AT2020 vs Blue Spark

L

LmnLm3

New member
and vs Perception 220 I suppose...

[[[This was posted on a different forum, but I got no responses after hundreds of views]]]

Never seen these directly compared (the 2020/spark) anyone have experience with both? afik, the P220 is LDC, others are not...?

I just purchased an AT2020 and haven't used it yet. Still on the fence about keeping it. I mean I tested it a touch, but it's living in it's box.

I paid around $60 for it new.

Found a Blue Spark used (2 mo old) local to me and can get it for $120 with a GC 2 year protection plan. Is this a steal? Am I stupid to pass it up?

Also may or may not have found a P220 for $75, he might be a flake, can't tell.

I have a mild case of GAS, but no gear yet!!! Just a Scarlett 2i2, a 57 knockoff (quite nice, GLS ES-57...), a busted (but functional) Alesis Q49, Reason 6, and a pair of BX5a Deluxe.

So should I send back the 2020 and try to grab one of these used mics? What's a (poor) guy to do?!?

[PS I am a cellist, vocalist (barritone), and also play Soprano Uke, some acoustic guitar, and hand/finger percussion in addition to my Reason synths. No miking amps/cabs for me]

Thanks for thoughts!!
 
Lol why don't you actually try out the AT 2020 and see if you like it? ;)

That's a pretty good deal on the Spark.
 
Haha it was a production forum, not a recording forum. So yeah, it was the wrong place to ask.

As far as the blue (because that is the way I have been leaning, though I'm not sure I love the look), anyone use a [medium] diaphragm condenser for distance miking? Or can they only be used for close? (Thinking of cello here)

Would an AKG Perception 220 be a better all-around choice? (been using AKG phones for years, but I listened blind to a few mic's and chose the spark every time...)
 
Just AB/ed (and mixed, and fiddled) with my 2020 vs 57 and found the 57 to bring presence to the mix that was lacking with the 2020 alone (hard to set them up properly to record both at once though...)

2020 is lacking in presence to me, but also too bright and maybe thin. So looking for a thicker and smoother/sweeter sound.

Is there anything I can look at besides Tubes or Ribbons?
 
LmnLm3 said:
I did try the AT2020, and it seems a bit noisy, and harsh. Is that just me, or is it like that?
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LmnLm3 said:
2020 is lacking in presence to me, but also too bright and maybe thin. So looking for a thicker and smoother/sweeter sound.
Click to expand...

Well in all honesty, at the end of the day it IS a $100 LDC, and that won't get you very far satisfaction-wise. Cheaper condensers like the AT2020 and MXL v67g often have a brittle high-range to them. What did it seem "harsh" on? What were you recording?
 
Sounded harsh on my own vocals (baritone, but disney aladdin in my higher register, F3-F4 or thereabouts)

it sounded harsh on my upper range, not my lower register - around the 4 foot C it was, while not warm, representative of the natural warmth of my voice. So as long as I restrict my songs to like a half octave......hahaha :-)
 
Ah, but the blue one isn't slightly used in my area for $120 with a 2 year accident warranty.... ;-)

It's more the shape, but I could get used to it, I guess. That's obviously not the main priority (though it does make a difference - if you ask a vocalist to sing into what appears to be an adult toy, you might get a lesser performance than if you asked them to sing into an ACTUAL adult toy that was disguised as a neuman...

But all that aside, if the $60 mic is going to be as good as the $120 (or $199) mic, then I'll live for now. If it's worth the jump, or to hunt down the guy with the Perception 220 for $75, I'll do that.

I don't know anyone near me, so you guys are my only friends I can ask! (actually, you guys might be my only friends...)
 
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That seems reasonable - if I don't' like it, I won't lose any money at that price, right? Might even be able to sell it higher on eBay and such...
 
I havent compared the two for sure. I have good friends who own and love the spark. Never used a 2020, but the 4050 is one of the best all around LDC's I've ever heard under a grand. Don't know if the spills down into the 2020. I have a baby bottle and a Kiwi and love both. I ramble,....
The difference in the two mics won't matter near as much as the source, where you place the mic and the room you are using it in. Those are going far more effect your recording than the difference between the two mics.
 
I agree, they affect it much more. But the source isn't going to change (I'm not getting a new cello, or a new voice!!!) and the room won't change in the foreseeable future.

But I do have a choice in the gear. So even if it's not a good room, I still have a very good instrument, and a half good voice ;-) The voice might get better, and the room might too (who knows) but why do people chose a mic over another mic if they aren't moving or getting a better guitar, etc? It must make a noticeable difference... right? I notice a difference between my old MXL V63m and the AT2020, but the MXL was an LDC and the AT is like 16mm or something like that.
 
LmnLm3 said:
I agree, they affect it much more. But the source isn't going to change (I'm not getting a new cello, or a new voice!!!) and the room won't change in the foreseeable future.

But I do have a choice in the gear. So even if it's not a good room, I still have a very good instrument, and a half good voice ;-) The voice might get better, and the room might too (who knows) but why do people chose a mic over another mic if they aren't moving or getting a better guitar, etc? It must make a noticeable difference... right? I notice a difference between my old MXL V63m and the AT2020, but the MXL was an LDC and the AT is like 16mm or something like that.
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Yeah sure, I just can't imagine there being a marked difference between those two mics that couldn't be fixed by moving the mic around, changing location in the room etc. I am probably wrong here tho, I have never compared the two. I could see more differences with different types of mics perhaps.
 
I can tell you owning both and using both for actual paid work at certain times that the spark is bigger sounding than the 2020 and more vocally tuned, but the 2020 is still one of my favorite goto mics for certain acoustic guitars (irrelevant of microphone price). And the spark is also a very cool mic on female pop vocals, also irrelevant of microphone price. Although with a blue kiwi in my mic cabinet (which is brighter but completely magical) I don't often reach for the spark. I do, though, reach for it at times and it sometimes gets picked by either the artist or me over any of my other mics.
 
oh, and for sure, both of the mics in question are a little stronger in highs than lows.... the 2020 more so imho than the spark, but that isn't always a bad thing.

I always use a 2020 where I would use a sdc, and in fact it's closer to being a sdc capsule than a ldc cap imho.

IF you want an affordable(ish) mic that has much more warmth down load, the ennheiser mk4 might fit the bill. it doesn't have the world's most attractive high end, but on the right singer it's very cool, and imho has more lower mids than either of the mics in question.

I love cheap mics :-)

Also I highly recommend the cad m9 tube mic as an affordable and great vocal mic but I find it almost always doesn't work well on things other than vocals.... so while it's affordable(ish) it isn't as versatile as some other mics. Your mileage may vary and all that.... one man's vocal mic is another man's cab mic and yet another man's door stop.
 
Thanks for the thoughts - I am now trying to get a hold of the guy selling the spark (if he still has it)

I packaged back up the 2020 and have been using a 57 (the 57 is warmer than the 2020 :( ) And I am wondering if a higher end dynamic would be more flattering to my voice than an LDC of *any* sort. (not sure if I have enough clean gain to run an RE20, etc, but it might be the path I should take)

I just recorded a super crappy demo of Tears in Heaven (I know...) and I was just goofing off with the software, but since I recorded it all on the 57 I guess I'll put it on sound cloud so you can hear my voice and suggest which way to go...?

Would this be helpful?
 
LmnLm3 said:
I'll put it on sound cloud so you can hear my voice and suggest which way to go...?

Would this be helpful?
Click to expand...


Your darn tooten' it will help!
I wish everyone would do that when asking which vocal microphone they should purchase.
 
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