first time mic purchase need a little help

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dvon1981

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alright i have been reading alot on this board and the shure sm57 and 58 seem to get alot of talk. i need to be able to record acoustic guitar, mic amps, and drums as well as vocals. what mics will serve me well. don't have a huge budget around $100 per mic(which puts the 57's and 58's right in my price range) how many of each mic should i get? which are better for which things?
thanks everyone
 
I actually just did, just hoping for a little more personal experience from some of you.
 
What do you plug your mics in to? Phantom power available?
 
There's some good mics for under $100.

Studio Projects B1 - very versatile workhorse mic. Great on acoustic, drum OH's, toms and amps - and can work well on some vocals. Neutral mic. Get a few of these - especially if you're looking for good inexpensive tom mics.

Oktava MK319 - a darker-sounding large condenser. Great on vox, OH's and amps. A pair is a good idea.

The ONLY place I'd even recommend you use a 57 is on snare and amps.

If you check at GC they've also been selling the Oktava MC012 small condensers for very cheap. Work well on acoustic, OH's and some vox.

Here's an article on buying mics for a project studio.
http://www.mojopie.com/micproj.html

Dan Richards
Digital Pro Sound
The Listening Sessions
 
Dot said:
There's some good mics for under $100.

Studio Projects B1 - very versatile workhorse mic. Great on acoustic, drum OH's, toms and amps - and can work well on some vocals. Neutral mic. Get a few of these - especially if you're looking for good inexpensive tom mics.
Click to expand...

5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and...

Cue DJL
 
dvon1981 said:
alright i have been reading alot on this board and the shure sm57 and 58 seem to get alot of talk. i need to be able to record acoustic guitar, mic amps, and drums as well as vocals. what mics will serve me well. don't have a huge budget around $100 per mic(which puts the 57's and 58's right in my price range) how many of each mic should i get? which are better for which things?
thanks everyone
Click to expand...

Two Oktava MC-012's... drum O.H.'s, acoustic gtr, etc
One Marshall MXL603S... acoustic gtr, etc. It's a little brighter than the MXL603S
One Sennheiser MD421... kick, gtr amps, bass amp, etc
One Audio-technical ATM25... kick, flr tom, etc
One Shure SM57... snare, gtr amp, etc
One Beyerdynamic M201... snare, gtr amp, etc
One DI Box... bass, keys, etc
And audition vocal mic's until you hear the one YOU like and buy it.

NOTE: Some of the above mic's I listed cost less than $100 and others cost more than $100... but, not much more if you buy used ones.
 
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Oh, and what Dot said. Several STUDIO PROJECTS B1's for $80 apiece, two Oktava 319's and 012's if you can get them for $50 apiece. That's $360 for 6 versatile condenser mics - a steal.
 
Re: Re: first time mic purchase need a little help

DJL said:
One Marshall MXL603S... acoustic gtr, etc. It's a little brighter than the MXL603S
Click to expand...

Huh!? :confused: :eek: :confused:
 
Re: Re: Re: first time mic purchase need a little help

Mark7 said:
Huh!? :confused: :eek: :confused:
Click to expand...
Oops, sorry about that. The Marshall MXL603S is a little brighter sounding than the Oktava MC-012 giving him a choice of flavors... to do what he wants to do he needs a small mic locker of mic's that will give him a choice of colors to use. IMO, it would be stupid to get a bunch of the same mic's.
 
wow that was way more info than i ever imagined...but great. Guess i just need to get down to the shop and try some stuff out. thanks so much everyone who responded you really helped the new guy out alot. if anyone has anything else to add please do. only question i have is for micing an acoustic guiatr i was reading two mics are best. so what is a nice pair of mics for just micing acoustic guitar(maybe doubling as vocal mics for recording purposes) at $100 per mic. i'm sorry if this is redundant i just want to make sure i do this right the first time.
 
dvon1981 said:
only question i have is for micing an acoustic guiatr i was reading two mics are best.
Click to expand...
Marshall MXL603SPR... it's a matched stereo pair of mic's.... IMO, the MXL603S is one of the best SDC budget mic's on the market and sound great on acoustic instruments like guitar.... oh, one other thing, two mic's are NOT always best. One last thing... don't buy a vocal mic without auditioning it first unless you have extra money to throw away or you can return the mic... and IMO, the MXL603S blows the B1 away on acoustic instruments and both the MXL603S and SPB1 sucks on vocals.

http://www.8thstreet.com/product.asp?ProductCode=6450&Category=Microphones
 
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The 603's are not known for their vocal qualities. I would suggest , for starters, two SP B1's or a B1 and a 603 or a 012. That way you have a decent vocal mic (B1) and two mics for accoustic (2 B1 or B1 and either 603 or 012.) The two accoustic mics don't have to be the same.

There's lots of info on this board about mic'ing accoustic guitar - do a search. For starters, place one at about the 12th fret and the other distal to the bridge. Experiment with distance and direction until you get a sound you like. Avoid the sound hole - too boomy.

Another technique involves putting a mic over the shoulder at about ear level, so it hears what the player is hearing. The room accoustics will make a difference also.

Good luck.
 
I have to disagree about the statement that the B1 sucks on vocals.:D
 
There are a lot of people who would disagree with the idea that the B-1 sucks on vocals. Get an SM57 for cabs and later, snare, and occasionally, backing vocals.. Get a pair of MXL603's for guitar and later, overheads. Get a Studio Projects B-1 for some vocals, some guitar, as a distant mic for cabs, and the odd instrument (sax, strings, backing vocals, even a bass cab). While DJL's comment that the B-1 sucks on vocals is way overstated, it won't work on all vocals, no mic will. As an alternative to the B-1, which is really a utility mic, consider Studio Projects TB-1 or Marshall MXL V67G, both very different flavors from the B-1.- Richie
 
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