Razorwit

Marcus Curtis


well for acoustic guitar I use an AKG c 1000s. great mic for acoustic guitars. It does ok for background vocals and choir. This mic will not break the bank. Some of the best mics for acoustic guitar seem to be AKG 414, Neumann U87, Newmann KM 84 and KM184, AKGc3000 and AKGc1000

For electric guitar the trusty sure sm57 is a standard mic, Sennheiser md-421 also works good. I used my AKGc1000 on guitar cabs and good results as well

For bass I just use a direct box

For snare drums the sm57 does a good job, AKG 414, Neumann U87, Newmann KM 84 and KM184, AKGc3000 and AKGc1000 all work good too.

My favorite mics for the bass drum are AKG D-12 and D112, and the Sennheiser 421

When I record Acoustic guitar I run the mic through a preamp. These can be inexpensive and they add a great deal to the sound quality.

+1...some good suggestions here, though I'm not really sure what is meant by "run the mic through a preamp". Not running the mic through a pre isn't going to get you very far 
To the OP: I love my 414's on acoustic guitar...in fact, my favorite method of micing an acoustic right now is a M/S pair with a 414 on the mid and an R84 ribbon for the sides. That said, if I was only picking up one mic I would probably not go with either of those...they're a bit too specialized if that's your only option. I like my 87 on acoustic guitar, but unless you want to spend a bunch of money on a pair it's going to be in mono (which is often fine). I'd probably stay away from SDC's and ribbons until you have a "workhorse" type LDC, but that's just my opinion. I have 3 or 4 Senn 421's lying around and they are great on e. guitar and they're really outstanding on toms as well, but also wouldn't be my first choice for a workhorse mic.


Dean

Dean,


Gosh....I am sorry Dean. Your right! I should have been more clear. When I record I run the mic through an additional tube preamp. not just the preamp built into my audio device.


I plug my AKG into an ART MP studio V3. it takes care of the power for the condenser mic and it runs it the signal through a tube. it has a built in compressor which helps getting good vocal takes as well. If you're on a budget you can get the ART MP for about 29 bucks. You can get the Art MP v3 for about 79 bucks. I notice a big difference in recording an acoustic guitar when I use one of these devices with my AKG c1000

I am sorry for being so vague.

 Rob,  I think I'm looking for the same kind of microphone(s) as you ... I've done a lot of forum-reading on the subject - resulting in my two cents worth of possible advice.  Your recording-chain will probably only be as strong as its weakest link: If you don't have a 'good' sounding room, an expensive microphone could end up just revealing how bad your room sounds. Many people recommend initially applying acoustic treatment to your recording space. Then, it seems recommendable to check that your pre-amp(s), cabling, monitors, D/A or A/D converters etc. are 'good enough' for the rest of your signal chain, before buying expensive microphones. The most frequent advice I find is to practise mic-placement. It seems placement can enhance sound transduction better than badly used expensive equipment.  But I think that puts you in the dilemma of not having microphones to practice placement with, because of not being able to afford the expensive ones, and at the same time having no experience getting the most out of less expensive microphones that need placing well ...   As I don't have the capacity to buy and try many high-class microphones, I have gone for microphones recommended as useful on as many different instruments/genres as possible i.e. 'workhorse' microphones (= frequently/successfully used by reputable engineers). Hence, I own a Shure SM58, a Sennheiser e 906 and a recently acquired matched pair of Rode NT5 microphones. The idea being that I want to record guitars (amps/acoustic) and drum kits. The SM 58, which can be seen as an SM 57 when you remove the ball grille, has been used on snares and amps for years. I am learning a lot about placement with just the SM58. The e906 is used on amps and toms and has different transduction characteristics from the Shure. The matched NT5 pair are my first and only condensers to date. They can serve well for overheads on drums. I have used them as room mics for amp recording. I find they are good enough for many stereo live recording techniques on whole bands/orchestras. They can be used on vocals and on bass cabs. Acoustic guitar recordings often benefit from aiming two mics at different acoustically pleasing parts of the guitar (e.g. one at the neck, one at the body).    So, for an amateur with little experience, untrained ears, a bad room and little time to seriously hone any notable sound recording skills, I get along nicely with my very basic introductory-level microphone "cabinet". The main aspect that helped me along was the fact that these microphones seemed to me 'easy to use' - I got promising results from the start. Most of my perfecting after starting has been through better placement.  My 'ideal' collection of microphones would be full of expensive names/mics. But I'd have to save for exceptionally long to afford them, and then I'd be useless at employing them appropriately, for lack of experience and because I'd perhaps be too old. So, to start learning about placement, I chose affordable mics that have been recommended for many situations. I intend to extend my mic cabinet gradually in future by buying one large diaphragm dynamic microphone and another identical pair of dynamics, giving me a total of seven mics, requiring at least seven microphone inputs for when I attempt to fully mic my son's drum kit. Dynamics are often less sensitive than condensers, which can be an asset in a room that doesn't have pleasing acoustic characteristics and can help avoid a lot of cross talk from different parts of a drum kit or parts of a band.  I think my approach of using microphones that are frequently used has the added benefit that these microphones seem to be sold in larger quantities, thus bringing their price down somewhat. The disadvantage is, that you may end up replicating sounds more than creating new sounds with new and/or expensive mics. If you can, buy as many of the best and most expensive microphones as possible. Maybe they're more fun, easier to use and far more acoustically pleasing to work with, no matter how badly placed - I'll never know - but I might yet learn how to get a run-of-the-mill microphone sounding quite good, just by learning where to put it?

If you dont have thousands ... Equitek E100S Supercardioid Large Diaphragm Condenser Microphone

Well, in a short amount of time, the main thing I've learned about microphones is you can never have too many   The mantra seems to be "best mic for the job". I can spend anywhere from $100 to $10,000 and not waste my money.  Every mic is "the best" in a given situation, it seems.


As I said, I've been using a very cheap mic (an Audio Technica Pro 3H that came free with a 4 track recorder I bought years ago) that I see now on Ebay for $30... Strange thing is, with my new Focusrite 2i2 (GREAT pre amp) and SONAR plugs, I've been able to get a decent sound out of even this cheapie.

So, right now I'm just looking for a "workhorse" that won't break my bank, or isn't more than I need at the moment considering my limited use.  If you type in "workhorse" in a search for microphones you generally get one answer... the Shure SM57.  No kidding, I now remember using this mic as the front man for 3 bands from 1965-1985. I'm gonna buy one just for the memories!  Just holding it will get my creative juices flowing. From what I've read and heard, the quality is plenty good enough for my little studio. And at $100, I can buy it tomorrow and still pay my rent.

I can't put a price on the help and advice all you guys have put out there, for me and anyone else who asks.

May you be rewarded with good karma and good health!

Rob

 

I recently picked up an Equiteck E100S and was pleasantly surprised on how great it sounded on vocals.....need to try it on acoustic guitar....I've gone through alot of mikes on acoustic guitar and I'll probably get a KM184 down the road

Hey, Eric, thanks for adding that comment to my thing about pres: you make an excellent point.

One thing that will help is to use a reflexion filter which protects against reflections coming from behind the mic, and then hang a quilt, heavy blanket, or polyester duvet ("doona" for you Aussies ) behind the singer.  I am guilty of recording vocals in control rooms, spare rooms, and other untreated spaces, but this makeshift remedy works pretty well.  (Obviously, the louder the singer the bigger the problem with reflections.)