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Okaaaay so I recorded vocals for a song back in December at a buddy's set up (here is the song):

And I recorded that with the RODE NT1-A. Now I was going to buy that mic, but it was all sold out at Sweetwater so the sales guy recommended me to go with the Perception 220 (because it was in the same price range since the NT1-A was bundled) and I did.

Now I dont think that the 220 is a bad mic by any means, but I immediately noticed that my voice sounded different. I wasn't sure if this was because my buddy was using plugins that I didn't know about when we recorded at his place, but he says he is pretty sure all he did was compression.

Anywho, I'm short on time to type this but I'm wondering if those two mics would really have that difference of a sound if the same preamp and plugins are used? I think my voice sounds quite a bit different, but not HUGE. Still, I liked it better on the NT1-A. Any help would be great. Thanks!

Comments

kb7 Sun, 02/13/2011 - 17:08

One more thing, I was gonna try to return the cable and pop filter because it's already bundled with the NTA-1 which I'm gonna swap out to get, and the sales guy said that those things are always good to have and that I should just keep the ones I have, on top of getting the bundle. Is it really that important to have an extra cable and pop filter lying around?

kb7 Sun, 02/13/2011 - 20:59

Yeah that is true. But you answered my question which I appreciate, and that was that the mics definitely will pick up my voice differently. I know that I was shocked when I first tried recording on my Perception 220 because I really didn't like how my voice sounded. Whereas RIGHT when I recorded with the NTA-1 I actually enjoyed it.

Boswell Mon, 02/14/2011 - 03:42

I'm with Jack in that, all other things being equal, I would normally prefer the NT1-A over anything in the Perception range, but testing mics with your own voice may well give a different result.

One clue here is that you recorded your voice using the NT1-A in a different environment and presumably using a different pre-amp to when you recorded with the Perception mic at your place. Changing the recording acoustic can often make more difference than changing between a pair of similarly-priced mics, and it could be that the NT1-A would not capture your voice in a way that you like when recorded at your place and with your gear.

Can you borrow the NT1-A from your friend to try at your place?

kb7 Tue, 02/15/2011 - 22:31

Wow, I wrote out a response and it didn't go through...

Pretty much I can't borrow my friend's because I moved to a different state.

The other thing I said (I don't feel like typing everything again) was that we have the same set up (once I get the NT1-A it will be the EXACT same setup) and I was wondering if the environment would really change how I sound THAT much?

I've setup a ghetto makeshift "soundproof" thing where I stack totes chest high and then put sofa cushions up as a three wall thing with a blanket over the top. Before I could hear my voice bouncing off the walls when I'd record. Now that problem is sovled :)

TheJackAttack Wed, 02/16/2011 - 08:22

I don't need details. If you said your VW Beetle handled differently than a Ford Fusion no one would argue. They are both cars but not the same.

If some mo-ron sales clerk at guitar center wants to blow smoke people don't make the same conclusion. Every mic sounds different than any other type of mic. AKG451 is not the same as Neumann KM184. Heck, the Km184 isn't the same as the KM84 that preceded it. There is no way on gods earth that the cheap end of AKG is going to sound like Rode.

I had been more subtle before in my answer apparently.

kb7 Thu, 02/17/2011 - 19:56

Yeah, my P220 is being sent back and the NT1-A will be sent to me not this coming Sunday, but the one after that (it's out of stock til then) and I already have a feeling the sound difference will be so obvious to me. My wife doesn't think my vocals sound THAT different right now on the P220 than my first song I recorded on the NT1-A but I know there's a pretty big difference. So I appreciate the reassurance here lol.

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