Mic Suggestions for Tenor Saxophone

Giganova

Giganova

gimmi your mic!
Hi!

I need to buy one mic for the sole purpose to record saxophone (=me) in my project studio. Unfortunately money is tight (<$250.-). Given the large number of budget mics on the market, I cannot decide. :confused: Maybe you can chime in and give me your opinion? These are the mics which I consider:

LDC:
- Rode NT1A
- MXL V3
- NADY TCM-1050 tube mic
- Nady TCM-1150 tube mic
- Studio Project C1
- Groove Tube GT55

SDC:
- Rode NT3
- AT Pro 37 stereo pair
- AT 3031
- AKG C1000
- Oktava MK012

Dynamic:
- Blue Ball

Ribbon mic:
- Nady RSM-2/ShinyBox 46 ribbon mic

Not quite sure about ribbon or dynamic mics because I needed a high-quality pre which I don't have right now. I have good experience recording a sax with SDC because I think that's an application where they shine (due to their fast response caused by their small capsule and little off-axis coloration). However, LDCs might sound smoother.

Thanks,
Gig
 
Hi Kenny --

I don't have a high-quality pre which I think excludes dynamic and ribbon mics, unless you think the pres on the M-Audio FastTrack Pro interface will do the job. The SM7 is beyond my budget anyway.
 
45 db of gain, it would be a little iffy. I think an Audio Technica 4040 or a CAD M177 (or 179) would serve you well
 
Maybe try this...

It all depends on your saxophone sound. Are you playing a Selmer MK VI, Super Action 80 MKII, Yamaha, Yanigasawa, etc. Are you using a hard rubber or metal mouthpiece. Do you want the horn to sound bright or a little darker? There is no one single pick here. I know how I like my tenor sax to sound, but then again, I'm not you. I'm playing a Selmer MK VI with a Guardala mouthpiece model Brecker II using a CAD E-200 mic & a Focusrite Voicemaster pre. The E-100's also get a nice, fairly flat & natural sound for the price range you're taking about, but check the mfr. specs to see if they changed response curves with the new designs. Tubes add a nice series of overtones to the sound, thus coloring the sound a bit more. I have yet to get my hands on a Royer, but I hear ribbons excell in the miking of saxes providing a full, balanced sound, but you need enough gain on your pre to get the most out of them.

Hope you're not too confused.
 
I've had fun recently with 545 (SM57) or Beyer M400 close, and SP T3 further back (place carefully with phones to avoid phasey problems which seem to come easier with tenor for me :confused: ). They've given me a sound that I can fiddle with to be aggressive, trashy or quite natural as I require.
 
I use a Sennheiser MD-421
(This has been a standard tenor mic for a LONG time...)

Also trying out an M-Audio Solaris LDC. Great sound so far for $250.

I prefer to put a dynamic 1 foot or so out and up from the bell, then put an LDC about 6ft out and head high, then mix the two until sweet.

Don't forget that the sound of a sax comes from the ENTIRE instrument, not just the bell...
 
Suprisingly, the DIY Omni that Tape Op published a while back is what I use for my tenor (close miked).

http://prosoundweb.com/recording/tapeop/buildmic/buildmic_16_1.shtml

I have a Rode NTK, Earthworks SR71, Beyer M201, Audix OM2, EV 468's, Oktava Mk012 (modified), ML52 (modified), etc. and the Tape Op omni is a real contender among all those. I've gotten good sound quality with the others, but only after careful placement.

It will probably cost $25ish to make and would free up some money to buy a Rane MS1b preamp (I also have a few of these and it's a really good value as well).

Good luck
 
I Bought a Rode NT2-A

Thank you all for your helpful suggestions!

I just got back from the music store and had a recording session at home with my new mic, a Rode NT2-A.

I am very suprised how well that mic works on a tenor sax -- better actually than Neumann and Gefell mics I used before which costs 3-4x as much, and way better than an AT 4047 which I sold a while ago.

I considered the Shiny Box for a while, but after listening to a few sound clips it became obvious that this mic is only useful with the more expensive output transformer modification -- and only then in combination with a very clean and powerful (>50dB gain) mic pre (which I don't have). I figured that I better go for a hot (meaning high output) LDC and the NT2-A give me the exact sound I was after: smooth and yet very detailed. It also has -5 and -10 dB pads needed for the high SPL of a tenor sax and different patterns give different sounds (the omni pattern opens the sound up quite a bit).

Overall, I think I made the right choice.
 
leddy said:
How about a Shinnybox ribbon and a VTB-1 pre? That should be around $250, no?
Click to expand...

...I agree...a ribbon mic and a capable pre will definately do the job (well)...here's my suggestion:

VTB-1 pre ($99 delivered on Ebay)
Apex 205 Ribbon (same as Shinybox but only $89. at:http://www.frontendaudio.com/APEX_APEX205_Ribbon_Microphone_p/7489.htm)

...very versatile for any instrument miking situation as well as another "flava" for vocals...
...put the $50 saved towards a decent pop-screen (for vocals) and cable...
 
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