help choosing a mic. budget: $500-1000

[freshfriedfishy]

so here's the deal:

ive got 1000.00. i need a LD condenser that flatters many-a-application. at the same time, i'd like a tube pre to fatten her up a bit. im looking for something that will shine on vocals, yet be able to take the punishment of being in the same room as my Trick RPM vented snare. (in otherwords) we're looking for something that can handle whatever i throw at it till i save for a vintage u87!

my current pre's are a Digimax LT, and the four focusrite pre's onboard digi002 rack.

here's what ive narrowed it down too:

Shure KSM-44
AT4050
Sennheiser 421 & SE H3500 (i could grab both at about 250 each)
Neumann TLM 103

im afraid if i skimp on preamp, my mic wont shine. the presonus has great pre's, as does the 002, but i really wanna make the most of what i have. idealy, i'd like to get a vintech dual 72 "1272" pre... but thats 1k on its own. perhaps a future upgrade? so what would you do? go full on and throw 1000.00 into a mic and use the presonus digimax? or put maybe 500-600 into mic's and 400 into a midfi pre?


thanks yall <3

[Big Kenny]

Pick one and save for the other. You will be satisfied only briefly if you settle fro good enough now. Get a Peluso, Soundelux, CAD VSM or something now and save up for that dream machine

[BrettB]

Originally Posted by freshfriedfishy

so here's the deal:

ive got 1000.00. i need a LD condenser that flatters many-a-application. at the same time, i'd like a tube pre to fatten her up a bit. im looking for something that will shine on vocals, yet be able to take the punishment of being in the same room as my Trick RPM vented snare. (in otherwords) we're looking for something that can handle whatever i throw at it till i save for a vintage u87!

my current pre's are a Digimax LT, and the four focusrite pre's onboard digi002 rack.

here's what ive narrowed it down too:

Shure KSM-44
AT4050
Sennheiser 421 & SE H3500 (i could grab both at about 250 each)
Neumann TLM 103

im afraid if i skimp on preamp, my mic wont shine. the presonus has great pre's, as does the 002, but i really wanna make the most of what i have. idealy, i'd like to get a vintech dual 72 "1272" pre... but thats 1k on its own. perhaps a future upgrade? so what would you do? go full on and throw 1000.00 into a mic and use the presonus digimax? or put maybe 500-600 into mic's and 400 into a midfi pre?


thanks yall <3

with that money, I woul dgo for the Neuman TLM, or maybe even consider a Solid tube.

[noiseportrait]

Soundelux U195.

[Ronan]

The AT tube 4060 is an amazing choice in your price range. Its sounds great on an amazing range of instruments and vocals. It stands up next to mics 2-3 times the price.

[Lanstar0]

I concur regarding the AT4060 suggestion...

[Innovations]

Originally Posted by freshfriedfishy

so here's the deal:

ive got 1000.00. i need a LD condenser that flatters many-a-application. at the same time, i'd like a tube pre to fatten her up a bit. im looking for something that will shine on vocals, yet be able to take the punishment of being in the same room as my Trick RPM vented snare. (in otherwords) we're looking for something that can handle whatever i throw at it till i save for a vintage u87!

my current pre's are a Digimax LT, and the four focusrite pre's onboard digi002 rack.

here's what ive narrowed it down too:

Shure KSM-44
AT4050
Sennheiser 421 & SE H3500 (i could grab both at about 250 each)
Neumann TLM 103

im afraid if i skimp on preamp, my mic wont shine. the presonus has great pre's, as does the 002, but i really wanna make the most of what i have. idealy, i'd like to get a vintech dual 72 "1272" pre... but thats 1k on its own. perhaps a future upgrade? so what would you do? go full on and throw 1000.00 into a mic and use the presonus digimax? or put maybe 500-600 into mic's and 400 into a midfi pre?


thanks yall <3

of the ones you listed I would be most tempted to get the Neumann, just becasue.

On the other hand this would be very tempting to me too.
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/...se_pid/279010/
If that combo can't make your vocals shine I'm thinking nothing will.

[chessparov]

Here are some questions to help you narrow things down;

1) Is the microphone just for you or also for other vocalists?

2) How good (or bad ) does your recording room sound?

3) What acoustical room treatment(s) have you done or are planning?
www.realtraps.com is a great place to check this stuff out.
Ethan Winer has a forum at www.musicplayer.com you can
ask questions on in this regard.

With all due respect, I'd expect most pro AE's to NOT rate the pre's you have as "great pre's" like a Martech or Manley.
The sound quality of your recording room will have more impact that "which pre" since you have reasonable ones already to use.

Also there is nothing inherently better about tube vs. solid state pre's.
Solid state Neve pre's can deliver thickness aka "iron" to the signal,
for example. The quality of the design is what's important.
Fletcher at www.mercenary.com is an expert on gear and a good person for you to contact. He also has a forum at www.prosoundweb.com

Chris

P.S. I belong to a sizable group of singers who like a SM57 over a U87 on
their voice, so don't let preconceptions on price tag/quality blind you.

[darnold]

I find myself using the AT4050 more than anything else on vocal at the moment. I havnt had any experience with TLM103 but i hear thats a mic that people hate or love. AT4050 is a pretty versatile microphone but it isnt much of a hyped up vocal mic like the TLM103 would be. But ive found it to be a beast. Maybe get one of those with a nice preamp and you would be rollin.

Ill have to borrow a friends TLM103 and see what i think about it.

Wrd.

Danny

[cominginsecond]

If you really want a workhorse mic and a good tube pre for around a grand, I'd grab a Shure KSM32 and a Summit 2BA-221. That'll run you a little over a grand. If you don't mind buying used, you could probably get a KSM44 instead.

BTW, I really like my 2BA-221. It's pretty versatile, and it can vary from very tubey to very clean. It has a variable impedence control, a pad, polarity reverse, and a high pass filter. Plus, it's an excellent DI. It's the best pre I've ever used (which may not be saying much, because I've only used the Focusrite Penta, the JoeMeek MQ3, the M-Audio DMP3, and the Presonus BlueTube).

[Warhead]

If you're going to go Neumann, do the TLM193 instead. Much smoother mic for vocals and not such a hyped top end. Lots of choices though.

War

[Giganova]

Instead of the TLM103, you should consider the Gefell M930. Killer mic!

[Richard Monroe]

I'd do 2 mics- KSM44, B.L.U.E. Dragonfly, or AKG C414TLII, whichever one sounds better on your voice, and a Shure SM7-B. If the one doesn't work, the other one often will. Get a versatile condenser and a kickass dynamic.-Richie

[darnold]

Ill second the TLM193.

This mic doesnt get much hype but it really is a great mic. Might be a little over the budget though.

Well, this doesnt help when he hasnt given us any feedback to our questions.

Danny

[freshfriedfishy]

ive been torn. its a match making game!

its like... okay,
i could get a 414, and a 421
i could get a ksm44, and a 421
i could get a 4050 and a 421
i could grab a tlm-103
i could weasel a 414 and a ksm32

i just grabbed a studio projects c-1 for 120 from a friend, and i love it. i'd really like a mic with a couple different patterns for room micing and such. at the same time, i need something that can really put out for vocals and those more intimate moments.

ive decided to dedicate 1 grand to a preamp. maybe a used ISA session pack, or a nice vintech dual72? UA 610?. so whatever mic i get, its gonna be going through a nice channel.

[xstatic]

I second the Soundelux U195 from above Also, the UA610 would be a nice pre, but I think you can get into onme channel of Phoenix audio at about $1000 as well. It'll smoke the Vintech, but then you get only 1 channel as a trade off