good recording mics?

[blackductape]

i was just wondering of wat mics a good for recording vocals, guitars, bass... etc. i need some advice, recomendation cause im thinking of doing some home recording. im using cubasis VST, m-audio mobilepre USB and an audio-technica AT 804 which i use to record every single thing from guitars, vocals, even drums. so, any help on mics?

 

[fibredrive]

well i've never tried ur mic for recording but if it works, and ur recordings sound good enuff, dun change!
but if u wanna get ur feet wet and expand ur sonic palate, well, industry workhorse Shure SM57/58 comes to mind for recording guitars.
for acoustics, the fairly reasonably priced russian made Octava's come to mind. Behringer's B5 mics seem to have gotten good reviews but they tend to have a little more low-end than most.
for vocals, can't comment, but i am very happy with my behringer b1 mic. as u noticed i am talking mostly within the home-recording price range. if u got the dough, and a proper studio environment, then Neumanns etc shld get u somewhere
anyways, the AT4041 is another good one to consider for vocals. and of course many have raved abt the studio projects c-1.
so, yeah juz some fo the good stuff i been hearing abt these boys. hope it helps. sorry i dun do drum miking. its another story on its own. heh.

 

[veganbleu]

Deh you use 1 mic for drums?

I use a lavalier, a 57 and a behringer B1, mostly for instruments, vocals and field recordings. Drums are a real hassle for miking, which can involve up to as many as 7 mikes.
The B1's are nice for the price, and nicer nowadays as well. And behringer's got a number of newer cheaper models. But given a choice i'd probably go for a studio projects or an mxl 990 which some people are raving about because of the low price.

 

[blackductape]

yeah. i use only 1 mic for drums for now. (see how pathetic i am). I use it as an overhead. at most, i'll put another mic (those cheap, karaoke ones)at the bass drum and that is it. but when i do that, the bass drum sounds like farting when my butt is stucked with tissue paper. thats why i only use one mic as an overhead.

then, i heard of those 5 piece drum set mics. anybody know how much they cost?

 

[veganbleu]

Kick drum mikes are made to withstand the air pressure coming from the kick drums. Those karaoke mikes will definitely be overloaded. You'll just get a clipped signal. Luther sells some kick drum mikes, but it's expensive, plus don't think your mobile pre is up to the task. You could try to make do with a 3 mike placement. One on kick, the 804 on snare, and a behringer c1 ( hey it should be less than 100 bucks ) as a single overhead.

Alternatively you could just practice a lot and pop down to that jamming studio near zum zum on arab street just to lay your drum track. Heard a recording from there and it sounded quite ok.

 

[creatures77]

My AT4033a sounds good on me..better than my other sm57, but then i sing mostly jazzy stuff...rockers might prefer the 57

 

[heclak]

for anything acoustic, i would say most well known large diaphragm condensors would do a good job.Its more about technique. There are some well known bands who have recorded many cds who record drums with only 3 mics.

For something that is good and value for money. I would say the Blue 8 Ball is a good choice.Considering the fact that you don't have much of a choice in Singapore.

For drums on a budget. You can probably get the Samson Drum Mic Kit from Swee Lee. The cheapest in Singapore i can think of. Haven't heard it though.

Remember, technique is still the most important.

 

[blackductape]

i got a little sample of my recording which i did a month ago in my bedroom. the song is very pop and excuse me for that. btw, its not my band's song. i was bored one day and decided to record this song which my gf wrote.


http://blackductape.tripod.com/lost2.mp3

some faults i realise:
-my breathing was loud, so when i adjust the eq to have more bass, my breathing sounds like a bass drum.
-i adjusted the eq and made the bass too loud.


maybe u guys could comment a little on the recording and areas for improvement.

 

[heclak]

You will need to use a pop filter. I will drastically reduce your breathing noise which are the popping sounds u heard when u breathe into a mic.

That will help u sing better cus from the way i heard you. You are trying too hard not to breathe into the mic and resulting in you not singing properly.

Move closer to the mic.The proximity effect will help you get the extra bass that you want.And pls.Try to mix the song properly.The vocal is suppose to stand out.Not the bass.What software are you using.And the drum kit could really do with 3 mics.An overhead,a dynamic on the snare and a kick.It will make a big diff.

 

[blackductape]

im using cubasis VST.

 

[blackductape]

i actually didnt realise the bass is really loud till u told me... thanks...

 

[Tripper]

mics...so many subjective choices... so many different mics for different applications. and its all pointless if you dont place em properly or plug em into a good pre..

but..

my personal favouraite is the AKG 414. a very versatile mic. use it for guitars, vox, brass, bass, drums, strings, or whatever else i could. sure it doesnt work in every application, but it gets me the sound i want 90% of the time. and its multi polar pattern. that very seldom used feature makes a heck of a lot diffrence IMHO.

of course, there is the good old SM 57/58 combo. cant go wrong with em... can do a whole album with just those mics.

happy hunting and do let us know what you go with.

Cheers!

 

[Tripper]

well blackductape. what did you go for?

 

[parablue74]

Wow, at4033 really rocks!!!! did 1 recording with it straight on an acoustic guitar, and it outbeats my stereo miking using a sm57 and om2 put together flat out.
Not to mention vocals, it outbeats all those dynamics like sm57,58,om2 that i have.
My friend was so amazed at how it stand out with drum cymbals too, very clear.
But i never had other mics more to test though!!!

 

[unsane]

whats the local distributor for studio projects mics?

 

[seekz]

Alternatively you could just practice a lot and pop down to that jamming studio near zum zum on arab street just to lay your drum track. Heard a recording from there and it sounded quite ok.

The C1 is a very lousy over head. i try before already...

 

[mixcubed]

studio project dealer

well i'm selling those. i'm their dealer in indonesia but can be deal with SE cause no singaporean dealer. you can PM me..
anywaaaaay..you can try ADK lines. audiobridge is their distributor. it's kinda the same league as SP but they got more option from cheaper to custom made. check out www.adkmic.com..and i'm selling them also?!! so i am biased with my suggestion.
shure SM57 is good start. it's multi purpose mic and avaialble almost everywhere.
and it's cheap..
mixcubed

 

[NoMiS]

how much is a SM57? my sch uses it. but i nv ask them how much dun mind investing in one for recording..

 

[dhalif]

150 around there

 

[Metallando]

how much is a SM57? my sch uses it. but i nv ask them how much dun mind investing in one for recording..

bro if u're recording u're guitar.....u gotta get a condensor mic as well....the sm57 alone won't get u the full sound u'll want... :wink: