I hate to ask, but how do I point this mic

[e_rock]

Hello all.

I am just starting out doing some home recording. My goals right now are to mostly record myself and learn a lot by trial and error. My equipment consists of Cakewalk GuitarTracks, a Behringer Eurorack UB802 Mixer, some sort of Beyer Dynamic mic (not sure the model of the top of my head) and a cheap condensor mic, an MXL 990. I used to play in a band and am familar with the dynamic mic, but I've never used condensor mics before. I know that the MXL is not very good, but it was cheap to start. Which end of it is the business end? Is there a front and a back to it? I am primarily interested in recording vocal, acoustic guitar and some percussion. I read the mic faq and found lots of great info. Any additional advice would be greatly appreciated, especially when it comes to recording an acoustic with a single condensor.


Thanks so much.

 

[Harvey Gerst]

The 990 is a "side address" microphone. You sing into the side that has the MXL name (and the little heart shaped figure) on it.

 

[Farview]

The end with the screen is the business end. I don't have one of those, but usually the side with the logo is the one you sing into.

 

[e_rock]

Thanks for the replies. I really appreciate the help.

 

[MadAudio]

And IMO, while the MXL990 is "not very good," it's not a complete piece of crap either. It's certainly an excellent entry-level condensor. You might be surprised what you get out of it. There's a lot of good info on these boards about condensors and their uses.

One thing I always like to mention is this: make sure phantom power is off before connecting or disconnecting the mic. It's also a good idea to have gain or trim on the mic's channel turned down all the way when turning phantom power on.

 

[e_rock]

Hey MadAudio.

Glad to hear that I'll be able to get some nice sounds out of it. I've been having fun so far, huge difference in sound when recording my acoustic than with the dynamic mic. Sounds good to me, but of course I've no experience with the other condensors apart from recording a few albums in a studio which were chock full of nice gear and experienced engineers.

"One thing I always like to mention is this: make sure phantom power is off before connecting or disconnecting the mic. It's also a good idea to have gain or trim on the mic's channel turned down all the way when turning phantom power on."

Just curious as to the potential effects of not following this advice. Will it damage the mic? I'll of course follow your advice, I'm just curious.

 

[MadAudio]

There's potential for damage, but the odds are small. It's just a good habit to get into. An "engineer" I once worked with fried an AKG 414 by disconnecting it from the cable without turning off the phantom power. Heck, he didn't even know what phantom power was!

BTW, I'd be interested to know what model Beyer you have. Those are generally really good mics. I have an M201 and a TGX-50.

 

[e_rock]

Better safe than sorry, I'll make it a habit. The Beyer is a soundstar mkII. I got it in the breakup from the band years ago. I suppose it's about 7-8 yrs old. Are you familiar with it? What kind of reputation does it have?

Any info would be great!

 

[guitarlover]

Judging by your description, it appears that you are recording directly to your computer. If this is the case, make sure that your recording chain isn't spoiled by a lousy audio card on your computer. I used to think that a basic card was "OK" but, MAN, was I wrong. The one on my computer (I don't know the brand of card) was terrible! Far worse than you could imagine.

Mine just had an incredibly high noise floor. I've gone back and looked. It was terrible. It was Ok for recording a memo but nothing approaching music. The point is that it was cheaper (almost) to buy a stand-alone digital recorder than to upgrade the card on the computer.

Just my experience. I hope yours is better.

Good Luck, Steve

 

[Purge]

I figured instead of starting a new thread, I'd ask my question on this one. (you're welcome!) I keep reading on here that Oktava Mk 319 is a good mic to use on toms (among other things.) Where do you stick condenser mics like this one for such a purpose, how far away, and do you need to use filters/windscreens to avoid big blasts of doomy drum air from hitting it? Also, if you have two regular toms and a floor tom, would one of these be sufficient for everything tom related?

 

[xfinsterx]

I figured instead of starting a new thread, I'd ask my question on this one. (you're welcome!) I keep reading on here that Oktava Mk 319 is a good mic to use on toms (among other things.) Where do you stick condenser mics like this one for such a purpose, how far away, and do you need to use filters/windscreens to avoid big blasts of doomy drum air from hitting it? Also, if you have two regular toms and a floor tom, would one of these be sufficient for everything tom related?

id say the one thing to be cautious of is the "wildness of your drummer"

iff he smashes the cymbals hard and frantically plays the toms two things might happen.

1. youll get a crapload of cymbal bleed in your tom mics.

2.your drummer may whack the hell out of your condencer and ruin it.

Even if none of this applies, in terms of sound, and sound rejection id still recommend using a cardiod dynamic over a condenser for the tom toms.

 

[e_rock]

Hey guitarlover.

I am indeed going straight into my soundcard. I plug the mics into my Eurorack and then the tape out rca to 1/8" plug into my soundcard. It's nothing special, a SoundBlaster Live! Basic. My thoughts were to upgrade to the mBox in a couple of months, using the usb port and learning how to use pro tools. Good idea? bad?