Yo Annababy! Welcome to the board. First, don't let these guys scare you. They would probably haze a guy the same way- but they're right. What is it that makes a professional recording kick? Always think about the signal chain in order, not in reverse. First, the performer. If they (you) are a badass, then you are golden. Then you need a song that rocks. Then, you have to get that perfect performance, instead of wasting your time creating composite tracks that the bottomfeeder talent can't play anyway. Next (this is the key), you have to do this in a room that sounds good. It's worth renting the B room at a serious pro studio, just to get a few hours in a room that doesn't suck, and is real low on ambient (background) noise.
OK- you knew I'd get there, right?-The mic. You have to find the *right* mic, not the *best* mic. Incidentally, I know a couple of women who sound very damned good through a Baby Bottle, and I do own one. Many women like a darker mic to take the high frequency edge off their voice, to avoid being shrill and piercing. Most of my female singer people (I work with 4, in different combinations) like Oktava MK319 for that (I just have a good one), and AKG C2000B gets used quite a bit. Mo, on the other hand, is a deep, rich, contralto. She can sing lower than me! She likes Rode NTK , Shure KSM44, and Neumann U87. She wants mics to brighten her up a bit. The bitch is- I can't tell you what mic is your holy grail.
For cheap, AKG C2000B is cheaper than the Baby Bottle by quite a bit. It's a better mic, too, in many ways, and more versatile. It won't make you brighter or darker. It will airbrush you slightly, smoothing out annoying details, but otherwise, will tell the *truth*. The same can be said of the Shures mentioned above, particularly KSM32, but with less airbrushing- the "naked" truth. Sometimes you want that, and sometimes, a little makeup is a good thing. Good luck finding *your* mic.
Well, the signal chain is complete, almost. You've got to put the mic in the right place, and push "record". Does it matter what you record on? Not very much. If you have that badass recording artist with the great song in a great room (that's the key), doing a master performance on a $400,000 cello (or whatever), into the *right* mic in the right place, you can plug it into a cheap cassette deck, and it will rock! Always think about the signal chain in order, not in reverse. Good luck-Richie
