The RE-20 is a great large-diaphragm dynamic mic that every (well almost every) studio should have at least one of. It's got a clean, tight pattern that will help keep too much of the room out of the track. No problemo there.
Other than that, who the heck is "we"??? Are you rock'n'roll band with live drums? Are you the next Kingston Trio? A techno-dance duo? Really, "we" need more info here...K?

Have you treated the room to get the optimum performance out of THAT?

My personal experiences with the Focusrite Platinum line have been that they are cheap crap, ESPECIALLY the Voicemaster. Save your pennies and buy gear that's at least as good as the RME stuff is reputed to be.
That's another can of worms...

BTW, there are plenty of folks here who have gear YOU'D drool over... :)

Oh I don't doubt it, about the drooling part :)

OK so "we" is, two, duo, zwei. We are multi instrumentalist and play and record everything our selves. So things are generally tracked one at the time but occasionally it would be drums and bass or guitar but not often

Yes the rooms are treated, the best we could, as far a project studio is concerned, we are not professing professional studio quality here, no doubt.

We have a drum/instrument recording room that is treated but sorta has a lower ceiling so not the best place for drums we realize.

Would you elaborate why you think it's cheap crap? and if so could you point out something that is not "cheap crap" as an alternative, that does the same thing in that price range.
We prolly have about 2 grand to spend and that is for a mic, a new midi controller and above mentioned gear.

thanks

I have gear I drool over but thats another subject entirely.

The Platinum series from Focusrite should have been rebadged as something else as its NOT Focusrite in its performance. The Red series and the ISA stuff is worth every penny, but the Platinum stuff doesnt really have the sound its pedigree would suggest.

Your budget doesnt really get you into the upper section of gear so looking used or bidding on fleabay may be your best bet. If you dont need more than two channels at a time then you may be able to swing a piece thats going to to be able to do all you need it to do at a high level.

The one I continuously recommend is the Langevin DVC. It works well for any source you put through it plus its really really good for vocals. Its kind of an old skool design but dont let the two bands of basic EQ fool you as well as the simple straight-forward compression controls. This is an up in yer face preamp and this is where the big sounds come from.

The RE20 is as good as it gets with an LD dynamic mic. Anything else in its realm is simply a matter of taste.

Everyone should have one.

The Platinum Series, specifically the Voicemaster, is chap crap because it has an under-built power supply that can overheat and shut down. I have personally seen this happen with a client's unit. It has no headroom and will clip at the drop of a hat, probably due to the aforementioned p/s design issue. It is Focusrite's budget line made in China. Focusrite USED to make really good stuff- the Red Range- in the UK- but their priorities have changed over the years, now they make over-hyped gear.
RME has a very good reputation here for their onboard mic pre's and converters. You are not UPgrading if you go to the Platinum line.
If you are needing a single channel strip in your price range, I can say that the Drawmer Front End One has worked well for me. Certainly cleaner and quieter than the Voicemaster, and mine has been through hell and back with nary a problem.
Edit: I started to suggest the DVC, but that is almost $2K by itself, well worth it, though...

OK, that is good to know
I will look into the ones recommended and get back wuth questions for sure

what about the liquid mix? will that have better EQ then logic's EQ ?

I really don't drool over gear anymore. I do slobber like a St. Bernard at the sight of a pretty woman, though.:P

Kapt.Krunch

Kapt.Krunch wrote: I really don't drool over gear anymore. I do slobber like a St. Bernard at the sight of a pretty woman, though.:P

Kapt.Krunch

Just wait...

When you get good and old.... your priorities will change....

I really don't drool over the sight of a pretty woman anymore. I do however slobber like a St. Bernard over a nicely prepared standing rib roast with all the trimmings. 8-)

Ugh I guess I shot myself in the foot starting the drool debate : )

Liquid Mix? Better then Logic's EQ thank you

You could cook an egg on the back of any of the Focusrite Green Range, they run mighty hot too.

I mean alarmingly hot.

I mean, "maybe we should pay for an overseas tech-support call" hot.

British tech-dude said, that's normal, and these 2 have been trouble-free for nearly 15 years now.

Never made sense to me they'd engineer them to run at that temp, but they do sound pretty sweet.

Are you talking about the liquid mix unit?

Sorry for the confusion - Green Range units were made in the mid 90's as a line of quality pre's and EQ's more attainable than the world-class Red Range and Blue Range. The only reason I mention them, is because the heat issue of the new Focusrites was mentioned as a con. And the old ones do run extremely hot by design, so you have to make sure they can get some air. We've had 2 Green Range units since they were introduced and they've been very reliable.

That being said, since then, Focusrite has since started marketing a whole new range of equipment at much lower price points. And you know they have to be imported and something has to give when the price is slashed.

I don't have any of the newer Platinum, Saffire, or Liquid Mix units - so I don't have any direct information for you there.

But I would put a good deal of stock in moonbaby's opinion on any gear he's experienced with.

Shucks, Hawk...
Yeak, the Green Range ran hotter than a Land Rover on the Sahara, but that Voicemaster was a real dog. I was told that the bells and whistles simply overtaxed the p/s. I had an MGB like that!
As for the Liquidmix thingy, I'd suggest that you post a question in the DAW section here and see what responses you get. Also, maybe a PM to Link555 because I think it was he who had posted a complaint about that, not 100% sure though. He's a really nice Canadian engineer who builds custom gear as a hobby.