My Microphone Purchase List: Thoughts?

[Fontcow]

I have been recording for years with purely Shure SM58s and a SM57 and am now in the budget to expand my sound with some condenser mics. I've been happy with my past recordings but really need to add some depth, especially with the drums and vocals.

Well, after careful combing through all of these threads I think I have found the microphones I plan to purchase in the next few weeks. I'm on a budget of $500.

http://www.tbcnet.com/~fontcow/flood/mics/

Marshall MXL v67 (for vocals)
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I've heard rave reviews for this mic around here. My only question is whether there any "difference" between the M version (sold through Mars Music) and the G version (on the Marshall Web site) besides the fact that the M is all-black and the G is green/gold? Should I spend a little more money and get the MXL v93 (or is the extra money spent on that mic because it comes with the shockmount)?

Marshall MXL 603S (for overheads, acoustic guitar and ambients)
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Where can I get these? I can't find them at Mars or Musician's Friend.

Sennheiser e602 (for bass drum and bass cabs)
OR
Audio Technica Pro 25 (for bass drum and bass cabs)
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Which one would you get? I found the e602 with stand/cable for $200 at Mars Music. Good deal? Good mic? Is it better than the AT Pro 25?

I'm also going to throw in an Shure SM57 into my purchase because the one I have has been through hell and back and also because it's not a bad mic to have two of.

I figure these mics will get me up to speed with some decent condensers for recording drums, guitars, bass and vocals.

Have I made some good choices or I am still as clueless as I was last month!?

Thanks for the input, everybody. I'm excited to begin recording again.

 

[FBstdminime]

The 603 and the pro25 (which i like better than the e602) can be found at 8thstreet.om. The 603 is $80 and the pro25 is $60 if you order it without a case, so that leaves you plenty of money to buy a stand and cable.

 

[Slackmaster2K]

Get em dude! I've got all those mics except the AT and I enjoy using them all. The SM57 is definately my favorite microphone, you might even consider getting two if you've got the extra cash.

One thing I will say is not to expect mircles after getting these mics. After getting over how sensitve the V67 is, for instance, you'll probably realize that it sounds like crap...but don't go blaming the microphone. That's always my big mistake. Where you put those mics is probably even more important than which mics you buy. If your sound sucks, always blame yourself until you've exhausted every possibility. After having my V67G for a good long time now, I just recently found a way to make it sound 100% better than it used to in my crappy apartment...and it was all about placement and the surrounding acoustics.

So now the big question is...got pres? It seems like you're going to need at least 4 or 5 channels. You're going to have to spend another couple months making another web page!

Slackmaster 2000

 

[gbondo9]

Out of curiosisty, what did you do to get the 67 to sound better?
My apartment gives me a headache as well, and Ive always had trouble with finding the right rooms/corners/angles in it.
Todd

 

[Slackmaster2K]

You asked....

In our bathroom we've got this "towel pantry" thing. It's basically a bunch of deep shelves built into a wall. I loaded one of the shelves up with towels (about half way) and then put the V67 in there so it was facing outward.............. and there you have, a dipshit singing to his towels.

Not comfortable, but I tell you what....the rooms in my place are really horrible sounding, and I don't have the means nor will to go treating them. I used to position the V67 out of a corner in a room with a slight cathedral ceiling, and it sounded ok, but always had sort of a honkey sound. Adding reverb to the track made things 100X worse. Sticking the mic in the towels resulted in a very very dry sound, and applying fake reverb to the dry sound gave me a much smoother, nicer vocal than I had been able to get in an open room.

I'm guessing a closet would do the trick too. Your mileage may vary...

Slackmaster 2000

 

[wes480]

yah those are all nice mics to have...and will certainly let you experiment with lots of different ways to mic a source.\

Only thing I would do differently would be your kick/bass mic. I think for 60 bucks that Pro 25 will do the job just perfectly for you....

with the extra money stand/cables as said wouldn't be a problem.

Another thing to consider are the ECM8000s....omnidirectional. You might not neccessarily end up using them all of the time - but it would give you another level of diversity...and let you learn about using omnis. that way when someone says "what do you think of omnis" you can make great dinner table conversation with what you like to use them on...what you don't...how you feel a room needs to be treated to really like them...etc. that kind of stuff is important to me

 

[wes480]

ah the fond days of making websites dedicated not to gear that I owned....but, to gear that I was considering owning. heh...fun stuff...

I dont think I ever did it with mics....I am sure I did it with recording crap waaay back in the day. (uhh...1998? yes..that constitutes waaay back).

I mainly did it with computer equipment I was going to buy. pictures, the whole works.

 

[Fontcow]

So now the big question is...got pres? It seems like you're going to need at least 4 or 5 channels. You're going to have to spend another couple months making another web page!

I'm sorry but I'm not quite sure what you mean by "got pres?" and why this will cause me to spend a couple of months making another web page. I use a Mackie 1604 mixer with 16 channels into the computer with n-Track, so the 4 or 5 channels thing is taken care of. Basically, then, I am recording down to 1 track L/R stereo, but a buddy of mine has two ADATs if I ever wanted to record drums onto multiple channels for mixdown later. What I've been using with the Mackie and n-Track has worked well for the past two years, I just find the drums a little flat with the SM58s. I'm not expecting miracles, but I'm sure the condenser mics will help add a little more depth into the drums and vocals.

ah the fond days of making websites dedicated not to gear that I owned....but, to gear that I was considering owning. heh...fun stuff...

I dont think I ever did it with mics....I am sure I did it with recording crap waaay back in the day. (uhh...1998? yes..that constitutes waaay back).

I mainly did it with computer equipment I was going to buy. pictures, the whole works.

Actually, I am a Webmaster for a College and created that page for the friends of mine who record with me who were interested in what I was contemplating buying. I figured I'd just stick the link into the post so perhaps someone around might see that I have overpriced these mics. It definitely wasn't a "look at the neato page I made" or something for me to look at and drool! I had already made it and rather than repeat the info there I just linked it!!

Thanks again, everyone. I think I will look into passing on the Sennheiser e602 and go with the AT Pro 25. I guess I just figured since the 602 was bigger and fatter it would "catch" those low frequencies better! It goes to show that bigger isn't necessarily better!

 

[Shockwave]

I can relate to that! When I bought my ShureKSM 27 it definately demanded I do something about my room acustics where I tracked my vocals. A walk in closet did the trick. Lots of clothes hanging in there helped to give more isolation and quiet things down. I also hung some clothes in the doorway rather than just close the door. While that helped a lot, I was faced with the next problem, leakage into the mic from my headphone mix, and I mean bad! First off I adjusted the volume to an exceptable level- not that it was blasting mind you. But the clincher was to wear a cold weather "head sock" (for skiers and such) over the phones and additionally, stuff hand towels on either side to further cover each headphone. The result was two fold. No more bleed, and a head the size of a large pumpkin while recording, not to mention it's gets rather balmy after a while! I could never expect anyone else to put up with this, but at the time I needed a quick fix. Any suggestions for good tracking headphones? What we will do in a pinch is remarkable, ridiculous, laughable, and just plain nuts! But that's the fun of it!

 

[B3Nut]

What we will do in a pinch is remarkable, ridiculous, laughable, and just plain nuts! But that's the fun of it!

Yup! Being a bachelor, I can hang an army blanket on a wall, drape a comforter over a couple mic stands or over a closet door sticking into a room....the dogs don't complain LOL

I sat down to record acoustic guitar the other day....set up the 603's...threw a sleeping bag over the ADAT to quiet it...sat down...put my cans on...

And heard the train whistle from the railyard a mile away.

What fun hehehe....

TP

 

[Fontcow]

Thanks again, everyone. This microphone forum has been so informative. Especially Harvey Gerst. My gosh, he is such an wealth of information! Thanks Harvey!

I'm going to go with the AT Pro 25 for the bass and bass cabinets. After looking at their respective frequency responses I like the Pro 25 the best (even though I'm taking those graphs with a grain of salt).

This board kicks ass.