$350 to spend on mic for acoustic guit/vox

[gigantor]

my only other mic is MXL V69. my only pres are 2 Joe Meek oneQ's. i was thinking of the Shure SM7b, seems to be a fairly common mic for that application... any other thoughts/suggestions would be much appreciated!

 

[scrubs]

The SM7b is reportedly a very nice mic, though I'm not sure it would be best for most acoustic guitar duties. I have an EV RE20, which is somewhat similar to the SM7b. It is usable for a "chunky" acoustic type tone, but doesn't seem to have the quick response and high end detail of a small diaphragm condenser (plus it requires a preamp with lots of gain for recording acoustic). My question to you is what do you not like about the sound of the V69? What are you looking for that that mic is not providing? If you like the V69 on vocals, and are looking for a mic specifically for acoustic, you should check out the Shure SM81 or the Oktava MC-012. If you want something that might do double duty and is less colored than the V69, check into the Shure KSM27 or the CAD M179.

 

[gigantor]

im just looking for a different flavor of mic, so to speak. ive heard the SM7 is good on percussion as well, and i will be doing a bit of that.... another reason i was thinking of going for that one. but im open..

 

[cominginsecond]

In that price range I've heard good things about the AT 4040.

 

[c7sus]

I like my Rode NT-2 on Martin dreadnaughts.

 

[Clit Torres]

At4040

I'll second the AT4040, solid for both applications. It's also a good neutral contrast to the colorful V69.

 

[Empty Planet]

SM7 be a lovely creature, great noise cancellation, smooth as long as you're not asking for the "air" of a big condensor. I really like it for my voice. Also, it has a presence bump -- lousy on my voice but with applications elsewhere -- and a bass rolloff, so you get lots of sound options.

Problem for acoustic guitar that the output of this mic is -57db. !!! So you have to have some major gain capacity in your pre or somewhere in your chain in order to make it work on such a quiet sound source, and you have to mic it insanely close. Err, in other words you don't see it used on AG so much. But who knows? You may love the way it sounds on AG so much that you'll find ways to get around the issue.

Cheers.

 

[Scinx]

I definately would look for something other than an SM7 if going for acoustic guitar. Does your guitar put out great tone? I personally like my Okatava MC012s for acous, but I have also used the RE20 for a different flavour. If you want something that is a different flavour, and that works well on voice (as well as kick drum and various other tasks) - maybe you should check out the RE20. More traditional pick probably would be the AT4040 as mentioned