Best entry level mics for acoustic instruments?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Chris F
  • Start date Start date
Chris F

Chris F

New member
Hi everyone. this is my first post, so if I'm breaking any accepted protocol, please enlighten me!

I'm a jazz (acoustic) bassist and pianist, and I've been making some duo recordings in my music room (15'x15', ..10'ceilings) using a Yamaha MD4s. At other sites I have been flamed for using minidisc, but I am happy with it for a variety of reasons, so I hope everyone will refrain....I've gotten some fairly good results so far with a combination of grand piano and bass, but I've only used dynamic mics to this point and all my research points to the notion of upgrading to condenser mics as the best and fastest way to improve the overall sound quality.

The instruments I'll be recording (in various combinations) are piano (6'3" Baldwin grand, 1937), acoustic bass, and archtop guitar. I'd like to start with a pair of condenser mics, and my original budget plan was $500. I've heard a lot of good things about Oktava MC012's, and was wondering if these would seem to be a wise choice for a starter pair for my purposes. I know I can get a matched stereo pair at the Sound Room for about $650, which is more than I wanted to spend, but I might be able to swing that. If I try to spend more than that, my wife would kill me, at which point the more expensive mics would be useless...

So, my questions:

Any/all opinions for best starter mics for these circumstances?

What are the "hidden costs" involved that I'm not budgeting for (phantom power, etc)?

Will I need shockmounts right away?

Anything else you can think of.


Thanks in advance. This seems like a great site.

Chris
 
...and the MXL1000 has an internal shockmount system so you wont need that...you will need phantom power....you should be able to get phantom power box for around $50???....Good luck.....
 
I just picked up two MXL 603s from Abe Music for $150 (free shipping too). Haven't used them on piano or acoustic bass, but I really like them in stereo for drum overheads and acoustic guitar. I have to get my acoustic set up again though, since they pick up all the fret buzz....not to mention my squeaky bass drum pedal. They are FAR better than the dynamics I used previously and have extremely crisp, clear high end. I'm also going to do a head to head comparison (like Harvey did) with my friend's pair of Sound Room MC012's, and a C1000 to see for myself.
 
Thanks for the replies everyone.

Please do let me know how that "head to head" comparison turns out. Every other person I've talked to says that the MC012's are simply "the sh*t" for a lower end mic, but I've never actually seen or heard one in person. The different available patterns are enticing, though...
 
Gidge said:
...and the MXL1000 has an internal shockmount system so you wont need that
Click to expand...
I just opened up my MXL-1000, and it's not much of a "shock mount", just a soft rubber ring separating the 603 from the tapered body.
 
I have a pair of the Octava MC-012 mics and I love them. And no, I did not buy them from the Sound Room, I bought them at Guitar Center, and they are excellent. I use them to record acoustic guitar and they are so accurate and natural I could not believe it. You can buy them for $150 each or get the ones with the extra capsules for $200 each. I bought the cardioid ones for $150, loved them, but decided to trade them for the multi-pattern version @$200 each. So, actually, I have tried four altogether, all from Guitar Center, all sound great. I would look no further.
 
I've been spending a little more time in the archives, and have read some really nice things about the mxl603's. I've been looking for a place that sells them, and haven't had much luck so far...abemusic only seems to offer them as part of a package deal with a mxl2001 for $175 for the pair. Am I just not looking hard enough? Do they sell them separately? The package deal looks interesting, but I've read a lot of crappy things about the 2001.

By the way, I've heard conflicting things about whether large or small diaphragm mikes would be better suited for my purposes (acoustic instruments). Does anyone have any opinions on this subject, or any links to previous dicussions of the topic?

Thanks in advance.
 
Duh, just found the 603's at 8th street. What a great site! They also had At pro37's at a great price. I'm sure you guys get tired of these threads about cheap mics, but I wanted everybody to know that since I'm a total newbie at this kind of thing, I'm finding the site extremely helpful, flame wars and all.

Thanks again.
 
Chris, I think small diaphragm condensors sound better on acoustic guitar. Just my opinion, but shared by many I think.
 
I've decided to go ahead and order a couple of MXL603's - I figure at that price, I can't really go wrong, and even if I hate them, it won't be such a big deal. While I'm here, I have a couple of questions:

1) Everybody says that the MXL1000's (without the ball) are the same mic as the 603s. This may sound like a dumb question, but how dorky do the 1000's look without the ball? When I take the ball of my SM58, it looks terrible, and the element seems to be loose. Is it the same story with the MXL's?

2) I'm going to need to buy something for phantom power. 8th street has a unit that will power 2 mics for about $60. Eventually, I'll probably need to power 4 mics. Should I be looking for a unit that can handle 4 mics all by itself? Does such a unit even exist, and if so, does the brand matter? Any insights recommendations would be welcome.

Sorry if these questions seem dumb or too basic....it says "newbie" by my username for a reason. :cool:
 
Yes, the MXL-1000 without the ball end DOES indeed look dorky, but it works. The suspension is a little tighter than the Shure SM-58 capsule so it doesn't flop around like a 58. Stewart makes an inexpensive 4 mic phantom power unit, I believe.
 
Thanks. I'll go for the 603s. I'm going to wait on the V67G until I hear more from the LD/SD thread to find out if that mic would have any application to what I'm doing. Looking forward to it!
 
Speaking of the V67....

I have a friend who works at Mars and went to Berkley years ago. He does tests on mics every now and then for fun when business is slow. I was asking him about that new little V57. I couldn't believe it when I saw the price on that thing! I mean, good Lord, a large diaphragm condenser for a hundred dollars! I never thought I'd see the day.

Anyway, I was looking at the spec sheet for it and comparing it to the V67 (at $179) and the sheets were pretty much identical. I asked him if he had tested the two against each other. He hadn't had a chance to put them side by side yet but he did have time to fiddle with the V57 for a bit on it's own and said he thought it was fine. Maybe not AKG 414 fine but fine just the same. He said he thinks that the V67 maybe has just a tad more presence (around 2 to 4k) but barely noticeable and certainly nothing a little judicious EQ wouldn't cure if needed.

Just thought I'd throw that out there. You could get a pair of V57's for $200 easily and have plenty left over for a preamp. You might want to take a look at those little ART Tube Preamps; they aren't that great but for the money they're okay and are within your budget. I decided to take one of the V57's home. It never hurts to have an extra condenser on hand and I was interested in hearing what a hundred dollar condenser sounds like. I'll do a short test recording on acoustic guitar tomorrow and let you know how it turns out. Maybe I'll put up an MP3 of it too.

BTW, doesn't your Yamaha unit have phantom power? And yes, I agree they sound fine. Mini disks suffered form a bad codec when they first came out but they've been made much better since then. Unless you have an older model it probably sounds okay and does exactly what you wanted it for.
 
No, the MD4s doesn't have phantom power, but it's not that big a deal. The phantom boxes are pretty cheap anyway. A friend of mine has one of those little ART tube preamps, I might give it a try. About the V67, if I like the 603s I get, I'll probably order one. It gets such glowing reviews and the price is still very good. I'd be interested to find out what you thought about the V57, though...

Thanks.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top