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..

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.

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.

And of course, you can head over to GearSlutz, where everybody is an authority on everything.You will then be told what you SHOULD be using. 

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!

interesting thread... I am also looking for input..

I know almost nought about mics, synths yes :) ..lol and currently have only a budget samson R11 mic and so am looking for a vocal mic for recording.. kinda $100-150 tops... i guess by default i would have gone sm58?...

my upcoming projects have female vocalist... with power in her voice...

thx

SM 7B.

Best bang for that kind of buck is this: http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AT2035/
I'm in love with this Mic

Mystic38


interesting thread... I am also looking for input..

I know almost nought about mics, synths yes :) ..lol and currently have only a budget samson R11 mic and so am looking for a vocal mic for recording.. kinda $100-150 tops... i guess by default i would have gone sm58?...

my upcoming projects have female vocalist... with power in her voice...

thx

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.

NT1A really good Rode Mic like 239 through Sweetwater.  Hard to beat I would think