Are there really different mics for every person's voice?

[Xpred]

I've only tested out one mic so far which is the Marshall MXL 990. Now I know it ain't the best mic, but the matter is, that I don't like it too much. But that could just be my singing in general. I dunno, if I should return this and try another mic. I've been searching threads and it seems just about everyone recommends different mics in the same money-wise cost and such... Are there really different mics for different voices perhaps? Or is it just me?

 

[Big Kenny]

Couple things come in to play here.
-The same mic doesn't work on everyone's voice ( people have characteristics in their voice which makes one mic preferred over another, variables include sibilance, male/female, alto/soprano,etc
-Yes, every mic sounds different (often the same model will vary from piece to piece)
-Mics sound different in different ranges (the same singer may require different mics depending on the material being recorded)
- everybody doesn't drive a Chevy( Tastes vary in what we like to hear on a recording (some folks like a high end push, while others like flatter stuff they can eq and compress for effects)
- There's more too but if you don't like the one you've got (I have no experience with that model) it may work somewhere else besides "on your voice". If you bought it specifically for your voice and you don't like it well. then..... um..... ya know

 

[Warhead]

Xpred, the best thing you could do is to go to a local pro audio dealer and demo mics side by side on your voice. Better yet, narrow the field while you're there and take them all home and spend some time with them in your environment and pick the best one.

War

 

[Richard Monroe]

Mics are like shoes. They either fit, or they don't. A cheap pair of shoes that fit is better than a well made expensive pair that don't. There isn't a mic for every person's voice, but different voices will often need very different mics. Aside from that, we don't always agree on what good sound is, and 2 engineers may have a very different opinion on what mic sounds good on a given singer.
On a live soundstage, there is almost no way to make me sound good through an SM57/58 or a beta, but AKG D770 or Sennheiser e835 work just fine. My main stage mic is SM7B. In the studio, I use mostly B.L.U.E. Kiwi and Rode NTK. I used 3 female vocalists on my first CD. Two of them sounded good through Oktava MK319, and the other switched back and forth between AKG C2000B and C414B-ULS. There is just no telling without actual mic testing. The mics that *might* work on any given voice are the same for a man as they are for a woman. You have to actually put up the mics and listen.-Richie

 

[Bob's Mods]

Or it could just be your vocals. Before you blow dough on switching mics around, is your voice at least passable? A good singer will sound respectable within a wider range of mics than a poorer singer. You could end up looking for the holy grail of mics when it just might be your vocals that need work rather than the mic being the problem.

Bob the Mod Guy

 

[Zetajazz44]

From my experience:

I thought I had some bad sounding mics... It tured out to be other things in the chain, like preamps and comressors...

Maybe the mic you're testing is/would be 'OK', but it's not working well with some of the other gear in the chain... The other gear in the chain is coloring the sound unfavoriably, not the mic...

Just a thought...

 

[Big Kenny]

Or it could just be your vocals. Before you blow dough on switching mics around, is your voice at least passable? A good singer will sound respectable within a wider range of mics than a poorer singer. You could end up looking for the holy grail of mics when it just might be your vocals that need work rather than the mic being the problem.

Bob the Mod Guy

Bob, you are doing it again, lighten up on yourself man.

 

[maestro_dmc]

Better yet, narrow the field while you're there and take them all home and spend some time with them in your environment and pick the best one.

War

War, I thought Guitar Center and other retailers won't let you return mics, how do you do this?

Do you allow mic returns at Front End?

 

[dr.colossus]

I have only had the experience of recording three different singers, and I've persisted with the 990, but it just never quite worked unless I'm going for "that" sound, which is rarely. I agree with what the guys are saying about different voices, but I think the material can play a big role as well. If all your songs basically sound the same and your singing style doesn;t vary much then there might be "one" mic that works for you. If your style vaires from song to songit may be that you need a selection of mics.

For my voice I've not found anything better than an sm57 through a decent pre. but I sound like early beastie boys stuff (fight for your right etc.) so that might not work for you

 

[RB4580]

I've never heard of that one before.

 

[dr.colossus]

I've never heard of that one before.

Sorry, but I'm not really sure what it is your reffering too here?

 

[frankieballsss]

I've only tested out one mic so far which is the Marshall MXL 990. Now I know it ain't the best mic, but the matter is, that I don't like it too much. But that could just be my singing in general. I dunno, if I should return this and try another mic. I've been searching threads and it seems just about everyone recommends different mics in the same money-wise cost and such... Are there really different mics for different voices perhaps? Or is it just me?

You sound inexperienced. Maybe the problem isn't the mic, maybe you just don't know how to record it properly. Don't think that having a more expensive mic is going to give you a platinum sound. Obviously it makes a difference to an extent, but you have to know what you are doing when recording a source, when it comes down to it.

 

[Richard Monroe]

I agree wholeheartedly that the material is a huge factor. One of the biggest often overlooked factors is the room. In a bad room, a good mic may make you sound worse, because it tells the truth about the room. The preamp is also a major factor. But... if you switch from an MXL 990 (a $69 or so mic) to a $1000+ main vocal mic, you may not get "platinum sound", but oddly enough, things do tend to get better.
That's 2 sides of the coin of wrongness. The first side says that if you have topflight gear, it will automatically sound good. The other is the belief that the gear doesn't matter, it's all some magic mic placement. Actually, the coin has a third side- the idea that if the singer and the song suck, there's some magic wand that's going to make it sound good.

The whole signal chain matters. The instrument, the player, the song, the room, the mic, the preamp, the engineer,FX, compression, even the cables. Any one of those factors can make or break the recording.-Richie

 

[frankieballsss]

The whole signal chain matters. The instrument, the player, the song, the room, the mic, the preamp, the engineer,FX, compression, even the cables. Any one of those factors can make or break the recording.-Richie

Yup, when it comes down to it though, the most important part of the chain is the vocals themselves. You can't make gold out of shit.

 

[jonnyc]

War, I thought Guitar Center and other retailers won't let you return mics, how do you do this?

Do you allow mic returns at Front End?

I've returned 3 mics to GC with absolutely no questions asked. Just told them I didn't like it(eventhough they didn't ask) and the guy said "eh, it happens" got me a check and said "sorry you didn't like it Jon, hope the next one works out". He actually remembered the name on the computer screen when he looked me up and called me by my first name, I was impressed. Wasn't even my usual salesperson.

 

[dgatwood]

War, I thought Guitar Center and other retailers won't let you return mics, how do you do this?

Do you allow mic returns at Front End?

Try a dozen or so mics in the store. Pick the three favorites, then pick one other one randomly from the dregs. Rent those four mics for a day, or see if they would be willing to loan those rental mics to you in exchange for leaving a deposit. Since you're planning to buy a mic from them (as opposed to checking it out ahead of time for use in a show or something), they just might be willing to do that, assuming they don't have anybody renting them that night.

Once you get home, if you find that the mic you hated becomes your favorite, rent four more the next day until you have tried them all at home. If you still hate it at home, you can probably assume that your low opinions of the other mics you tried were also likely valid, so you can probably safely choose among the remaining three mics without considering the ones you didn't borrow.

 

[mboxkid]

Mics

I'm fortunate to live in Nashville with a plethora of Gear Rental places. When I have a vocal session, it looks like a press conference in front of the singer for the first 30 minutes. I bring in a variety (5 or 6) excellent vocal mics, have the singer sing. At this stage...no EQ, no PreAmps...I just want to hear the sound of the mic in that room with that singer. It's usually extremely appearent which mic sounds best. Then, having chosen the mic, I'll do the same with the preamps...line up 4 or 5 of them with the mic that I have chosen, and see which one "pops". That's what I do...

 

[Xpred]

Ah.. okay.