What is the best USB microphone for recording vocals

  • Thread starter Thread starter musicnstuffz
  • Start date Start date
M

musicnstuffz

New member
Hello, I am looking for a USB microphone to record singing from classical to pop.
So far, I've found interest in the Audio-Technica 2020 and the Samson G-Track.
up until now, i have been using the samson COU1 and i think it's high time for a new microphone. I was wondering which microphone would be better for recording singing. I understand that the G-track is user friendly but I'm looking for the one that will give me the best quality. also, if there are any other usb microphone suggestions out there then that would be great
thanks everyone


-D
 
hmmm

ok so i was roaming around the forum and it seems like people are not big fans of usb microphones when it comes to recording vocals. if i were to get a non usb mic and get a converter, would that be better? if so, which microphone would be the best for just singing?
 
Yes, the vast majority of USB mics are made for podcasting (internet radio) and not music.
The converter chips in them are really basic.

The 'best' mic for singing? Well that would be a Neumann U87, but I don't think you're going to be ready to go from a $100 mic to a $6,000 mic!

Here, go read this:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/how_to_record_vocals.htm

Lots of good suggestions and you'll want to read through ALL of Tweak's Guide.

You'll want to read through the soundcard guide too to get something to plug the mic into:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/soundcards_and_audio_interfaces.htm
 
Best is very subjective as well. Especially for vocals. Do you want honest, or flattering. You generally can't have both.

SM57 or SM58 are good starter mics. AT3035 can be had for cheap, not the best, but in the $100-ish range used. Not including cable and interface and pop filter and other stuff.
 
Best microphone for you would be your decision once you audition some.

I think that the Yeti usb microphone looks pretty dam cool. But alas the sound quality.





:cool:
 
wow thanks everyone for replying so fast

yeah a 6000 dollars mic is pretty much out of my price range but im willing to spend around 500 on a mic. if i were to get a regular mic along and use a converter to plug it into a usb port, would that diminish the quality? Also, I am a baritone so I am looking for something that gives nice rich low tones.
 
If you're willing to spend up to $500, I think an MXL v67g microphone ($100 new on Amazon) and an M-Audio Fast Track Pro interface ($160 new on Amazon) might be a good combination.

I don't have either of these items, and I'm sure there is better you could get for $500, but both are recommended pretty often around here.

A regular microphone and a decent interface should not diminish quality at all; it should be better than a USB microphone. However, I wouldn't necessarily recommend the MXL Mic Mate, Blue Icicle, or Shure X2U, or anything that looks like those. I guess they could be perfectly fine, but I haven't really heard anything good about them.

I have an M-Audio MobilePre USB and Behringer ECM8000. It's a pretty cheap combination which may or may not be any better than a USB microphone, and I'm sure most people would recommend against it. However, I'm pretty happy with them, but I'm sure they aren't for everyone.
 
Ignoring the fact that it is based on older converter technology, the main reason I'd recommend against the MobilePre is that the phantom supply voltage is inadequate. That's an unfortunate side effect of the interface being solely powered by the USB port, as far as I can tell.

With most mics, inadequate phantom supply will just decrease your headroom. Some mics, however, won't handle it nearly as well.

Bus powered devices are great for field recording or whatever, but unless you really need that portability, you're probably better off getting something that's more up to spec. It's not really a big deal, but in the long run, it's probably worth spending the extra few bucks for something that doesn't have that problem.
 
musicnstuffz said:
ok so i was roaming around the forum and it seems like people are not big fans of usb microphones when it comes to recording vocals. if i were to get a non usb mic and get a converter, would that be better? if so, which microphone would be the best for just singing?
Click to expand...

The term you're looking for is "USB audio interface". There are devices that call themselves "USB mic converters", but you don't want them. Those tend to have all the same problems as USB mics except for the poor quality of the mic part. :)
 
USB is a limited interface. It's basically the lowest bandwidth of the available options. So a lot of the boutique interfaces have gravitated towards firewire and pci with a breakout box. Only recently have we started getting USB 2.0 interfaces, even though USB 2.0 has been around quite a while. USB 3 being just around the corner.

In short most things USB kind of end up being low end. 16/48 being a common limit on the older interfaces. Which is fine if that's all you need. And phantom power is kind of pseudo on them. It's there, but questionable at best. You'll likely get some external preamps eventually anyway, so not really that big of a deal. And they're still better than most stock soundcards. But the low bitrate can result in some noticeable latency depending on what you're doing with them. Or trying to do with them.
 
I think that using a 1/4" to 3.5mm microphone input would do better than the USB.
 
Mushu said:
I think that using a 1/4" to 3.5mm microphone input would do better than the USB.
Click to expand...

I'm assuming that's sarcasm? The quality of onboard sound hardware in computers is about as bad as what's in the USB mics....
 
Mushu said:
No, then the only other method would be FireWire?
Click to expand...

The problem isn't the USB. The problem is that what is inside of a microphone with built in USB sucks, and so do most sounds cards that aren't made specifically for professional audio.

A decent microphone and a proper interface should be fine over USB. Some people prefer FireWire, but I doubt that it makes much of a difference.
 
Last edited:
exhnozoaa said:
A decent microphone and a proper interface should be fine over USB. Some people prefer FireWire, but I doubt that it makes much of a difference.
Click to expand...

Companies are less likely to get away with building absolute crap in the FireWire world (simply because there are fewer companies and word would get out). Beyond that, no, not a big difference, at least until you start getting into large numbers of simultaneous channels.
 
Since you can't get large numbers of simultaneous channels on USB, a lot of the higher end manufacturers avoid building for it. 2x $50 preamps plus markup isn't as profitable as 8x $50 preamps plus markup. Or 24x...

And the usb audio class compliant classification is 16/48 or less, if you do more than that, then you're looking at custom drivers and all those woes. A mega-tech support headache. USB is capable of a high quality two channel 24/96 interface. But it might be a very hard find. And that's about the upper limit until USB 3 hits more mainstream.
 
does anyone have thoughts about the MXL v67g and are there any other microphones under 200 dollars that people recommend?

im pretty much convinced not to get a usb mic
 
musicnstuffz said:
does anyone have thoughts about the MXL v67g and are there any other microphones under 200 dollars that people recommend?

im pretty much convinced not to get a usb mic
Click to expand...

I feel like the v67g is recommended for a cheap microphone pretty often on here, but I haven't used one.
 
musicnstuffz said:
does anyone have thoughts about the MXL v67g and are there any other microphones under 200 dollars that people recommend?

im pretty much convinced not to get a usb mic
Click to expand...

Take a look at this sticky at the top of the microphone forum.
*Mics for under $100 - that just may work for you.*






:cool:
 
Shadow_7 said:
Since you can't get large numbers of simultaneous channels on USB, a lot of the higher end manufacturers avoid building for it. 2x $50 preamps plus markup isn't as profitable as 8x $50 preamps plus markup. Or 24x...

And the usb audio class compliant classification is 16/48 or less, if you do more than that, then you're looking at custom drivers and all those woes. A mega-tech support headache. USB is capable of a high quality two channel 24/96 interface. But it might be a very hard find. And that's about the upper limit until USB 3 hits more mainstream.
Click to expand...

Not quite true. They finally released the USB Audio Class 2.0 spec, so now you can have a class-compliant device with more inputs. I don't know if anybody is actually building them yet, and I don't think Windows supports the 2.0 audio class with its built-in drivers, making it largely a moot point for most folks, but.... :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top