Cheap home-recording mic for opera?

T

Tardigrades

New member
This is probably going to sound ridiculous :facepalm:

I sing with a strong support and enjoy classical repetoire - and would like to start recording myself for my own entertainment. So I'm looking for a mic that can handle this.

I'm looking for a microphone that would work with an operatic sound. I'm a penniless student very strapped for cash, so I thought I'd try a Blue Snowball - but wasn't impressed and ended up sending it back. My budget is £100 maximum so I'm aware I'm not going to get very much bang for the buck, but I'm very desperate to start recording - I could be pushed to increase my budget if you think there's something worthwhile for a bit more.
 
I am sure your microphone is not that good, but is it as bad as you think or is it the room you are in.

I suggest you look up some threads on how to treat your room not for mixing, but for the sound you are picking up in your microphone. Once you get the sound dialed in, then you can think about upgrading your microphone.

For example, as an opera type singer, you are probably 3-6 fee (1-2 meters) back from the mic. Well, that introduces the room. Much of what you are hearing that is unpleasant is most likely your room. Most of us close mic our recordings to keep the room out as much as possible, then inject with small amounts of reverb to bring back some life.

You could try reducing the gain in your mic and get closer to it to remove as much of the room as possible, but if you are really singing in an operatic style, this might be difficult.

My recommendation since you are already out the money, work on getting the recording with your current mic as good as possible. Once you have it better, then you can start thinking about upgrading. The mic you have I think is a USB microphone, if you upgrade you will need a microphone and an interface and that will run on the low end around $200-300. Practice first with what you, then look at upgrading.
 
DM60 said:
I am sure your microphone is not that good, but is it as bad as you think or is it the room you are in.

I suggest you look up some threads on how to treat your room not for mixing, but for the sound you are picking up in your microphone. Once you get the sound dialed in, then you can think about upgrading your microphone.

For example, as an opera type singer, you are probably 3-6 fee (1-2 meters) back from the mic. Well, that introduces the room. Much of what you are hearing that is unpleasant is most likely your room. Most of us close mic our recordings to keep the room out as much as possible, then inject with small amounts of reverb to bring back some life.

You could try reducing the gain in your mic and get closer to it to remove as much of the room as possible, but if you are really singing in an operatic style, this might be difficult.

My recommendation since you are already out the money, work on getting the recording with your current mic as good as possible. Once you have it better, then you can start thinking about upgrading. The mic you have I think is a USB microphone, if you upgrade you will need a microphone and an interface and that will run on the low end around $200-300. Practice first with what you, then look at upgrading.
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Thank you for this - it's given me some things to consider.

I sent the Snowball back a while ago and don't really intend on rebuying it.
 
Tardigrades said:
This is probably going to sound ridiculous :facepalm:

I sing with a strong support and enjoy classical repetoire - and would like to start recording myself for my own entertainment. So I'm looking for a mic that can handle this.

I'm looking for a microphone that would work with an operatic sound. I'm a penniless student very strapped for cash, so I thought I'd try a Blue Snowball - but wasn't impressed and ended up sending it back. My budget is £100 maximum so I'm aware I'm not going to get very much bang for the buck, but I'm very desperate to start recording - I could be pushed to increase my budget if you think there's something worthwhile for a bit more.
Click to expand...

For a mic that will do this within your budget there is only really the Line Audio microphones from Sweden. The OM1 is omni and the CM3 is a wide-cardioid. Both these punch well above their weight in quality for the price. :thumbs up:

They are both 999 Swedish Kroner each - that's a miniscule £75 each at today's exchange rate - and you buy direct from the msanufacturer. :thumbs up:

Neither of these mics are "close vocal" mics, but for operatic voice you would stand back a bit from the mic. to get the best sound and these would do that quite well.

But you will need an interface to get the sound into a computer - you can get a Focusrite i2i for just £87 from bax :thumbs up:

You will also need a mic. cable and mic stand, but Studiospares do these quite inexpensively.

This seems to be the best option for you on your small budget.

I hope this helps.

Oh - and ignore people who post prices in US Dollars, as you are in the UK and things are different in the USA.
 
John Willett said:
For a mic that will do this within your budget there is only really the Line Audio microphones from Sweden. The OM1 is omni and the CM3 is a wide-cardioid. Both these punch well above their weight in quality for the price. :thumbs up:

They are both 999 Swedish Kroner each - that's a miniscule £75 each at today's exchange rate - and you buy direct from the msanufacturer. :thumbs up:

Neither of these mics are "close vocal" mics, but for operatic voice you would stand back a bit from the mic. to get the best sound and these would do that quite well.

But you will need an interface to get the sound into a computer - you can get a Focusrite i2i for just £87 from bax :thumbs up:

You will also need a mic. cable and mic stand, but Studiospares do these quite inexpensively.

This seems to be the best option for you on your small budget.

I hope this helps.

Oh - and ignore people who post prices in US Dollars, as you are in the UK and things are different in the USA.
Click to expand...

Thank you so much, will it be reasonably straightforward to get up and running?
 
DM60 said:
Really? That is a pretty stupid statement within itself.
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Not really - if someone askes a question quoting one currency and gets a reply with a competely different currency it shows thatthe replier has not read the question properly and would likely be recommending stuff at a different level.
 
I don't know the mics John recommended but they sound interesting.

On the interface, if your student money is really tight, I can recommend the Alesis i02 which is a bit cheaper--£68.59 from THOMANN. It's the same interface (in a different box) to the M Audio M Track that I've used successfully for a couple of years now...surprisingly good for the money.

On the other topic, although it was a bit pushy to say "ignore advice in dollars", I can sort of see where John was coming from. Pricing in the UK and Europe is very different. For example, where Shure mics like the 57 and 58 are pretty cost effective in the US, they cost about 50% more across the pond--giving them a lot more competition. Anyhow, my take on it.
 
Bobbsy said:
I don't know the mics John recommended but they sound interesting.

On the interface, if your student money is really tight, I can recommend the Alesis i02 which is a bit cheaper--£68.59 from THOMANN. It's the same interface (in a different box) to the M Audio M Track that I've used successfully for a couple of years now...surprisingly good for the money.

On the other topic, although it was a bit pushy to say "ignore advice in dollars", I can sort of see where John was coming from. Pricing in the UK and Europe is very different. For example, where Shure mics like the 57 and 58 are pretty cost effective in the US, they cost about 50% more across the pond--giving them a lot more competition. Anyhow, my take on it.
Click to expand...

Interesting now I have some options to weigh up now, thank you!
 
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