Help me pick a mic from this short list (or suggest one)

[m-m-m]

I realize how often posts on this topic come up. I've gone back and tried to read as many of those posts as I possibly can and most of the mics on my list come from those posts.

 

What I have access to:

 

The only mic I actually own currently is a SM57. I can borrow a mic or 2 from the singer in my band but that's not all that practical (he's got a couple of dynamic vocal mics of low to mid level quality, 2 small Dia. Condensers, a set of tom mount mics, an akg d112 for kick, and an Oktavia 319 lg dia. condenser) because he can be kinda stingy when it comes to lending gear sometims (even though I'm the one that he comes to when he needs something fixed)

 

My Budget

 

So I just had a birthday and I've got about $300 to spend .... with some of that money I was hoping to get one of those art tube pres on the cheap (the $30 one). So I guess I've got about $270 to spend.

 

What I'm looking for

I know I'm not gonna get a really awesome mic for the amount of money that I'm going to spend. I suppose the primary use of this mic is gonna be to record vocals. On the other hand, I would still like to have somewhat of a workhorse mic. A mic that I can use for a few different things if needed ..., the occasional accoustic guitar, or horn, or room mic, or whatever would be nice. When I've recorded my own vocals in the past with the sm57, I was fairly happy with the results. I'm no John Lennon, and I usually tend to mix vocals fairly low unless I'm working with a really good singer. I'd kind of like to keep it simple ... IOW, I don't want a tube mic with special cables and another box that houses the tube (i'm sure those are nice, but that's gonna have to come later).

 

Here's what I've been looking at

Shure SM7b .... Pros: Not as sensitive as a condenser (won't pick up traffic noise from the busy street out front). Good for vocals. Cons: It does vocals and that's about it (acording to the reviews that I've read). It's about $75 outside of my budget.

 

MXL 4000 Pros: Multi Polar Pattern. It's the cheapest one on the list. MF gives you another mic for free when you buy this one (see free gift in link). cons MXL quality is questionable. Price seems too good to be true once you add in the 'free' mic.

 

Studio Electronics SE2200a pros This mic is supposedly a great value for the money. It sounds like it will do everything a decent condenser should. cons Pushes the boundries of the budget. According to some of the magazine review that I found through the liked site above, this mic may not be the best choice for bassy voices and my voice is pretty boomy.

 

blue bluebird pros Versatile. Comes with a nice accessory pack. cons just barely outside of budget. One review on the MF sales page said that he got 2 bad mics (one stopped working, and the top of the mic broke off the other). {this last point I'm willing to look past since blue seems to be a well respected brand overall ... some people are just unlucky and don't know how to treat their gear)

 

OTHER SUGGESTIONS ARE WELCOM!

[JigMD80]

I have the bluebird, and love it. I also have a Baby bottle. Blue makes great stuff. My 2 cents.

[m-m-m]

actually I'm pretty sure that it was your posts in another thread that started me looking at the bluebird. I actually just added that one to my list, but at the moment it's where I'm leaning. Just gotta find the best deal. Do you use/like the included pop filter. One review I read said that it did a poor job of stopping the plosives.

[triplets]

I would get the MXL. We use MXLs in the studio and for the money they sound very nice. I know the price looks deceiving, but you'll have a nice surprise.

[ChicoSatis]

For the price the MXL looks pretty good. I think I'll pick one or two up. Thanks.

 

Have a good one.

[creationcollective]

I have both MXL and Blue mics. Both are very good options for the money.

Just to throw in my 2 cents...

I use this mic on all kinds of things, the variable pattern gives you lots of different sounds.

Cad M179 http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/300873-REG/CAD_M179_M_179_Studio_Condenser.html

[JigMD80]

I actually bought a separate pop filter. The ones that come with the Blue microphones are more about looks that usability in my opinion.

[m-m-m]

I actually bought a separate pop filter. The ones that come with the Blue microphones are more about looks that usability in my opinion.

that's kind of the impression that I got from the looks of it. I actually made one last month, and it does the job. DIY is the way to go in my studio.

[SirReel]

I know you have a set list there, but, I'd throw in the Rhode NT1. Looks to be in your price range, and I can't say enough about mine.Use it for vocals and acoutic guitar mostly, but has come in handy for some off the wall stuff too... Micing a bass through a Marshall comes to mind... Really good mic for the $ in my opinion...

[biff_larken]

For what it's worth, Electronic Musician has a neat article on 4 mics that are $100. Could get a few of those, if they sound like they'd suit your needs. I know they'd be of lower quality than the mics mentioned thus far, but hey... more than one!

 

My apologies for not having which mics were featured, I'd look them up, but I'm at work.

[davidpye]

SM7b's are GREAT for bass drum and bass guitar, and also really good for guitar cabs too. Personally I don't rate them THAT much for vocals though.

 

Check out Oktava too, they do some really great mics at a good price, they also do small diaphragm condenser bodies which are compatible with large diaphragm capsules, which offer you some flexibility.

I'd also say try and get something quite bright if you're going to record through the Art Pre as it's got quite a soft top end, which you may at times wish to counteract to gain a little more clarity.

[m-m-m]

SM7b's are GREAT for bass drum and bass guitar, and also really good for guitar cabs too. Personally I don't rate them THAT much for vocals though.

 

Check out Oktava too, they do some really great mics at a good price, they also do small diaphragm condenser bodies which are compatible with large diaphragm capsules, which offer you some flexibility.

I'd also say try and get something quite bright if you're going to record through the Art Pre as it's got quite a soft top end, which you may at times wish to counteract to gain a little more clarity.

who sells oktava, anymore ... I haven't seen any in a while. I assumed that they went out of buisness.

[m-m-m]

to biff ... thanx, I'll check it out.

 

to SirReel ... for some reason that one got crossed off my list early on ... after reading your post, I had another look at it. Now I'm not sure why I crossed it off.

[davidpye]

Oktava sell Oktava, they may ship to the US, you could check or at least see what they sell first:

 

http://www.oktava-online.com/

[fadercraig]

Just had a look at musicians friend for price comparison, and id also recommend the rode mics, maybe less so the NT1A, due to a large low mid presence that may not work on your voice, but i see the rode nt1000 is $329, thats a great mic. If you could stretch to it id recommend the NT2A, due to the switchable polar patterns, roll off, pad...makes for a bit more versatility but its $400, so its a budget breaker.

 

Best bet...try before you buy...

 

xx

Cx

[m-m-m]

one that just got added to the list is the rode m3 ...http://www.rodemic.com/microphone.php?product=M3

 

It's supposed to be pretty versatile. Only $200.

[m-m-m]

And the winner is the Rode M3!! After I decided to get that one I discovered that there was a review on it in an issue of Sound-On-Sound that I had (nov 2007 ... Logic Studio on the cover, which is why I picked it up in the first place). The review made me feel even more confident that it was the one for me. Prior to reading the review, I was worried on how it would preform on vocals, but it should work just fine for my voice based on all the info I gathered. I'll post back once I've run it through it's paces a bit.

[fadercraig]

And the winner is the Rode M3!! After I decided to get that one I discovered that there was a review on it in an issue of Sound-On-Sound that I had (nov 2007 ... Logic Studio on the cover, which is why I picked it up in the first place). The review made me feel even more confident that it was the one for me. Prior to reading the review, I was worried on how it would preform on vocals, but it should work just fine for my voice based on all the info I gathered. I'll post back once I've run it through it's paces a bit.

 

Cool! now you 'll just need to buy another one for a matched pair...then something different for contrast...then...then...

 

xx

Cx

[marcel72]

You should check out the KEL HM-1:

 

http://www.kelaudio.com/hm1.html

 

You could actually afford 2 of them.

 

Otherwise, get an SM-7.

[fadercraig]

You should check out the KEL HM-1:

 

http://www.kelaudio.com/hm1.html

 

You could actually afford 2 of them.

 

Otherwise, get an SM-7.

 

Have you used a KEL mic? Just interested in how they are.

 

xx

Cx

[marcel72]

You should check out the KEL HM-1:

 

http://www.kelaudio.com/hm1.html

 

You could actually afford 2 of them.

 

Otherwise, get an SM-7.

 

Have you used a KEL mic? Just interested in how they are.

 

xx

Cx

 

Yes, I used 2 of them for toms recently. They're pretty good, not hyped and trashy like most condensers in this price range. I would not use them for vocals, personally, but I have 414s and access to a Soundelux e49, so my choices are perhaps a little better than the OP's.

 

Good transistor condensers.

[m-m-m]

Fadercraig .... The singer in my band got a nt1a last night too. It seems that we adopted rode.

[donteatcats]

I'm going to go have to go with the bluebird. Blue makes really incredible products, and even though it's a little out of your price bracket, I promise you it's worth much more.

[fadercraig]

Fadercraig .... The singer in my band got a nt1a last night too. It seems that we adopted rode.

 

I just happened to pick up 3 of their mics over a short period of time recently and im really impressed. Myself and the community studio i work for cant afford the well known 'name' mics so when i find a good item like this im pretty chuffed!

 

enjoy!

 

xx

Cx

[homelandhome]

My best ever "cheap and easy" all-round mic is the Sennheiser md 421. It's dynamic and records acoustic guitar, bass drum, amplifiers, vocals and everything else like a charm! I let it through a mic amplifier and maybe a compresser, that's it. I've done fine recordings with it just hanging over a drumkit and gotten perfect balance of the whole kit. I also own Neumann valve mics but #1 i'm not to keen on bringing them to shitty rehearsal spaces if not for important projects, and, #2 the Sennheiser is evidently a versatile and easy mic to use, and to me it definitely compete with the giants.

 

Good luck with your search, M

[m-m-m]

I'm going to go have to go with the bluebird. Blue makes really incredible products, and even though it's a little out of your price bracket, I promise you it's worth much more.

I've heard a lot of posts that rodes sound more expensive than they are too. It really was a tie between the bluebird and the NT1, in the end the NT1 got the edge because it's $70 cheaper. The other thing that slightly put us off the bluebird is that it had one bad review where someone said that the capsule fell off of the body of the mic. The poster was very vague, and we thought that maybe it was kind of a BS user review. BS or not, mic stands have been know to fall over on occasion and the bluebird didn't look like it would be able to take that as much as the NT1a would be able to.

 

Bad news ... I just found out that my Rode M3 is backordered. I could swear that the musician's friend page said that they were in stock when I added it to my cart. Pisses me off.

[bjs]

And the winner is the Rode M3!! After I decided to get that one I discovered that there was a review on it in an issue of Sound-On-Sound that I had (nov 2007 ... Logic Studio on the cover, which is why I picked it up in the first place). The review made me feel even more confident that it was the one for me. Prior to reading the review, I was worried on how it would preform on vocals, but it should work just fine for my voice based on all the info I gathered. I'll post back once I've run it through it's paces a bit.

 

 

Really & truly, as someone else said, try before you buy! Although Sound on Sound is a well respected source, no review can tell you how a mic sounds with YOUR voice. Sometimes a lesser quality mic can sound better; it's very individual. Take a bunch into a testing room in a music store so you can test them all in the same room, with the same mic position, etc., & the same preamp & settings. Your ears will tell you more than someone else's words.

[m-m-m]

Really & truly, as someone else said, try before you buy! Although Sound on Sound is a well respected source, no review can tell you how a mic sounds with YOUR voice. Sometimes a lesser quality mic can sound better; it's very individual. Take a bunch into a testing room in a music store so you can test them all in the same room, with the same mic position, etc., & the same preamp & settings. Your ears will tell you more than someone else's words.

I hear what you're sayin', but I just don't know how realistic that is. Guitar Center (5 minutes away) won't let you return a mic because of 'health codes', so I doubt that they would let you just try 'em out. Same goes for tryin on headphones. In my area we've also got some small mom & pop music stores, but I'm not even confident that they would have a decent selection for my price range and requiremnents. On the other hand, if I don't like the way that this mic sounds with my voice, musicians friend will return it.

[maxedwards]

been using a sure sm58 and 57, two audiotechnica 4041 condensers, and would love something on the higher end of things, been researching a bit, and think this is a good combo, totally out of the price range mentioned above (not on the ridiculously priced end of things though) , but this is what I'm going for once I've got the xtra coin.

Neumann TLM149

AKG C-414

Royer R-121

Can't go wrong...

Cheers

[maninthedark30]

You should check out the KEL HM-1:

 

http://www.kelaudio.com/hm1.html

 

You could actually afford 2 of them.

 

Otherwise, get an SM-7.

 

Have you used a KEL mic? Just interested in how they are.

 

xx

Cx

 

Yes, I used 2 of them for toms recently. They're pretty good, not hyped and trashy like most condensers in this price range. I would not use them for vocals, personally, but I have 414s and access to a Soundelux e49, so my choices are perhaps a little better than the OP's.

 

Good transistor condensers.

 

I have a pair of HM-1's as well. A slightly darker sounding condenser, for sure. Primary use has been for drum overheads, and have worked out well. Also used for acoustic guitar, violin, piano, horns, various hand percussion, and background vocals. Didn't like the sound for lead vocals, though ... a bit too thin, I think? They are definitely the best *pair* of mics that I own, which is why they remain on overhead duty.

 

For most all of my lead vocal use in the last several years, I have relied heavily on a Rode NT-1A. It has definitely served me well and is a true workhorse. Also performed great on acoustic guitars, piano, percussion, and miking electric guitar and pedal steel through an amp cab. For the price, I think it is definitely one of the best options. The vocals on all of the songs at the link below (except for the live track) were recorded with this mic, as well as most of the acoustic guitars.

 

Recently, I was able to get my hands on an M-Audio Sputnik mic, and so far have been LOVING the sound of it! For some reason it sells for around $800 at most places, but I got mine from Amazon for a few hundred less than that. Almost went with a Rode NTK based on my previous experience with the NT-1, but found the Sputnik for almost the same price and could not turn it down. It is probably the last mic I will buy for quite awhile ... it is that good.