Vocal Mike for recording

[Johnny Mac]

Can anyone recommend a good vocal mike for recording that could maybe used for other things too. Budget £300-500

Thanks :-)

[38thBeatle]

I had a quick peak at Guitarist mag in W H Smith this morning- they have a bit about mics- can't recall the outcome as I had to rush off.

[Brow]

Rode NT1 and NT2a are good, as are some of the SE Electronics mics. Blue also do some nice mics in that price range as well.

[HTH AMPS]

With a budget of £300-500 you have MANY options.

What other gear do you have btw? - a good signal path is a must.

Condensers in general (unless we're talking uber-expensive Neumann ones) are not that great for guitar or bass cabs (imo), so other than vocals you're only ever gonna use a condenser mic for acoustic guitar.

What style of music do you play? - I've heard some great recording with just an SM57 or SM58 used.

If you can find them on eBay, the old Groove Tube mics were excellent and they normally go pretty cheap.  I used to have a pair of GT-55s that I used for vocals, drum overheads and acoustic that were just amazing.  Sure I only paid something crazy like £250 for the pair on a closeout deal back in 2003'ish.

[Nadz1lla]

Shure SM7b, because you have the option to mount it on a stand OR because of the internal shock-mount you can still use it hand-held if you so wish. DV247 has them for the best price I've seen on the net with free delivery.

Be warned, though, it is REALLY gain hungry. You need a preamp or audio interface that can give it a huge amount of gain.

[MDV]

I usually use my audio technica AT4050. Its around that price. A very clear, reasonably level 'whats in the room is pretty much what you hear' type mic.

The SM7b is a very good option as well. Great for heavy vocals. I think Thriller was recorded with that as well.

To be honest though, getting a decent location in a room sorted for vocals is more important than the mic. Especially with a lot of LDCs, which tend to have less off axis rejection, and pick up more of the room. You can make a decent vocal track with a 58 if the sound is good at the source.

Also, in low-medium end mics, you tend to find that their EQ profiles lead them to be 'coloured', and its more of a question of matching the mic with the vocalist. Some add up well, some dont. When you get into higher end vocal mics and they more accurately represent the source sound, influence it less, then you can rely more on one size fits all mics, but they are very expensive (U87 is the classic example of this kind of mic) and the AT4050 is about the cheapest mic that falls into that kind I know of. Its great on guitars as well.

[Johnny Mac]

Thanks for the replys. I've got some half decent recording gear already. I had a go at recording some vocals over Christmas for someone and I was quite pleased with the results, even if I had to use a sock for a pop screen on my SM57   :lol:

I've got a motu 828mkIII FireWire interface with two mic pre's on there. That goes into a 2010 iMac with a quad core i7 CPU and 8 gig of ram. Monitors are Adam A7's

I bought most of my gear on DV247 and I had a look today. I was just wondering about first hand experience of some nice mics for the money and what to avoid.

I'll have a look into those recommendations, thanks for that. I didn't think of second hand, what am I like! Thanks HTH :-)

I haven't been around in here much of late. I hope you're all well. I have missed anything, apart from the obvious?

[Johnny Mac]

I had a quick peak at Guitarist mag in W H Smith this morning- they have a bit about mics- can't recall the outcome as I had to rush off.

Nice one Steve, I'll get a copy, thanks :-)

[JJretroTONEGOD]

I've only had experience with AT(audio technica) 2020, Rode NT2-A, Rode NT1, Rode NT5, Shure SM57 and a Neumann TLM103 which is by far the best mic I own. The Neumann TLM102 (with shockmount) is just as good though and is within the budget! It sounds incredible for the money.

I'd say if you do go down the sm57 route you'll need a really good mic pre to get the most out of it. For pure value for money though the Rode mics are incredible, especially the NT1 and it's not even expensive....

the AKGC414XLII would be an amazing choice, they are very versatile mics and I'd very much like one for myself oneday.

[Muttley]

The SM7b is a very good option as well. Great for heavy vocals. I think Thriller was recorded with that as well.

I believe Devin Townsend is using an SM7b in this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuuRuL3HbHg

[Johnny Mac]

Thanks for the advise.
I have had my eye on those AKG Mic's before. They do seem to be versatile.
I'll do some hard saving and see what I can justify :-)

[Nadz1lla]

The SM7b is a very good option as well. Great for heavy vocals. I think Thriller was recorded with that as well.

I believe Devin Townsend is using an SM7b in this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuuRuL3HbHg

This vid and the Synchestra bonus DVD are what convinced me to get an SM7b. Having some teething trouble with mine but I do believe that's down to user error, heh. Using the thicker windshield to control plosives more but I seem to be dulling my T's and S's a bit. I am giving it enough juice, might just need a bit of EQing or filtering of some description.

[Johnny Mac]

What would be a good choice of mic for vocals between this

http://www.dv247.com/microphones/akg-c-414-xls--72455

and this, considering i do have a SM57 for instruments already

http://www.dv247.com/microphones/akg-akg-perception-820-tube--66425

Thanks :)

[JJretroTONEGOD]

What would be a good choice of mic for vocals between this

http://www.dv247.com/microphones/akg-c-414-xls--72455

and this, considering i do have a SM57 for instruments already

http://www.dv247.com/microphones/akg-akg-perception-820-tube--66425

Thanks :)

if it was me I'd go for the AKG C414 XLS without hesitation, 9 polar patterns... the valve mic would be nice but it is not a necessarily the most neutral sound so if you want character then go for that one, you are probably better off having an AKG C414 and then getting a valve mic pre-amp in the future than you are getting the 820, or just using plug in's to emulate valve warmth...

the choice is up to you but the C414 would be my no1 choice, hope that helps.

[JJretroTONEGOD]

What would be a good choice of mic for vocals between this

http://www.dv247.com/microphones/akg-c-414-xls--72455

and this, considering i do have a SM57 for instruments already

http://www.dv247.com/microphones/akg-akg-perception-820-tube--66425

Thanks :)

I know you like the AKG but these are still amazing

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUTvhqNZSOQ