Female Vocalist Looking For Advice on Mics

G

GinaELlen

New member
Hi guys,

I am A Session Vocalist and most of the work I do is from home, remotely using Logic Pro 8, An Apogee One interface and A Behringer B2 pro Condenser, So a pretty entry level setup.

My Dad (who has an actual studio) really wants to buy a Neumann U87ai. I'm aware of the Difference in opinions on these mics! I've used them a couple of times and seem to work well with my voice. He's said I can use it anytime he isn't, which is cool. I have a couple questions though ...

Is it a little pointless using an U87 with my Apogee one (he also has a focusrite saffire pro40 that I could use. Do you think i'd get a decent sound using one of these or is it always going to be a silly idea using a nearing £2k mic with a £400 pre?

Also about my room... It's my bedroom but I have a homemade vocal booth (I.E a wardrobe with foam) ..... Can you suggest any room treatments that will work with the Neumann or shall I just experiment? And also, like the preamp situation is it pointless using the U87 when I don't have a professionally treated room?

Any advice would be great .. Bear in mind my knowledge is fairly basic on this stuff!

If it's useful, here is my website where you can hear my vocal (most things on here have been recorded with the basic setup that I currently have) Female vocalist southwest available to hire for online session vocals | Home The large majority of stuff I do is pop and dance and some soul and folk too so a clear bright sound is what i'm looking for really.

Thanks in advance,

Gina
 
I'd be much more concerned with room treatments than the mic -- Closets are almost invariably horrific places, acoustically speaking. And a more sensitive mic (such as a U87) is going to pick up on every peak and null with glee.

That all said -- If the space is actually effective, there's no problem with the 87 into the Apogee. Personally I'd probably go with a more vocal-friendly mic -- You could very easily grab a SM7b *and* a RE-27ND *and* a NT1a for less than half the price of a U87 and have just the right mic to fit the application every time. Even when "money is no object" I rarely used a U87 on vocals except for certain applications and even with those applications, the NT1a probably got more use.
 
What you can't hear with your ears in the closet with foam is all the low low-mid frequency build-ups - even though your voice may be high, they are still there.
 
The U87 will sound fine with your Saffire PRO 40. If you don't have great room treatment, you can get an acoustic shield that will catch a lot of the room reverb

PF30.jpg
 
I"m wondering is she's looking for a mic or looking for work...?

I mean...she has a father who has a recording studio. I would think he would have the answers for her, and be able to provide her with whatever she needs.

Just sayin....
 
miroslav said:
I"m wondering is she's looking for a mic or looking for work...?

I mean...she has a father who has a recording studio. I would think he would have the answers for her, and be able to provide her with whatever she needs.

Just sayin....
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Good point
 
I would have no problem using the U87 with your existing pre amp/interface. The microphone can make a huge difference to the sound; the pre amp, even the best, makes a relatively subtle difference.

I have to agree with those who say the other biggie is the acoustic treatment of your room. It doesn't necessarily have to be professionally treated but don't just slather on the foam. Have a read of the room treatment forum elsewhere on HR for some ideas.

Otherwise, the suggestion of an acoustic shield is a good one but don't just buy any old cheap imitation. The sE Reflexion Filter series is the only one I know of that's worth using. The rest are just random foam stuck on backing trying to look like an sE.
 
I see Neumann have revived the U47 FET (rvwd, SoS July 2015) so maybe get Dad to buy one of those and you can keep the 87?

Dave.
 
Thanks for your responses guys, Really appreciated.

For the record, I'm not looking for work. My dad is a bit out of touch with modern recording technologies! It's more of a hobby for him now. Yes, he's very knowledgeable but I wanted the opinions of professionals who are using todays equipment and modern recording techniques, If that's OK with you miroslav?!

I mean, he's set on the U87. So I just want a way to make it work for me.

The biggy looks to be the space so i'm looking forward to having a read around the forum to learn more about that.

Thanks again and any more opinions greatly appreciated.
 
GinaELlen said:
Thanks for your responses guys, Really appreciated.

For the record, I'm not looking for work. My dad is a bit out of touch with modern recording technologies! It's more of a hobby for him now. Yes, he's very knowledgeable but I wanted the opinions of professionals who are using todays equipment and modern recording techniques, If that's OK with you miroslav?!

I mean, he's set on the U87. So I just want a way to make it work for me.

The biggy looks to be the space so i'm looking forward to having a read around the forum to learn more about that.

Thanks again and any more opinions greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...

The U87 is an awesome piece of studio gear. Some of us have it, others dream about having it. The best I have managed to get so far is a Neumann TLM107 but having said that, it still produced some lovely results.

However, if the vocal track is processed in any way, then it might not matter if you had the second. third or tenth best microphone. If the U87 is near perfect, that doesn't mean that a whole range of "lesser" mics wouldn't be good enough. If you have the U87, use it. Doesn't mean you couldn't do it with many of the offerings from other brands.

Also, while Neumann makes beautiful mics, as hard as it is to imagine, the Neumann may not suit your particular voice. That has been the case with many singers who have their own preferred mic that is NOT a Neumann. You may have to try other mics to see what works for you
 
GinaELlen said:
For the record, I'm not looking for work. My dad is a bit out of touch with modern recording technologies! It's more of a hobby for him now. Yes, he's very knowledgeable but I wanted the opinions of professionals who are using todays equipment and modern recording techniques, If that's OK with you miroslav?
Click to expand...

I don't control who posts and who doesn't...so you don't need my permission to hang on the forums. :)

I just happened to check out your site...and saw that you've been at it for a few years now, which means you're past the newb stage, and well, it then seemed like you were just looking to lead people to your site.

We get that a lot around here....one post wonders who just come to post a link to something of theirs, and nothing more.
If you're here for more than that...great...hang out and post up.

AFA the mic....that's somewhat of a personal choice, and depends on your voice, and what you want to hear from it.
It's best to audition a few if you can, so you really hear the differences...and then pick the one you like best.
Of course, if your dad is doing the buying, and he really wants the U87...then I guess that's what it will be.
One thing...no matter how old-school your dad is...mics are mics...and modern recording techniques can utilize the same kind of mics that they were using 60 years ago. Heck....most old-school mics are prized over anything cheap you can get these days.

Some of my favorites are the ADK mics...but again, they make like 20 different models, so it's hard to just say..."get this one".
 
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