Need Some Help with new mics in new studio

I

idoteech

New member
We just finished our small project studio behind our house. Building is 16' x 20'...carpeted...treated about 35% of the walls with foam.

Just got my new Shure SM7B and Shure KSM27 in today. Still waiting on my Presonus Eureka preamp to come in. I ran both mics straight into my Mbox, and recorded over a vocal that I already had in a mix. The previous vocal was recorded on a MXL990 mic in my bedroom. To be honest, I can't hear much of a difference in the vocals. And there is DEFINITELY a difference in the mics. I had to boost the KSM up pretty hot to get a good signal, and the SM7B was a little muddy.

One of the problems I'm having is latency. I never had this problem before until I moved in the studio and plugged in my new mics (haven't tested old mics yet). I checked my Mbox mix level and it is set where it has always been set. I also am buffering at 256 on my playback engine. Any ideas why these mics are causing a bit of an echo? Or is it just the new environment that is larger than my bedroom area was?

I just spent $700 on these mics, and I need to figure out what I'm doing wrong. Tomorrow I'm going to try to take all the previous effects off of the mix and see if that makes a difference.

Sorry for all the questions...just a newbie starting out...Thanks in advance for all your great advice! ;)

God Bless,
Eva
www.ablazestudios.com
 
Honestly, the first thing you should do is rip out the carpet. Area rugs are good, but wall-to-wall carpet is not. It will just absorb highs, but do nothing to the lows, creating a muddy sound.

There is no reason that different mics should cause different latency. That is a feature of digital interfaces, not analog electronics (like mics). Analog signals all travel pretty close to the speed of light . . . it's possible you are hearing room reflections, and if they sound like an echo, that's probably a bad thing. After you remove the carpet, more (and thicker) wall/ceiling treatments may be required. But digital latency would be the full original signal, unlike a room reflection. It shouldn't be hard to distinguish the two.

The KSM should not require much more gain than the MXL990. The SM7B, of course, will need a lot more gain. In fact, the KSM27 and MXL990 have almost exactly the same sensitivity (output level for a given source volume).

So if something has changed from your old setup, it probably is not attributable to the KSM.
 
I'm no expert but I'd say the mbox preamp just isn't showing the raise in quality in the new mics..
 
idoteech said:
Any ideas why these mics are causing a bit of an echo? Or is it just the new environment that is larger than my bedroom area was?
Click to expand...

The mics are great, and I doubt the preamp is getting in the way (though maybe there's a settings issue).

CLAP YOUR HANDS, without recording... Is there a ringy, echoey sound? If so, that's an issue. I used mover's blankets and competely eliminated bad reflections, though they look like mover's blankets, not tapestries...
 
I've got a 990 and an SM7B--I noticed the difference right away. Chances are it's the room. Even though the recordings were made in different rooms, if they're both bad room, the new mics won't sound miraculous.

I learned this the hard way. I spent a lot of money upgrading the mics and the entire signal chain--before I spent a nickel on the room. I've since slowed down on the gear and focused on the room treatments. Now I won't touch the 990's for much.

Taking a bad room out of the equation lets the mic do it's thing--that's when you hear the difference between a so-so mic and a decent one.
 
Thanks for all the info. I really don't see me ripping out carpet that I paid $600 for....Every studio I have ever recorded in has had the same type of carpet that I've had, and we got a great sound.

Is there anything I can do to the room to help? I have acoustical panels behind my computer (much of the upper half of the wall), a bass trap in each corner, and several panels on the walls. Do I need more panels behind where my mics are? Diffusers on the ceiling?

Thanks!!!
Eva
 
idoteech said:
Thanks for all the info. I really don't see me ripping out carpet that I paid $600 for....Every studio I have ever recorded in has had the same type of carpet that I've had, and we got a great sound.
Click to expand...

Well, that depends on what you are recording. Vocals, probably doesn't matter as much, but I wouldn't tracking acoustic instruments, especially drums, or any kind of ensemble, without wood floors or similar.

It's possible I have given you the wrong recommendation for your studio (but I don't think I have), but you seem to have the wrong attitude. Your goal should be the best possible acoustics for your budget, not to justify purchases you have made. The right time to plan acoustics is before the studio is built. The $600 on the carpet is already spent, it can't help you anymore. Believe me, I feel your pain, I spend $20K building out my studio last year, and it is just 15x18. I planned it the best I could in advance, and it came out well (this is my second studio). But if I did something wrong, I'd get out the sledgehammer tomorrow.

Is there anything I can do to the room to help? I have acoustical panels behind my computer (much of the upper half of the wall), a bass trap in each corner, and several panels on the walls. Do I need more panels behind where my mics are? Diffusers on the ceiling?
Click to expand...

Any advice I could give beyond "more" would just be a wild guess. You've heard enough from me anyway, you need a second and third opinion.

Do this:

Draw a floorplan of your room, noting ceiling heights, mix position, and any other significant features (piano, etc.). Describe all finished surfaces and existing treatments. Start a new thread down in the Studio Building board, towards the bottom of this BBS, with the floorplan and that information, and ask for further treatment advice. It's here:

https://homerecording.com/bbs/forumdisplay.php?f=20

If you do that, you will likely get responses from professional acoustics experts (we are fortunate to have two or three or four around here). They may not see your thread here.
 
"We are a Christ-based recording studio in Denham Springs, Louisiana."


Well ... given the complete lack of experience / knowledge of those running the shop, I would sure want the big man on my side if I was plunking down money to record there.

:D
 
I THOUGHT this was a place for people to learn...obviously not...

I think we were all inexperienced at one time or another...isn't that where we all started???

Nevermind...will learn some other way.

And thank God He is on my side.
 
idoteech said:
I THOUGHT this was a place for people to learn...obviously not...

I think we were all inexperienced at one time or another...isn't that where we all started???

Nevermind...will learn some other way.

And thank God He is on my side.
Click to expand...

Woah, did I miss something? Relax. It looks as though a number of people have given some time and insight to make thoughtful responses.
 
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