Clark Grizwald
New member
I've been recording music since 1982 (Tascam 8 channel Reel to Reel)
I've never focused on recording much, just dabbled.
I've been playing in cover bands locally since 1979 but now have gotten too old for such activity. I have several stage mics, but never bought any dedicated "studio" mics.
I always thought all microphones were pretty much the same because I've seen pro studios record with SM 57s/58s in many instances.
It made me think, "any quality mic will do".
Wrong!
After getting less than spectacular results recording my friends beautiful vocal on a recent song I did, (even with my best Sennheiser mic) I decided to do some research and purchase a new mic for a better result.
Seems there is a BIG difference between "Live" & "Studio" microphones.
Also, a budget mic pre/channel strip can work wonders on a vocal track. (Everything I read and many users I asked, suggested this)
So, I got on Ebay and bought a Blue Bluebird microphone and a Focusrite Trakmaster Pro. I also bought the ADC card for the Trackmaster to get a nice clean S/PDIF output.
One other new acquisition...a pop filter. (a must for good vocal tracks)
Wow! What a difference!
I don't know whether it's the mic or the Trakmaster, but it's night & day to what I had been using. (I have an M-Audio Black Box I have used, too)
I noticed the sensitivity of the mic right away. The compressor is kinda slack on the Focusrite, but it does the job and prevented what would normally have been distorted (in the red) signal and tamed it into a usable track.
The moral of the story?
If you want to record good vocal tracks, get a decent dedicated studio mic and a good channel strip. Go digital if you can afford it.
BTW, my costs for this upgrade?
Blue Bluebird mic (used / Ebay) $200
Focusrite Trackmaster Pro (used / Ebay) $150
Focusrite ADC converter (Sam Ash) $225 {couldn't find a used one}
For a total of - $575 (well worth it)
JFYI, I'm using an M-Audio 2496 Audiophile soundcard
Cakewalk's Sonar 3
2004? Dell Inspiron: speed 3.2, 2G, 160 HD
I've never focused on recording much, just dabbled.
I've been playing in cover bands locally since 1979 but now have gotten too old for such activity. I have several stage mics, but never bought any dedicated "studio" mics.
I always thought all microphones were pretty much the same because I've seen pro studios record with SM 57s/58s in many instances.
It made me think, "any quality mic will do".
Wrong!
After getting less than spectacular results recording my friends beautiful vocal on a recent song I did, (even with my best Sennheiser mic) I decided to do some research and purchase a new mic for a better result.
Seems there is a BIG difference between "Live" & "Studio" microphones.
Also, a budget mic pre/channel strip can work wonders on a vocal track. (Everything I read and many users I asked, suggested this)
So, I got on Ebay and bought a Blue Bluebird microphone and a Focusrite Trakmaster Pro. I also bought the ADC card for the Trackmaster to get a nice clean S/PDIF output.
One other new acquisition...a pop filter. (a must for good vocal tracks)
Wow! What a difference!
I don't know whether it's the mic or the Trakmaster, but it's night & day to what I had been using. (I have an M-Audio Black Box I have used, too)
I noticed the sensitivity of the mic right away. The compressor is kinda slack on the Focusrite, but it does the job and prevented what would normally have been distorted (in the red) signal and tamed it into a usable track.
The moral of the story?
If you want to record good vocal tracks, get a decent dedicated studio mic and a good channel strip. Go digital if you can afford it.
BTW, my costs for this upgrade?
Blue Bluebird mic (used / Ebay) $200
Focusrite Trackmaster Pro (used / Ebay) $150
Focusrite ADC converter (Sam Ash) $225 {couldn't find a used one}
For a total of - $575 (well worth it)
JFYI, I'm using an M-Audio 2496 Audiophile soundcard
Cakewalk's Sonar 3
2004? Dell Inspiron: speed 3.2, 2G, 160 HD