Hey, I recently decided to get some passable recording equipment, so I got a Focusrite saffire interface. Of course, it's completely useless without and equally passable microphone.
I'm going to be recording some pop songs. I don't have a very smooth voice, but it's not really harsh either.
I need to record piano, vocals, and acoustic guitar. The budget for this is around 300 I guess. I don't think I can go higher.
I was looking at the Blue Bluebird and Studio Projects C1 among others.
I would really appreciate suggestions. I'm new to all this.
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It's my first mic that isn't horrible. And if I really needed to
It's my first mic that isn't horrible. And if I really needed to, I could borrow a friend's EV ND967 to make the budget work better. I was thinking I'd grab a used SM57 for like, 45 since everyone seems to love it, but I don't record anything with distortion really.
I've used the Bluebird on Acoustic guitar and Male tenor vocals.
I've used the Bluebird on Acoustic guitar and Male tenor vocals. Pretty good, but I'm not sure of the versatility on other sources. That is what I would look for at this price range.
Best thing to do is try them out and use your ears.
Both SP and the Bluebird get good reviews for the most part.
If you have any edge to your voice at all, neither the Bluebird
If you have any edge to your voice at all, neither the Bluebird nor the SP C1 will be a good match. Both provide a pretty significant high end sheen to them which, on scratchy or slightly edgy male voices becomes a little like an ice pick to the ear drums.
That being said, if you have a voice without too much top end and you really know how to work the proximity effect, the Bluebird is a great choice. If you're more than a few inches away from the BB, it's bottom end sounds anemic. When you get up on it (with a good pop filter of course) it really comes alive.
It works very well on acoustic guitar - especially placed about where the neck meets the body - about 6 inches back and aimed towards the body about half way between the sound hole and the beginning of the neck.
Do yourself a huge favor - get this and the 57. The 57 isn't just for distorted stuff - it's a great vocal and instrument mic.
Cheers-
J.
Hmm, well, I'll pick up the 57 for sure. I do have a somewhat h
Hmm, well, I'll pick up the 57 for sure.
I do have a somewhat high voice for singing generally, and I like to use falsetto too. It's a bit scratchy voice though.
The most important thing though is to be able to record piano decently, the acoustic guitar is just for fleshing out. I guess I should have made that apparent in my first post, heh.
If you have a more edgy/higher voice - try the AT 4047. You can
If you have a more edgy/higher voice - try the AT 4047. You can occassionally pick up a used one for close to your budget. Also, a Cascade Fathead may work well. I personally love my Beyer M160 on edgier male vocals. Use a pop filter or two though if you're using ribbon.
Cheers-
J.
Get a cheap large-diaphargm like the Audio-Technica AT2020 conde
Get a cheap large-diaphargm like the Audio-Technica AT2020 condenser for the acoustic and an sm57. SM57 will do everything, but if you want good acoustic guitar, put the SM57 at your neck (of the guitar i mean) and the condenser a couple feet from you and record. The AT2020 seems to be good for vocals to.
iamfrobs wrote: [quote=mrb1946]Get a cheap large-diaphargm like
iamfrobs wrote: [quote=mrb1946]Get a cheap large-diaphargm like the Audio-Technica AT2020 condenser
The AT2020 is a small-diaphragm condenser.
link removed
It's in the name man. Small diaphragm is like a lav mic.
Yeah well who uses it better? Lets see what kind of sounds you
Yeah well who uses it better? Lets see what kind of sounds you can spank out of your setup and we'll all join in for an orgy of harmonic copulation. Because it doesn't matter if you are hung like an SM57 or a Blue Bottle, if you can't use it then you might as well not have it. HAH!
For the record - the diaphragm on the AT2020 is 16mm making it f
For the record - the diaphragm on the AT2020 is 16mm making it fall squarely in the Medium Diaphragm Condenser. SDCs are typically between 10-14mm (with a common median of 12.5mm). LDCs are typically >20mm. Other Side address condensers that are not LDCs at Neumann M50 and the AKG C2000 (IMO, the only mic in that series that's worth a damn).
Lab mics aren't what are usually considered SDCs.
Cheers-
Jeremy
Do you have any mics currently? or is this a first purchase?
Do you have any mics currently? or is this a first purchase?