Stereo mic?

[garyota]

I may have the opportunity soon to record an acapella choir. I have several ideas about a stereo mic setup, but am curious about a good stereo mic.

1. Is there any reason to go with two condenser mics rather than a stereo mic?

2. What suggestions would you have for a good stereo mic? My budget is up to around $1000.

Thanks!

[Erockrazor]

Reason to go for 2 mics rather than 1 stereo mic?

You will be able to move around the "two" mics but the 1 stereo mic won't have any option in placement. You could do wide pairs, coincident pairs, you name it. But stereo mic will have no phase issues as the elements are in a fixed position.

Recommendations? I couldn't even try. But I would rather go for a stereo pair than a stereo microphone alone.

[guitar486]

What he said.

[Shadow_7]

I definitely like having two mics. And OMNI. That way if you're up close or far away, you have options. And it's hard to point the mics in the wrong direction with OMNI. Noting how clueless I am with my DIY fake fur windscreens with regards to what direction that softball looking contraption is actually pointing.

Not that I have experience with them, but the newer Beyer MC910 is supposed to be OMNI and around $1K. I've got Avenson STO-2's myself, for about half that. Fine for what I record, brass choirs, but might be a bit noisy for voice at a distance. The Crown Sass-P MK II might work well, but a bit fixed. I heard a sample of a CK-40 mic I liked. It's a single mic with two elements that you can rotate to point accordingly. Lots of 1K-ish mics in that style.

Lots of options, what works for choir, I don't really know, not my current gig per say. And what works might depend greatly on position and size of the choir. And the venue in question. I really love the sound of ribbons, but for 95% of what and where I record, they're simply unusable.

[bassdweller]

Originally Posted by Erockrazor

Reason to go for 2 mics rather than 1 stereo mic?

You will be able to move around the "two" mics but the 1 stereo mic won't have any option in placement. You could do wide pairs, coincident pairs, you name it. But stereo mic will have no phase issues as the elements are in a fixed position.

Recommendations? I couldn't even try. But I would rather go for a stereo pair than a stereo microphone alone.

Agreed. The last time the chorus I sing with had a recording session, the engineer had one stereo mic front and center, and four small-diaphragm condensers spread in a half circle.