2 questions about my mic problem

[Jacko]

hey everyone im new here, i didnt know where this should go but since one is about mics ill put it here

when i do recordings i got an extreme amount of hiss, my acoustic guitar recordings are horrible the hiss ruins it. could this be caused by my computer or the mic and cable

right now im running with a samson mic package i got 3 years ago, its a samson r21 mic and cable. i want to replace those which brings me to my second question

what mic would be best for recording with my half stack and also acoustic guitar. i hear that sm 57 is pretty popular but i also hear that for acoustic guitars its not as good as a condenser, what mic would be best, a condenser or a sm57? i want something with a really good acoustic guitar sound, i dont like the band but the song hands down by dashboard confessional is a great example of what im talking about, and any of the more modern rock recordings are an example of what i want out of my guitar amp.

and one more thing, is a mic preamp really needed to get the best sound because im on a tight budget and i want something good but if i can do that with all the effects i have on my recording software then i dont want to spend the money

 

[tvanveen]

when i do recordings i got an extreme amount of hiss, my acoustic guitar recordings are horrible the hiss ruins it. could this be caused by my computer or the mic and cable

and one more thing, is a mic preamp really needed to get the best sound because im on a tight budget and i want something good but if i can do that with all the effects i have on my recording software then i dont want to spend the money

How are you plugging your mic in now? You must have some sort of preamp.

tv

 

[tmix]

Basically, Hiss is usually a combination of gain structure and microphone self noise.
The mic preamp is probably turned up too high, or is a cheaply made one with a lot of noise.
The mic itself is also a source of noise, particularly if it is a small diaphram condensor mic. (particularly cheap ones)

Tom

 

[rpd]

More info is needed to solve the hissing problem.

what are you recording with? (your computer i'd guess)

how are you plugging your mic into your computer. My guess is you may not have a pre-amp and you are plugging in the back of the computer with a 1/8 jack.

If this is the case, yes you need a pre-amp, and this is where your hiss is coming from. The inexpensive solution is to buy a cheep mixer. The option that will sound best is to get a pre-amp.

Correct me if i'm wrong.
Tell us more about your signal chain.
ryan

 

[Jacko]

you're exactly right ryan. i have a xlr to 1/4" adapter then a 1/4" to 1/8" adapter going into the back of the computer. basicly when i first started recording it was just to remember riffs that i had written but now i accually want to start recording

http://www.music123.com/Samson-MDR624-Six-Channel-Mixer-i129470.music
would this be a good choice?

as for the mics what do you guys think is best?

 

[rpd]

Yup, i did the same thing at one time!! It works for the guitar direct but a microphone needs to be amplifed to line level.

I can't speak for that mixer specifically, maybe someone else can. Seems like it would work. A cheep route is a similar mixer that behringer makes, you can use that and spend your money on mics.

Another thing to consider since you only have one input is a dedicated preamp. Even if you move on to better things you may always have a use for something like DMP-3 or one of these VTB-1. http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/VTB1/. The quality will be better than the mixers. FYI i don't own either of these but I've read good reviews on some different forums.

SM-57 is a good place to start. You will always use it and it is particularly ideal for electric guitar. You can get pretty good acoustic tone if you play around with placement. The most common thing for acoustics is small diaphram condencer mics (scd). Studio projects and Oktava make nice cheep ones.

Cheers

 

[Jacko]

that VTB-1 looks pretty cool but it says it has a xlr and 1/4" outputs so would i still have to use a speaker cable with a 1/4" to 1/8" adapter and plug it into the back? or is there some other way?


also do you know anything about any of these?
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/TubeMPStudio/

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/CValve/

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/TubePRE/

 

[rpd]

I can't speak from experience on any of those. The DMP-3 AND VTB-1 are spoken pretty highly for the bang for the buck preamps that is why i mentioned them.

But every preamp is going to have 1/4 outs. It isn't going to introduce noise if you use a 1/8" reducer. it is your only option until you get an different interface that takes 1/4" jacks or get something with firewire.

 

[maestro_dmc]

that VTB-1 looks pretty cool but it says it has a xlr and 1/4" outputs so would i still have to use a speaker cable with a 1/4" to 1/8" adapter and plug it into the back? or is there some other way?

Don't use a speaker cable. Use a sheilded cable. Get an all in one cable and avoid adapters, you want a cable with dual 1/4" TS males to single mini (1/8") TRS male plug. This will give you access to both left and right channels of the soundcard at the same time.

All the Pre's listed above are single channel only, you can record two discreet channels at the same time with your soundcards line input, but you need either 2 seperate pre's or a mixer with inserts or direct outs to do it.

And use the LINE IN not the MIC IN.

We are living at a time where we have potentially a lower noise floor in our home rec environments than Pro studios had 20 years ago, but very few people understand how to achieve it!

Sigh.