microphones that you can trust.

Considering the fact that most M-Audio gear is typically "prosumer" quality I wouldn't bother.

 

[adthekidd]

^^ I voted for ur t-shirt design its pretty much the best 1... the others 1's are garbageeeeeee

 

[Shonsteez]

Word, thanks homie! Much appreciated!

 

[savage_g]

I got a Rode NT2-A.
Pretty dope for the price.

 

[samuelock]

i think at the price range you're looking for, getting a preamp would probably enhance your sound.

i got myself a presonus tubepre on ebay for $50. made my crappy $50 mxl 990 sound like a different mic. i've used many pro mics since i go to school for recording, but i gotta say, a cheap mic really does hold its own if you got good signal processing.

 

[Shonsteez]

Good recommendation Sam....Its always good to improve your signal chain, not just your mic.