Microphone type to look for in a reasonably treated living room

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boukebuffel

New member
Hey all,

first off I won't bore you with the question 'what is the best mic', but there is a set of questions that I haven't found an answer for in any FAQ or guide.

What I want to accomplish:
- recording my voice for commentary/tutorials on YouTube. No instruments or anything, just voice recording.
- I want the viewer to feel like the sound is pleasant to listen to. In that regard I should probably mention that my voice isn't particularly high or low, just normal I think.
- 75% of the recording will be voice over, 25% will be me talking in front of the camera without the mic visible. So I would like a mic that can pick up sound from 3 feet away aswell if possible.

My situation:
- I live in an appartment with traffic passing by noticably. Nothing extreme, about 10-20 cars and scooters pass by each minute.
- I intend to soundproof my living room as much as possible, but it will never be 'quiet'. I also intend to accoustically treat the part of the room that I will record in. It is a rather large room, used to be 2 rooms but now it's a long room, measuring 4m x 10m (13ft x 33ft).
- I purchased a Focusrite Forte interface

My budget is not set in stone, but I was hoping to get something that is noticably more pleasant to listen to than entry level mics. I aim at 300ish euro's/dollars.

So let's assume I will do all I can to position the mic well, treat the room etc etc. What type of microphone would be best suited to record narration both near the microphone and 3 feet away?

What I've gathered so far is that a dynamic mic would be best to deal with background noise, but comes at the cost of a less clear reproduction of my voice. I also wonder how well it will do when I record from 3 feet away and have to crank up the gain. Some people recommend getting a more expensive high end dynamic microphone that is more sensitive, so that it almost sounds like a condenser microphone. Do you guys think that is the case? And would cranking up the gain in order to hear my voice from 3 feet away introduce the same traffic noise problems that a condenser mic would have?

The general recommendation for voice over/commentary seems to be to get a condenser microphone. Several people recommend getting a super- or hypercardioid pattern in order to reduce the traffic noise problem somewhat. Is this true? Can the traffic noise of a highly sensitive condenser microphone be removed in post production?
And: is this background noise problem even the most important issue I'm trying to fix, or are there more important things to consider when trying to get a pleasant quality sound output from voice recording?

To sum up, in my mind there are three options open to me and I wonder if I'm correct on this:
- A high end (400-500$) dynamic mic, assuming the frequency response of a 'normal' dynamic mic is not suitable for narration. And assuming traffic noise would become a problem again when recording 3 feet away.
- A decent super/hyper cardioid condenser mic at around 250-350$
- An entry level cardioid condenser mic at around 100-150$, in the assumption that it will pick up less background noise due to not being as sensitive as the more high end ones

I am very keen on hearing your opinions on any of this, as I am completely new to this as you could probably tell :D
 
Doesn't matter the space (although better is better), doesn't matter the budget, I'd be looking at a SM7b or RE20 and I'd stay reasonably close. I've not yet tried the Telefunken M82, but I would imagine it would be spectacular if the M80 is any indication.

I'd argue against the condenser unless you're in an unusually well controlled space and want to basically hear something from everything in that space.

If it means anything, I do plenty of VO *and* am in an unusually well controlled space and I have a U87 that never gets used and a SM7b that never even comes off the stand.
 
I don't think you're going to find one microphone that works well for both situations. Or rather, there isn't any good way to get real consistency between the two probably even with multiple mics. The tone of the voice is likely to be completely different in each case thanks to proximity effect, off-axis coloration, "room tone", and the noise you're talking about.

Whether it's condenser or dynamic, the issue is going to be the actual acoustic signal (your voice) to noise (traffic etc) ratio at the mic itself. When you're closer to the mic, that ratio is much more in your favor than when you put it across the room.

If you stop and think about that for a minute, you'll quickly realize that ratio doesn't change at all just because you've swapped out the mic. It's going to be the exact same with a dynamic as with a condenser, and if we put aside frequency response and assume the same pickup pattern, it'll be the same in the recording. The idea that condensers pick up more ambient noise just because they work on a different principle is an absurd fallacy that I wish would go away.

What would probably actually do you best would be a good lavalier mic which can be hidden - or at least non-obtrusive - when you're on camera and will still work reasonably well when you're not. That's the way they do it on TV after all. ;)
 
Thank you both!

Hearing from someone with first hand experience helps a great deal Massive Master! Seeing as you can't use your condenser mic in a well controlled space, I'm 100% sure I can't either. Now I wonder though, would the same issue occur with low end condenser mics in the region of 100-150 euro? Ashcat's advice seems to contradict yours so in the end I'm still confused now :D
I have the feeling that low end condensers aren't made to pick up every single noise that is made in the room, either because they are made with cheaper materials, or because they are made specifically to be used in less than perfectly treated rooms. (the idea being that someone buying a 150$ mic probably isn't a studio professional)

Thanks also ashcat, I was about to write that it would probably be best to get a decent dynamic and a decent lavalier to suit both purposes, but I actually have two questions now:

1) Do you think it's viable to record with a condenser fairly close to my mouth (not too close, I know) so that the traffic sound is so much lower that it can be editted away in postproduction easily? Keep in mind that there are busses stopping and leaving every 2,5 minute right next to my house so the background noise can be pretty bad :cursing:

2) What do you guys think of using a shotgun mic for voice overs? I'd be able to mount it on top of my desk or something like that. Seems rather convenient. I could place some extra attention into the accoustic treatment of the direction the supercardioid pattern picks up, and I could record on camera almost in the same pickup pattern than I would for the voice overs. Is this correct and are there any affordable shotgun mics out there with podcast-ish sound quality? I know of a succesful voice-over artist who uses one, but it's a 1000$ sennheiser. I've seen him record in a noisy open living room with it aswell!
 
Oh, I *can* use the condenser -- I just don't. I prefer the dynamic 90% of the time.

Yes - Even low end condensers are going to pick up everything. That's just the nature of the mic. The only way to keep it focused on your voice is to focus it on your voice - Fairly close (as you would with a dynamic anyway) and still, just control the space as best you can.

Shotguns -- Meh... They can work, but have their own set of issues.
 
boukebuffel said:
Thank you both!

Hearing from someone with first hand experience helps a great deal Massive Master! Seeing as you can't use your condenser mic in a well controlled space, I'm 100% sure I can't either. Now I wonder though, would the same issue occur with low end condenser mics in the region of 100-150 euro? Ashcat's advice seems to contradict yours so in the end I'm still confused now :D
I have the feeling that low end condensers aren't made to pick up every single noise that is made in the room, either because they are made with cheaper materials, or because they are made specifically to be used in less than perfectly treated rooms. (the idea being that someone buying a 150$ mic probably isn't a studio professional)

Thanks also ashcat, I was about to write that it would probably be best to get a decent dynamic and a decent lavalier to suit both purposes, but I actually have two questions now:

1) Do you think it's viable to record with a condenser fairly close to my mouth (not too close, I know) so that the traffic sound is so much lower that it can be editted away in postproduction easily? Keep in mind that there are busses stopping and leaving every 2,5 minute right next to my house so the background noise can be pretty bad
Click to expand...

Late to the party here and I won't get into the 'shotgun question, but get back to where Ashcat was going. Other things equal'.. If a condenser is tailored -frequency wise for close voice pickup like many dynamics, then 'condenser vs dynamic' differences get even less. I.e. the EV RE series (with no proximity effect) and the SM7 -controlled proximity effect due to not letting you get too close + a bit of different rise each have at the top + good breath screens, makes for mics voiced to do well up close.
You can 'get there' in condensers as well. Preferably perhaps designed that way, otherwise you're in 'roll your own as far as problem solving. ;)
ashcat_lt said:
Whether it's condenser or dynamic, the issue is going to be the actual acoustic signal (your voice) to noise (traffic etc) ratio at the mic itself. When you're closer to the mic, that ratio is much more in your favor than when you put it across the room.

If you stop and think about that for a minute, you'll quickly realize that ratio doesn't change at all just because you've swapped out the mic. It's going to be the exact same with a dynamic as with a condenser, and if we put aside frequency response and assume the same pickup pattern, it'll be the same in the recording. The idea that condensers pick up more ambient noise just because they work on a different principle is an absurd fallacy that I wish would go away. ..
Click to expand...
:)
 
Indeed! Ashcat_lt was totally right. And like you said, condenser mics can be tailored towards voice recording / recording in suboptimal rooms. Someone else explained me how Blue and Audio Technica jumped in the market of YouTubers with mics tailored precisely for that. Seeing as various YouTubers also recommended Rode, I did some research and ended up with the NT1. I really liked the sound that it gave those YouTubers I checked, and some of the reviewers mentioned - and displayed - that the NT1 picks up less background noise.

So I ordered it yesterday! I only got around to testing it a tiny little bit just now, but boy am I surprised. You should hear the sound I hear from the trucks and cars outside my house.. It's quite loud. But on the mic it's less noticable even. My voice sounds very clear and while I talk you can't even hear the traffic. I haven't even treated my room yet and it's very echo-y. Also doesn't seem to be a huge problem for this mic. I'm very glad with it, still got a lot of soundproofing and accoustic treating to do, I wonder how well it will sound then.

Thanks for guiding me towards the right decision here guys, it's much appreciated :)
 
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