best investment?: mic or monitors?

  • Thread starter Thread starter dmbfan1981
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dmbfan1981

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ok so I have a Marshall MXL 990 condensor for vocals and acoustic guitar micing and I have m-audio studio3 monitors.

Which would be a wiser next upgrade? A mic for $200-$300

or a new pair of monitors. Probably KRK...maybe the active KRK rokits.
:D
All opinions are welcome. Thanks.
 
I would go for the monitors because I've heard bad things about the studio3's. But at the same time, I've never actually heard them. That MXL isn't bad at all for the price point.

What mics were you looking at?
 
as of right now, I was leaning more towards the Rode NT1 because I heard it is a pretty versatile mic and everyone seems to give it good reviews.


But I thought, is a better mic worth it if I cant HEAR the better results?
 
I agree - I'd look at upgrading your monitors with the best you can afford. IMHO, it'll help your mixes more than a new mic will at this point. You'll have a much better idea of how to get the most out of your existing mics too, with a more accurate playback system. ;)
 
thats what I figured. Maybe my marshall will get me by for a while if I could actually fine tune it and HEAR the results clearly.

Anyone familiar with the KRK rokits? the ones that are like $150 a piece
 
the rokit 5s? for the size, and the price, i think they sound good. they're pretty transparent.
 
i don't know...personally, if you're upgrading to some not-all-that-great monitors to some still-not-all-that-great monitors, i would think you might get more use out of another microphone
 
Ironklad Audio said:
i don't know...personally, if you're upgrading to some not-all-that-great monitors to some still-not-all-that-great monitors, i would think you might get more use out of another microphone
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my thoughts as well.

honestly, might as well do it up or don't do at all at this point..

i am a firm believer in skipping that 'intermediate' stage. beginner to advanced, one step, why spend all the additional money when you realize you want to /need to upgrade again.

you can get some good used things for your price range i'm sure. check sleaze bay and craigslist often.
 
I would decide what I really felt I needed next (room treatment, monitors, preamp, mics, software.)

I do think you can get very good monitors for $300. I'm still using the original Rokits and at this point have no reason to upgrade.

I would make sure my room sounds good before I bought any more gear, thnough.
 
A $300 mic (lower end of decent mics) will improve your current setup more than a $300 set of monitors (bottom of "ehhh" monitor price range).

I'd recomend a shure KSM maybe. decent mic for the price. Pretty much my fav. cheap condensor. But the SP C1 is alright too.
 
tdukex said:
I would decide what I really felt I needed next (room treatment, monitors, preamp, mics, software.)

I do think you can get very good monitors for $300. I'm still using the original Rokits and at this point have no reason to upgrade.

I would make sure my room sounds good before I bought any more gear, thnough.
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Yeah, those original trapezoidal passive Rokits are great. I added a sub for a little bottom extension, but the imaging and detail on those are great, and I never think about upgrading them. When I bought mine it was at a good pro audio store in SF, with a full line of monitors to A/B against each other, and those Rokits just grabbed my ears.

Dmb - It's really hard to decide what to upgrade with a limited budget, and a love for recording. Try to be analytical in your assesment of your recording/mixing process, and ask yourself "what's wrong with my recordings/mixes, and what, within my budget constraints, will do the most to fix it. If you feel you can't hear into your mixes properly, then certainly a monitor upgrade is a good idea. I urge you to get to someplace where you can hear several and pick the ones that fit you. But if you're not happy with the sound you're getting from your mic, no matter what you listen on (headphones, home and car stereos after burning a CD), then you may get more instant gratification out of a mic upgrade. Not mentioned is your recording interface and preamps, which I'll hope you've ommitted from the discussion because they're decent quality. The key concept is to identify the weakest link in your chain.

good luck!
 
I'd get neither. $300 spent on room treatment will be like upgrading your mics and your monitors at the same time. I know it's hard to spend money on fiberglass instead of a new piece of gear but it has to be done and the improvements will far outweigh another shitty mic.
 
What's wrong with your setup now? What do you feel is missing?

If it's burning a hole in your pocket, I'd say spend it on the room treatment or a new mic.

If you buy a mic, look into Beyer ribbon mics (M160, M260, M500, etc) and nice dynamic mics (EV RE20, Shure SM7, etc). These are mics you won't end up selling and can be had for $2-300.
 
mrbowes said:
What's wrong with your setup now? What do you feel is missing?

If it's burning a hole in your pocket, I'd say spend it on the room treatment or a new mic.

If you buy a mic, look into Beyer ribbon mics (M160, M260, M500, etc) and nice dynamic mics (EV RE20, Shure SM7, etc). These are mics you won't end up selling and can be had for $2-300.
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How useful are the SM7 and RE20 going to be on his behri mixer though? That's why I was leaning towards the lowerpriced but still nice condensors for his $$$.
 
mrT said:
How useful are the SM7 and RE20 going to be on his behri mixer though? That's why I was leaning towards the lowerpriced but still nice condensors for his $$$.
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Good point. I didn't see that he was using that mixer at first.

Just save the money or spend it on room treatment. Your chain is only as strong as its weakest link.
 
mrT said:
How useful are the SM7 and RE20 going to be on his behri mixer though? That's why I was leaning towards the lowerpriced but still nice condensors for his $$$.
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Actually, I am in the process of changing my entire setup. I want to be minimalistic and slowly build things as I feel that I need them.

Before I just bought a bunch of crap. I knew the componants I needed but just didnt pay enough attention to detail. it was like " so I got monitors, got a mixer, got an interface. I'm good to go...ready to be the next glen ballard"

but thats not the case. So now, I am going to use my firewire410 and use its onboard preamps, not the berry preamps. ( per the advice of many people on here )

I have a marshall mic, but havent decided whether I like it or not. I think with the right EQ, compression and maybe a hint of delay or reverb, and I can live with it for the time being.

Thats why I was leaning more towards monitors because I think that my main pitfall right now is getting a good mix. I understand room treatment, and will slowly treat my room. ( i am going to buy a $99 dollar auralex pack once I save up after buying monitors just to begin to treat some trouble areas and then build from there. )

So I shall change my list of equipment. As of now, consider that I only have a Firewire410, and a Marshall MXL990 condensor.

by the way....my friend has trapazoid KRK 8s with the yellow woofers ( not the old black ones ) and a sub, and it sounds phenomenal. He also has some 12x12 auralex squares placed strategically about the room. So it could be a combination of both. Regardless, that is why I was considering KRK monitors. Thanks for all of the input and future input.
 
I would go with Monitors. Alesis M1s can be had for 199 a pair. The ones apl mentioned look good, I am happy with the KRKs I just bought. All of those will be lightyears beyond the ones you have now.
 
I don't know about the KRKs, but ifit's 250 mic vs 250 moitors and you already have some kind of minotrs, I'd say the mic. You can get a half decent mic to round out your collection but the moitor upgrade may not be as significant.

If you had a few more bucks rounded up I'd say the monitors because everything you record is played back on the monitors and another mic is just another mic. which in some cases may not get a lot of use.

In your boat, I think I've heard the mic is a half decent mic and if it has you covered for what you do I'm not sure what in that in that price range is going to change your life. Some of the monitors mentioned sound worth looking into. I really like my tr6's but If I had to do it again I'd buy 8" cones.


$300 worth of room treatment will make both your mic and your monitors sound better.
 
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