Mic for Audigy 2 ZS

E

Eric Altizer

New member
Does anybody have any advise on what mic is best for audio voice thru
Audigy 2 SZ. I am recording lectures. I am using a radio shack dynamic mic and
I am not happy with the sound quality and I have to turn the volumn/input all the way up resulting in a hissing noise in the background.

Using this same mic thru a analog tape deck I get much better sound! Huh?
 
Although it's not a great mic I suspect your problem has more to do with the soundcard, those soundblasters are more for multimedia playback and gaming etc. as opposed to recording.

Does the card have a built in preamp? Mics need a preamp to bring the the signal up to line level.

I suspect your analog unit has mic pres built in hence the superior results.
 
Eric Altizer said:
Does anybody have any advise on what mic is best for audio voice thru
Audigy 2 SZ. I am recording lectures. I am using a radio shack dynamic mic and
I am not happy with the sound quality and I have to turn the volumn/input all the way up resulting in a hissing noise in the background.

Using this same mic thru a analog tape deck I get much better sound! Huh?
Click to expand...

A few questions:

1. Is this for a mobile recording setup, or one that will remain in a single room?

2. How far away is the mic from the speaker? Is lapel miking an option?

3. What is the purpose of these recordings (i.e. - are these for personal or professional use? what sound quality level is desired?)?

4. What is your budget?

Ideally, you would get a better microphone, an external mic preamp, and a better soundcard/interface for the computer. Your budget and desired sound quality will largely determine what you should get. On the cheap, you could just get an external digital recorder. The sound quality might not be much better for distance miking, but it's easier than lugging around a computer.
 
Okay it looks like I bought an inferior soundcard when I thought I was getting a good one. Darn! Live and learn I guess. Can you all recommend a good one?

The mic will be about 1-2 ft away as a stand alone for recording voice audio lectures from the platform. Should I go with a good condensor or a mic like the Shure beta 58 with a preamp. What is a decent preamp that is affordable?

I checked out a good "clip on mic" at Guitar Center and it was about $400, ouch! Is this the ideal way to go.

Lets say I have about $500 for all of this incl soundcard. What would you get??
 
For a no frills, 2 input soundcard i'd recommend the M Audio audiophile 2496- $100

An excellent mic preamp for the price would be an M Audio DMP-3- $160

An Sm-57 should work, it works for Bush! That'd be around $90. If you use a condensor it might give you feeedback problems depending on the location of the speakers (I guess this is why scrubs asked) but that could potentially give you better results.

I'm sure you'll get a few more opinions, after all i've never recorded a lecture before! If I had to though I'd be confident the gear I've described would do a good job.
 
Speaker hook-up

Great advise thank you. Right now there are no speakers hooked up to the mic that I am recording from because the room is small. Is it possible to hook up speakers to the recording mic or do I need another speaker for that purpose? I would like to do this.
 
Eric Altizer said:
Great advise thank you. Right now there are no speakers hooked up to the mic that I am recording from because the room is small. Is it possible to hook up speakers to the recording mic or do I need another speaker for that purpose? I would like to do this.
Click to expand...

I would say that if the room is small, you don't need speakers to amplify the sound. If you had them, you might have to deal with feedback from the microphone anyway. Kevin's suggestions are right on. I think the SM57 (with a windscreen) is a solid mic choice for spoken word stuff. Another one to look at would be the Sennheiser e835, which is about the same price and some people prefer the sound of that mic. A condenser is probably overkill for this application and you would definitely need a pop-filter. A lapel mic (actually a small condenser) is good if you have a speaker that likes to move around and doesn't want to be tied to a podium, but those mics have their own set of problems. Another preamp to consider is the Studio Projects VTB-1, which is a single-channel unit that sells for around $100.
 
Rather than the Shure SM57, I'd recommend the Sennheiser E835 as an excellent and inexpensive mic, and, with a bit more response at the higher end of the spectrum, it's got a little bit more detail to improve the intelligibility of your voice.

Then get a cheap pre like the DMP-3 or even the Audiobuddy, plug into an Audiophile 2496 and you will be more than good to go! :)

Nik
 
If the speaker is going to be moving around a lot and doesn't want to worry about wearing a lapel mic, you might want to try something like a Crown/Radioshack PZM or a Beyer boundary mic with an omni pickup pattern. With the omni pickup pattern the response won't drop off drastically if the speaker moves away from the mic, say to demonstrate something on a blackboard or an overhead projector. If you can't find one of those, any omni mic will do. ElectroVoice 635a can be had for less than $100 and is a standard for broadcasting and voice applications, and is small enough to be unobtrusive, though not as much so as a boundary mic. A 635a on a $5 Radio Shack desktop stand would probably be perfect for your situation.

Edit: This was meant to be in addition to a better mic preamp/computer interface than the Audigy. Plenty of others made good suggestions in that department so I opted not to. There are plenty of Firewire and USB preamp/interface combos that would work for you, from M-Audio, Tascam, E-Mu, Presonus, etc etc.
 
Presonis TubePre

I got the Presonis TubePre preamp for $100 at Guitar Center and that made a world of difference. I am still getting a little buzzing sound when I bring up the gain and all. Do any of you know about this preamp? My next step will be the microphone and new soundcard per your wonderful suggestions. 2 weeks ago I new nothing about audio recording; Now I do thanks to you!
 
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