the "usb conversion box" - what exactly is that?  what brand?  if it's what I'm thinking it's still just as bad as a USB mic except that you can throw it away and still have a mic to plug into a USB soundcard.    except a mic from Singstar xbox is not going to be a good mic either.

the fast track is a decent starter card.  good solid drivers (usually - unless you're on Vista).

the fast track is probably what I would get if I were buying an entry level USB soundcard.  check my website, tho, if you want to check out other options.  there are also some (real) mic recommendations there.

I guess what I mean by 'USB conversion box' is that the audio jack on the end of the mic plug into a small black box with a usb cable on it. It's this:

(That little black box off to the left)
And the mc I have is pretty much either of those, except with a red band and a blue end/jack protector.

It's definetly in the waaaaay cheap, but I got it for free from my church, so I wasn't gonna complain. Plus, it's far better than what I was using before, A Logitech QuickCam.

In any case, Beagle, I'm looking at the ones one your site in the $60 - $120 range. Ones like the Marshall MXL V63M, AT Pro 37, and the Behringer C-2. Well made site and spreadsheet, it's really giving me a good view on where to start for my first mic!

Me and the guys I work with pretty much only record vocals; We don't plan on recording any instruments any time soon, but I guess it's good to never be too shure.     (pun)

So what do you think? Where should I go, what should I do? What is a good, cheap ($200-and-less) mic+sound card setup I should go for?

UPDATE:
Okay, so I just learned of something cool and new; I own this little mixing board called the Boss BR-532. I got it for really cheap with an amp I bought for my electric. So I was able to connect the Line Out port of the board to the Line In on computer's sound card, and I can get way better results this way! I now get full stereo (as opposed to was originally mono), pretty much NO noise (at least with the guitar/bass direct input) sound recording!
Plus, I have live control over the sensitivity, input level, and master volume. It's so much better than however I managede to squeak by before.
I'll be buying an XLR mic soon, and this mixing board will become part of my permenant recording setup.

Btw, Beagle, you getting back to me on this thread? I'm still a little wary on what to buy, because I also make videos, and I want to buy a mic that will suit both video and studio recording. Preferable XLR, but I can live with 1/8" or even 1/4".
Thanks!

sorry - I didn't see your response/question above.

any of those you mentioned are decent.  I myself own a V63M - tho I haven't used it in a long time, it's a good mic. 

Personally I would not get the AT Pro 37 or the Behringer C-2 if all you're planning on recording with it is vocals.  they're both decent mics, but they're Small Diameter Condensors, which are better suited for recording things like acoustic guitar or other acoustic instruments.  vocals are better recorded with Large Diameter Condensors.

the MXL V63M is an LD condensor and will be good for vocals (which is what I used it for before I put it in the locker and hadn't gotten it back out again!).

BUT!  be aware (as I say on my website) that those condensor mics need phantom power to operate!  I wouldn't advise buying a phantom power supply separately - it's not worth the cost since you need a soundcard (interface) as well.  so make sure you go ahead and get the soundcard with phantom power at the same time you get the new mic!

also - you really don't want stereo for vocals anyway.  you want mono.  a microphone is a MONO instrument, so you want to record in mono.

MC will place the mono instruments in the center of the stereo field so that you have equal volumes on both channels from the mono instruments (unless you pan it).  that's the way it's supposed to work.  if you were recording in MC and getting only the left channel, that means you selected the wrong input on the audio track in your MC project.  that can be remedied by selecting the MONO input and then that will put the mono track in both speakers.

From what I can understand, my mic, when plugged directly into the soudcard's mic input, would only send the Left Channel, and I would have to set the track's mic input to Left only. That was probably the main reason I used theat little USB Conv box, basides the fact that I basically got unusable interference and noise from the plug rolling/shifting around in the input.
So you're suggesting setting the audio track to Mono?

In any case, like I said, I figured out (just today!) that I could just send from my mixing board to my line in on my comp, so I can use the mixer as something of a preamp, mixing console (something I REALLY needed) and a central input. In a way, it works for me a bit like how an audio interface would, minus the fact that it sends through audio rather than USB.

So then, Beagle, my next question is; Would I still be better off going for a USB audio interface rather than analog?

From what I can understand, my mic, when plugged directly into the soudcard's mic input, would only send the Left Channel, and I would have to set the track's mic input to Left only

yes, but that's not a problem.  that's the way it's supposed to work.  your input is a stereo input, so you have to choose left only because your mic is a mono input.

but the project will put the mono mic input into the stereo field and output to both speakers if you choose the LEFT input when recording.

a microphone is a MONO instrument - stereo doesn't mean anything to a mono instrument unless you start changing the stereo field it's put into.  you can do that by panning and adding FX.

So then, Beagle, my next question is; Would I still be better off going for a USB audio interface rather than analog?

what do you mean by "analog"?  no offense inteded here, but I don't think you understand the terminology well.  "analog recording" means TAPE.  there is no other type of analog recording (well, you could use wax, but that's kind of ancient technology!).

My BEST advice to you is to get something similar to this setup:
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-audio/m-audio-mobilepre-mk-ii  $150
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-audio/mxl-v63m-condender-studio-mic-with-mogami-mic-cable  $100

there are other combinations, you could choose - that's just one that I know off of the top of my head that should work well.

as far as your mixer you were talking about earlier, you CAN use it even with this setup, but it's not necessary.  if you want to use it, there are things you can do with it to help you with recording, but starting out and only recording vocals I wouldn't recommend it - just use the soundcard (interface) and mic like I have mentioned above.

even if you use your cheap mic and your built-in soundcard, you CAN use that mixer, but it's not necessary.  if you use both inputs and the only thing you're recording is the microphone (mono) then you're going to put the outputs of the mixer into the stereo field, but panning will not work correctly because you're trying to pan a stereo track.  it doesn't work the same as panning a mono track.

so again - my best advice is to get a traditional LD condensor mic and soundcard (usb interface) like I have mentioned above.  if that's out of your price range, then use what you have the way I describe it above (input into the left channel only, record only the left channel and it will send the signal to both speakers from your MC project) until you CAN afford a better setup like I am describing above.

Back into the spin of this thread, I've been looking at a few inexpensive mics that'll hold me over until I can get a USB soundcard (mainly stuff like the Shure SM57/58, AT2020, Behringer C2/3/4, among others)
But since I'm tasked with finding a mic that is in any case, better than what I have now (which is virtually ANYthing), I was wondering if I'd be in a better position to do which of the following;
1) Buy a USB SC and save until I can get a decent mic
2) Buy a decent XLR mic and use it with my mixer
3) Buy a decent XLR mic and use it with an XLR to 1/8"

I don't really know- which is the most important on the hierarchy?

Gauge mics are really nice and low priced as well.   The SM 57 is a good all around mic for vocals but there are better mics at that price range..... see the Gauge mics.... as they are condensors in that price range. 

Some folks here use some inexpensive mics with good results.  So do not think you need to drop a ton of money on a mic to get a good one. 

I'd definitely get a decent USB sound card first..... get by with the mike for the time and then get a decent mic later.  Using a so-so mic with a good interface will be better than what you are now doing..... so get the interface. 

If you get an interface, it should have good preamps and phantom power built in for that future mic. 

i've skimmed back thru and can't find where you mention exactly what mic you're currently using?  the answer to that will drive what you should get first.