Mic recommendations?

[The Bard]

I am currently assembling my recording arsenal, and I feel the need to expand my microphone cabinet with a really good vocal mic. I currently have the following mics:

AKG C 414 B-ULS (for guitar, sax, etc.)
Oktavas (for drum overheads)
Audix mics (for other drums)
SM 57s and 58s (for whatever)

I will be buying a good SDC soon, and it will probably be either an AKG c451 or a Neumann km184, but I can't seem to decide which LDC to buy for vocals. I would prefer to have the most "accurate"-sounding one I can afford, but I really don't want to spend over $1000. I have heard lots of good things about BLUE mics, and they are at least more affordable than something like a Neumann u87. Is one of their mics more suited to vocals than the others?

What would you folks recommend?

 

[The Bard]

Anybody out there?

 

[chessrock]

I would prefer to have the most "accurate"-sounding one I can afford, but I really don't want to spend over $1000. I have heard lots of good things about BLUE mics, and they are at least more affordable than something like a Neumann u87.

If "accurate" is your goal, and you're looking in the $1K and under bracket, then I'd probably point you in the direction of the Shure ksm44 and/or Audio Technica 4050. The Blue baby bottle would also fall under that category . . . as would the akg 414, but then you already have that one.

Overall, though, the BLUE mics aren't exactly designed to be accurate -- they're more hyper-real, tailored, and/or flattering vocal mics. The baby bottle is an exception.

No one can really tell you what's right for your voice, though, without being with you while auditioning them. We can kind of point out a few directions you can start looking, but the rest is up to you.

Good luck.

 

[The Bard]

Thanks chessrock. I will check out the mics you mentioned. I need to find an accurate mic that really illustrates the presence in my voice, as well as one that is suited for female vocals.

 

[Greenshoe]

For vocals, don't rule out nicer dynamic mics such as the Shure SM7, EV RE-20 or a Sennheiser 441, especially if they are matched with a nice quiet preamp that has a lot of gain. Your SM57 may end up being a great vocal mic if you have a decent preamp - lots of vocalists from McCartney to Bono use that mic for vocals. While these aforementioned dynamics are most widely used in radio (and the related Sennheiser 421 was Saddam Hussein's favorite mic FWIW), you may find them to be great on vocals - the most famous example being Michael Jackson's SM7 on Thriller. These mics are in the $350-700 range brand new. For the SM7 at least, I know there are two switches - one for bass roll-off and another for a presence boost.

My current favorite vocal setup for my voice is a SM7 into a Great River ME-1NV pre. I'm a baritone/2nd tenor and I love singing into this setup. Compared to the Neumann TLM 103, M149, and the AKG 414 ULS at least, the SM7 was my favorite. It delivers a smooth tight sound that can is also very EQ friendly as well - from making it thicker or adding more sizzle. Worth checking out at least.