Ok, since you guys ROCK... let's talk about microphones

I recently bought a Focusrite 2i2 and am amazed by the quality of the line in. The signal to noise ratio with my (really) cheap microphone is impressive, and sounds great using X2's Breverb and FX chains.  I now want to do more vocal and acoustic guitar recording.

So I'm hoping you guys might have some recommendations for the best mic for vocals & guitar based on your own use with SONAR. Of course, I'd love to get the most "Bang for the buck", but I do understand that quality means money.

Any thoughts or suggestions would be, as always, greatly appreciated!

Best,
Rob

Good music on your website Rob!

shure sm 57 akg 451 tlm 193, your good !!

Thanks, Beepster... I figured this had been discussed before.... I really have to start searching around more before I start redundant threads  I haven't been to the Coffee House yet. This will be a good introduction. 

EDIT: Wait... how do I get to the Coffee House? 


Musicroom... Thanks man! Will check out yours shortly.


Thanks all for recommendations. I now have a great jumping off point for my search for the perfect mic.

Best,
Rob

Hi Rob,
A couple thoughts about mics. I own a few of them and I'm of the opinion that frequently one of the things that money buys is versatility. There are specific mics that are super cheap that some folks sound great on, but when it comes down to it, if I put my u87 in front of something, run it through a Great River pre and an 1176 it almost always sounds pretty damn good on just about anything. The same thing cannot be said of my cheaper mics. I own a couple of mics that I'd put in that same category of reliably sounding good...my Beesneez and Gefells come to mind. So, if it was me looking to purchase my first nice, quality mic, I'd probably start at an 87 if at all possible. I've not heard the m930, but the Gefells that I do own are great, so it's probably not a bad place to look as well. A couple other places to look, particularly if the 87 is a bit pricey: Oktavamod does some good things for remarkably little money. I own one of their LDC's and like it quite a bit. Look at the nicer stuff from Blue as well...I like my Bottle Rocket Stage II a bunch, and the caps make it very versatile.

Oh, and demo something if you can...preferably several somethings. Ideally you should A/B/X a bunch of mics so you can really hear differences.

Good luck,
Dean

AT came along and linked this, when I had the question..  They look awesome..  but I haven't had a chance to get one yet..

You beat me to it this is definitely my mic of choice. 

konradh


The Rode NT2A is a superb condenser mic and way better than it should be for the price.  It is very neutral, has low noise, and offers three choices for attentuation (0, -5,-10).  I use this for vocals in almost all situations, and it is good for acoustic instruments. 

The U87 is the standard by which we judge vocal condensers, but it is a $3,500-4,000 mic and I am not sure you would be much happier than if you spent $400 (or less) on the Rode.  Plus, if some idiot breaks your Rode, you can buy another one.  If he breaks your U87, you will have to kill him.

I use an ElectroVoice RE-20 for narration, high pressure sounds (like close mic'ed guitar amps), and some singers (e.g., basses in quartets).

If you want to mic drums, we will have to write a book to cover the choices and I don't do this as much as I used to.  (It is a pain.)  The short answer for those who can't spend a fortune is to put an AKG D112 on the kick, Shure 57s on snare, tom, and maybe use the Audio-Technica ATM450 (or the twice-as-expensive AKG C 451) for hi-hat and overheads.
 
If you buy a D112 for kick, you might experiment with it on vocals to see what you think.  I would not use it normally but the peak it has somewhere around 3-4K can give you a cool sound on some people.

bapu

rcrees
EDIT: Wait... how do I get to the Coffee House? 

HERE!!!!


(don't say I did not warn you)

LOL!!

I was expecting to be directed to the Mic thread!

SM 7B.

Two other things in addition to my post above:

(1) If your pre has variable impedance, be sure to set it to match your mic as closely as possible.

(2) Don't put a high-quality mic in a crappy pre and blame the mic.  I am NOT a believer in spending a fortune on high-end, magical, hand-made boutique pre-amps, but if you have a terrible one or one that won't give you enough gain, your mic money will be wasted.  I am sure the original posted and 99% of the people on the forum know this, but this may save someone some grief.  I had to learn this the hard way and it was frustrating.

rcrees


I now want to do more vocal and acoustic guitar recording.

So I'm hoping you guys might have some recommendations for the best mic for vocals & guitar based on your own use with SONAR. Of course, I'd love to get the most "Bang for the buck", but I do understand that quality means money.

If it's within your budget, I would highly recommend checking out the Mojave MA-200.

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.

Hey, Mystic.  I am quite familiar with the TC unit: I have a TC Helicon VoiceWorks Plus in my rack.

Although I do not routinely use that as a pre—more of a doubler and effects unit for me—it should be fine.  It is a good quality piece of gear.  I sometimes have trouble getting the input level just right using its LED meters, but once that is set, it sounds good.
 
By the way, for anyone using the VoiceWorks as an effects unit, I have a post out here somewhere about setting it up as an outboard effects unit using digital in/out from the V-Studio.

In the @$100 range you have lots of choices with not a lot to choose between them.  Most are chinese made, where the capsules have a high-end rise.  Most of the mics are either re-branded mics (one factory cranks out mics and the distributor puts on their own badge) or made from the same components.  Unless you have time and the place to go check out a bunch of cheap mics like Guitar Center on your voice you can be pretty sure any of the mics will sound about the same.  That is a good thing - choice and price.  If you stick w/ recording acoustics then you can save and get something more expensive.

Cheap ribbons don't have the high-end rise but give a full low end.  There are problems in the low end ribbons (esp. tension of the ribbon element itself), but I just picked up a sub $100 ribbon.  Sounds deep on my voice - I'm waiting on hearing electric guitar and other things through it.  The mxl r-40 (mine) might do the trick if you are going for a more "vintage" sound.

Micheal Joly modded my old Oktava 319 but those are out of your stated price range.  You will find a lot of cheaper chinese mics he works on.  If they are anywhere near as improved as the 319 you could get that done when you have the extra cash.  The 319 is a different beast to start with, but his mod made it much better.  If you listen to The sadness of the beauty queen on my soundcloud site (Rm101) you can hear the 319 through a Warm preamp.

Your best bet may be a dynamic mic.  Heil springs to mind - I think they have some cheap ones.  Or the Rode.  They were doing the chinese mic thing first and should have better quality control than some factory model.

@

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