Large or Small Condenser recommendations for direct to 2-track?

[kdrum]

I'm trying to find a decent mic pair for under $500/pair, mostly for live to 2-track recording on the PC. Primary use is for recording 4-5 piece acoustic groups, arranged in a horseshoe around the stereo pair, but occasionally will be used for solo vocals, horns, guitars, piano, etc. one track at a time. The recording will be mostly at home, though occasionally I might want to make it mobile for live field recordings to notebook PC or DAT. My sonic goal is to get as close as possible to the Rudy Van Gelder Blue Note sound of the 60's, although I'm sure his setup had more than 2 microphones & I can't get too close with a stereo pair I'm sold on getting condensers & not dynamics, and it seems like the small diaphragm condensers are more in line with what I'm looking for, but I've read such good reviews on the Rode NT1 that I didn't want to eliminate larger diaphragm mics, especially if they are warmer-sounding. Any recommendations are welcomed, I'm new to recording (although I've been a musician for 20 years) and own no microphones. Here's my list so far, right now I'm leaning toward the NT3's or NT1's. Thanks!

AKG C1000S
AKG C2000B
Rode NT-1
Rode NT-3
AT 3525
AT 3528

 

[dobro]

Hi kdrum

I've got both the Rode NT-1 and the AKG C1000, and although I really like the AKG on my acoustic guitar, if I was going to get a pair of mics to cover what you want, I'd go for two NT-1s. They sound nice and are very sensitive, which is good since you'll be miking from a certain distance.

Dunno bout the other mics you mentioned. Someone else's turn now...