sharke

Bub


I read an article one time by a very famous audio engineer and for the life of me I can't recall his name. I remember in the picture he was wearing jeans and a baseball cap ... in case it rings any bells.

He basically said it's nice to have high end gear, but he could make an album with anything.

I think I know the guy you mean. Did you have eyebrows and a nose too? 

Hmmm, let me think ... no ... it wasn't Michael Jackson so yes, he had a nose. LOL!



I mentioned the jeans and cap because it seemed odd to see a picture of a guy standing in a half million dollar studio doing an interview in an audio mag dressed like he didn't give a crap ...

I use akg perception and rode nt1 mikes and I like them both. With condensers you have to know how to sing to them.

Bub


<snip>

He basically said it's nice to have high end gear, but he could make an album with anything.

This statement is pretty much true of a lot of famous engineers. But we're not talking about a famous engineer here.


Cheap mics are cheap for a reason.

Audio Technica make some nice mics in the lower end of the price spectrum.

We have an AT-4033A which has been our go-to vocal mic for over a decade.

Bristol_Jonesey


Audio Technica make some nice mics in the lower end of the price spectrum.

We have an AT-4033A which has been our go-to vocal mic for over a decade.

This is a great workhorse. I use two on drum overs.

 The thing about mics is that no matter where you try and research them online there are good comments and bad comments on the same mics.

 I remember one day spending a few hours online and reading comment after positive comment on just about any mike I decided to look at. Looking at freq. responses can be helpful if you know where your particular voice has an edge. "gold sputtered 1" diaphram" seems pretty common and something I would look for.Noise circuitry is so negligable as to not be noticed in a mix usually.The "low noise" they talk about isn't discernable in many cases. The Neuman actually added tube noise. My first condenser years ago was an AKG C3000B. I still have that mic. People love to hate it but it fits with certain material. I think it has a mylar diaphram,almost indestructable for a condenser.  I started singing with an SM57,  a close cousin to the 58. I am a tenor and the 58 is a great mic for that. I sing though one of those every week and it really does work well for my vocs.Lots of albums were made singing on a 58.

 My staple dynamic now is the EV ND767 taylored for male vocal.I highly recommend this mic both live and for recording. I picked up an MXL 990 at a GC grand opening for 49.00,actually used a pair of them for a concert recording. A nice recording mic with a silky smooth characteristic. Nothing seems  pronounced,only a 3/4" dianphram I think. In a pinch I use it. I am thinking about a higher end MXL,or Rode NT1 . I am only a hobbiest weekend player, I might reconsider if I were recording someone else.

 The Rode Nt1 is one of those mics that I regularly read about in magazines. It is usually one of these, " We used a Rode NT1,AKG,Neuman,AT" and usually includes a really decent mic pre in there somewhere. I seldom read of anyone using something like an MXL. If they did they don't want that getting out.

Most of those low end condenser mics are made in China now no matter whos name is on it in that price range with a few exceptions....that's not a bad thing but  like a very vanilla feeling I get looking at all of it. One is so similar to another that I start to ask what the difference really is.

 Bub hit the nail on the head here on mic pres, a decent pre can certainly help the sound. I think the truth is probably somewhere in the middle, The really high end mics are probably overkill and some of the mid MXL or similar mics  sound much better than the high end guys want you to know.

I had an AKG Perception (the now-obsolete 100) and dumped it after about a year. Definitely falls into the "adequate" category. Acceptable for male rock vocals, but I wouldn't call it an "all-around" mic and I wouldn't recommend it for acoustic guitar.

I've cycled through a bunch of cheap microphones over the years, irrationally hoping to find a diamond in the coal pile. Of them, only the Rode NT1-A ($240) was good enough to hang onto long-term, even if it only gets occasional use nowadays.

If I were looking for an inexpensive LDC today, a good place to start would be either the Shure KSM-27 or the Audio-Technica AT-4040. However, given that those are around $300, neither satisfies the OP's original parameters. 

This is just my semi-informed opinion, but it seems the price threshold for a versatile condenser is around $300-$400. A truly do-everything all-around condenser will run you about a grand.

bitflipper


I had an AKG Perception (the now-obsolete 100) and dumped it after about a year. Definitely falls into the "adequate" category. Acceptable for male rock vocals, but I wouldn't call it an "all-around" mic and I wouldn't recommend it for acoustic guitar.

I've cycled through a bunch of cheap microphones over the years, irrationally hoping to find a diamond in the coal pile. Of them, only the Rode NT1-A ($240) was good enough to hang onto long-term, even if it only gets occasional use nowadays.

If I were looking for an inexpensive LDC today, a good place to start would be either the Shure KSM-27 or the Audio-Technica AT-4040. However, given that those are around $300, neither satisfies the OP's original parameters. 

This is just my semi-informed opinion, but it seems the price threshold for a versatile condenser is around $300-$400. A truly do-everything all-around condenser will run you about a grand.

Just to clarify:  the KSM-27 is no longer available from retail locations.  you can find some used ones on ebay.
 
the replacement for that mic is the SM-27.  It's mostly the same mic, but not exactly. 
 
I have a KSM-27 and it is my "goto" mic.  It's the one I use on all vocals.  However you also need to understand that I don't have a lot of mics to choose from.  I've not bought any more mics since I bought the KSM-27 several years ago.

pdlstl

Bub

<snip>

He basically said it's nice to have high end gear, but he could make an album with anything.

This statement is pretty much true of a lot of famous engineers. But we're not talking about a famous engineer here.

No, but the point is ... the people who are successful at this and do it on a large professional scale with millions of dollars of backing (not the mom and pop studio types) are telling you you don't need to spend a ton of money on a mic, and in my experience, I'd have to say I agree with them. By the way ... he was referring to mic's when he was talking about high end gear. It was an article about mics. Damn I wish I could find it. I've quoted several things from that guy and wish I could back it up with a link. Grrr.

Cheap mics are cheap for a reason.

True, but cost doesn't necessarily define how good or bad a mic will sound.

I've been messing around with other stuff most of the day but this thread has been beautiful. I not only have a plethora of microphones to research I have far more knowledge on general microphone concepts and technologies than I did before posting this thread. Thank you so much guys and by all means if you think of anything else lay it on me. Cheers!