Which BLUE to get

LfO

LfO

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I have developed an unhealthy infatuation with BLUE mics. Sometime before year end, I hope to purchase one for vocals in my home studio - my voice is similar to Dave Gahan's (of Depeche Mode).

I am looking at the Dragonfly, Blueberry, and Baby Bottle, but leaning toward the Dragonfly based on reading the other threads on this site. My impression is that the Blueberry is just better for female than male vocals.

I may also want to record tin whistle at some point, but if that really calls for a different mic, then so be it. Any opinions?

D
 
It's a little more expensive, but we use a KIWI at the studio I work at (mainly for vocals) and it absolutely rocks! I would say it's my favorite vocal mic right now, although it can be a bit too bright/sibilant for some voices.

Definitely check it out...
 
the thing about dumping $1000+ on a mic is that dealers treat you nicely. go find someone local, take one or more home or spend some serious time at the store.

or another thing to think about is call around and see if there is a studio in town with a bunch of blue mics, you could book an hour and record yourself singing thru all of them.
 
They're good mics.

I'd say Baby Bottle if you want something more neutral and for instruments . . . or the Dragonfly if you'll be recording mostly vocals.

The Dragonfly, by the way, is pretty formidable on a clean / blues guitar amp, and also works well for accoustic guitar in a lot of situations. It's got a nice scoop to it and works well for nasal singers and compliments midrangy or twangy instruments. You'll notice it's more of a hit or miss kind of thing -- more often hit than miss, though. When it's right it's definitely right.

The BB is more of a "what goes in goes out" kind of deal -- in comparison to the rest of the Blues, that is. Very different from the rest of their line, because there's really no "scoop" to it. It has more of a "frown" curve, I guess. Alright, I realize that was bad. I'll shut up now.
 
The Baby Bottle just does something different than a lot of other LDCs. It's all pure, sweet mids, my babies!! (imagine that last line as spoken by Conan O'Brien). I really think it's a great mic to add to your arsenal if you've already got something that's a little sweeter in the highs and lows, maybe even if you don't, in fact, because it takes very well to EQ. I can't imagine ever selling my Baby.
 
The KIWI and the Baby Bottle definitely compliment eachother. The KIWI definitely has a curve which gives it alot of "air"/"sweetness" (but can also be too sibilant on tenor/soprano voices .... while the Baby bottle, like others have said doesn't really have a curve (more like, it begins to roll off below 300hz and above 12k but is flat in between), but it also might be too flat on some voices...
 
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So to add to what I already said . . . the prevailing theme you'll notice is that BLUE mics tend to have moreless of a "built-in EQ" curve, so to speak, based on what one engineer (or perhaps a team of engineers) found to be useful.

You could say that to a degree about all mics, I suppose. But the BLUE's tend to have a lot more of signature to their sound than most; and a very unique one at that.

That signature curve may or may not be useful to you and your applications, so it's important with these things to find some means of testing or borrowing before you commit to a purchase.
 
Just received my Baby Bottle today. I threw it up quick as a room mic and pounded on the drums a little. It's pretty sweet. I'm suprised how well it picks everything up and keeps a nice balance between everything. Now I have to get another one for doin XY
 
The Baby Bottle makes an excellent room mic, I need to throw it up over the kit one of these days.

mmm Baby Bottle x/y overheads... :)

War
 
Like Chessrock says "the dragonfly has a complex high end." I've used both on voice and acoustic with very nice results. It's true, the Baby Bottle takes eq well. I think you'd probably be happy with either. I was testing the Blueberry breifly and it seemed a bit more sibilant than the Dragonfly and had a hotter output. Dragonfly will be my next BLUE purchase.
 
The Baby Bottle is a fairly transparent mic, kind of like a C414 without the multiple polar patterns. The Dragonfly sounds a lot like the Kiwi without the multiple polar patterns. Everything above that has been said is true. I use the Kiwi as a main vocal mic, and I have just one of those slightly nasal tenor voices they're talking about. I think the Baby Bottle would rock on your penny whistle, and the Dragonfly is the better vocal mic. You pays your money and makes your choice. They are both very good mics. I'm not a fan of the Blueberry. There are other mics I would choose for that price.-Richie
 
I failed to mention that I got mine off EBAY, for $388. It came with a blueberry cable, shock mount and the pop screen. And WOW what a nice wood box it all came in.
 
Thanks for the input guys - I think I'll start out with the baby bottle in the near future, and perhaps get either a dragonfly or kiwi further down the road.
 
HangDawg said:
I failed to mention that I got mine off EBAY, for $388. It came with a blueberry cable, shock mount and the pop screen. And WOW what a nice wood box it all came in.
Click to expand...

HD,

I agree completely with almost everything you've said about the Bottle. I love mine!

However, I have to disagree about the box it comes in. Yes, it's wood but not good wood and is very cheaply made IMHO.

Bottom line, it's just a box. It's whats inside that counts. :)

Earl
 
Nobody mentioned the "Mouse"?
It has that larger-than-life sound with a boost in the upper and lower frequencies and a strong presence.
The LF boost is what gives it that strong presence while tending to even out those nasaly vocalists.
Suffice it to say its a fairly hyped mic. Its going to work beautifly sometimes, and not so beautifly other times.
It wasn't meant to be accurate, but on the right source, its golden.
 
I was actually gonna mention it, but it sells for $1200 new (but then again there was no price limit!)....good call Michael. The guy from Wilco used one in their DVD "I'm trying to break your heart"(the making of their record). I've never tried it out personally, but it sounded good on his voice. Also like Michael said and the BLUE website says, it's good for getting a lower end robust sound contrasting the Blueberry, which sounds like a more airy, crispy mic.
 
The last issue of TapeOp has an interview with Skip Wise, and he says the Mouse was really designed for voiceover work.

I think Don Henley and Cheryl Crow have both used the Blueberry for vox.

I'm curious to know how different the transformer and transformerLESS models sound.
 
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