Any Ideas for mic stands?

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xmortumx

New member
Well i just bought some okatavas mics as my first pair of condenser mics but i dont have enough money to buy mic stands... anybody know any remedies to make some homemade mic stands??


I just want to record my drum set to experiment..... as soon as i get more money im buying the stands but mean while i want to get my recordings started.. any ideas?
 
If you're using them as overheads, you can string them up from the ceiling....hell I have plenty of mic stands, but I still string overheads from the ceiling for live shows. It works fine for that purpose - granted, for recording, I like to be able to angle them precisely....but until you get mic stands, stringing them up may be your only choice.

Of course....the venues where I string up overheads usually have some kind of rafters or something over the drum riser - if you just have a flat, normal ceiling, you may have to get creative to get something up there to hold them.

good luck ;)
 
If you're in a pinch you could consult craigslist. I see stands going there often enough. Otherwise hit up radio shack. $25 stand, $18 boom arm. Not really a mint, but a lot if you don't have it. Kite string has it's uses too. Along with duct tape, metal cohangers, shoestrings, and various other feets of engineering.
 
i used to fashion couple guitar stands together and used some rubber bands to hold the mic.

it's nice because you can actually adjust height and angle pretty well.

i would also hold down the legs of the guitar stand with 10 lb weights
 
Bite the bullet.......

You have two really good mics that you paid good money for. The cheaper level boom mic stands on sale can be had for under $20 very often. One good boom stand and a stereo mount can be had for under $30 and you're set for life for overheads. Don't do it "on the cheap" you'll be sorry in the long run. I understand, I'm a poor working stiff myself.
 
JTC111 said:
Duct tape, a broom handle, and a good friend.
Click to expand...

:D:D Baaahahahaha!!! Or somebody who lost a bet with you, is more like it. My arms are burning just thinking about holding out those broomsticks....for hours and hours and.......lol.
 
A torchier lamp or other tall, free standing home decor, and a couple thick rubber bands will do in a pinch, but do try and save up a couple bucks and get yourself a mic stand.

Juan
 
check craigslist

a guy was selling like 5 boom stands for $10 each last week in my city.

i got my last stand from same day music, open box for $18
 
Just buy some stands. Saying you don't have enough money for stands (when you have enough money for a nice pair of mics) is just kind of silly.

Trust me, I've messed with the home made stands, and they suck. You're going to save a lot of time buying two boom stands, and seeing as how time is money, you'll recoup your (small) investment in no time at all.
 
wargasms said:
check craigslist

a guy was selling like 5 boom stands for $10 each last week in my city.

i got my last stand from same day music, open box for $18

heres a new one for $20 + $4 ground shipping

http://www.samedaymusic.com/product--MUP7700
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i cant see if these have adjustable booms or not, but i have a pair of on-stage stands with adjustable booms and they are total garbage. the knob for boom length screws into plastic. since the threads are steel, i stripped one of mine during its first use. my booms are no longer adjustable, as i "fixed" the problem by drilling them and putting a bolt through. plus, since mine are pretty much exclusively for overheads as proposed, and i often leave the kit miced up, mine are no longer straight, but more of a slight crescent :eek:. i mean, better than nothing, but not by much.

FWIW
a
 
I'll admit that the radio shack specials suck. And are over priced at retail. At least the boom arm sucks. I mainly use it as a height extension and it does alright there. You do have to kind of crank the screws pretty hard to stop slippage. Not that that stops it. Things still move relatively easy. But they do seem to be strong enough (barely) to counter the affects of gravity. But that's with only one mic and cable. I'll see if that's still the case when I mount my stereo pair (on order). I have a feeling I'm gonna end up using duct tape on it. Once the weight of two mics, two cables, and a stereo bar added.
 
I haven't had that problem

toobalicious said:
i cant see if these have adjustable booms or not, but i have a pair of on-stage stands with adjustable booms and they are total garbage. the knob for boom length screws into plastic. since the threads are steel, i stripped one of mine during its first use. my booms are no longer adjustable, as i "fixed" the problem by drilling them and putting a bolt through. plus, since mine are pretty much exclusively for overheads as proposed, and i often leave the kit miced up, mine are no longer straight, but more of a slight crescent :eek:. i mean, better than nothing, but not by much.

FWIW
a
Click to expand...

I have a few "On Stage" adjustable boom stands that I bought a few years ago and I use them a couple of times a week. I have other stands as well, but these are lighter to carry and I use them a lot. They've been okay. I don't use them with big heavy mics though. Usually SDC's or instrument mics, and on occasion an SM57 or Sennheisser e835.
 
My advice is don't cut corners. I wouldn't recommend buying any of those light stands. The On Stage Stands and similar lightweight stands can fall over and wreck your mics. I have a pair of Nady stands that are similar and they have trouble at full extension with my Oktava MK-012 mics for overheads. I wouldn't put an LDC on them with a boom, period. They just won't hold most mics well enough, IMHO.

Tama stands are the cheapest tripod-style stands I'd trust. If you're really in a pinch, buy something with one of the solid metal bases and just don't use booms more than a couple feet out with them.
 
pillows

Hi,

I have to improvise mic stands from time to time. Pillows are usually my first choice.

A nice pillow on a bar stool. Position you mic carefully. Then weight it down with a bean bag or something like that. Easy on the mic and safe enough if you're careful.

Thanks,

Hairy Larry
 
I agree - bite the bullet and get a couple of stands. Onstage is fine if you stabilize them. $20 will have you in business.

I've done the Onstage package thing three times - I've got about fifteen short booms that are in working order and use them mostly in live sound reinforcement. The lighter the better when you're schlepping stuff in and out of a truck. But in my project studio, I have a couple of them set up and they scared the hell out of me whenever I had a condenser on them because they were unstable. So I found a five dollar solution.

Go to the local department store and pick up a couple of five pound barbell weights - one for each stand. The hole in the center is big enough to slide down the stand to the tripod - let it just sit there. The center of gravity is low enough to make a huge difference and the stand is only five pounds heavier than before. No more tippy stand, even with a big condenser and a spider mount.
 
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