Oooh.. I can hear the suck now.

[Supercreep]

Well not suck exactly. Im using C1000S mics as OH, they were my first SDC. I can hear now that they sound ever so slightly harsh on particularly loud cymbal crashes and open HH figures. I'm also having to cut EQ at about 500K.

My other mics are(also)cheap, here's the setup:

MOTU 896HD
3 x sm58
2 x sm57
NT-1A
2 x C1000s
Truth monitors
Sonar 3

I've got pretty nice instruments, tuned well and the sound is pretty good, almost good enough. I'm happy with the NT-1A, it sounds pretty good on my voice. I'm thinking now about picking up some new mics. I hear about octava and mxl, but I think when I bought the c100s mics that was my one-time cheap OH expenditure. Should I get something nicer, or is the C1000s so bad that I will be pleased with a pair of Octava or MXL or Studio Projects budget SDCs?

 

[noisedude]

I would get one of those three sets because the C1000S really does suck with those cymbals. If you want the largest contrast then get the Oktavas, which by all accounts are very much darker. If you want to hear top end done properly, get one of the other two. People who've used them can advise you better, although I have heard some excellent acoustic tracks done on C4s I've no idea what the other strengths and weaknesses of each mic are.

 

[DJL]

Well not suck exactly. Im using C1000S mics as OH, they were my first SDC. I can hear now that they sound ever so slightly harsh on particularly loud cymbal crashes and open HH figures. I'm also having to cut EQ at about 500K.

My other mics are(also)cheap, here's the setup:

MOTU 896HD
3 x sm58
2 x sm57
NT-1A
2 x C1000s
Truth monitors
Sonar 3

I've got pretty nice instruments, tuned well and the sound is pretty good, almost good enough. I'm happy with the NT-1A, it sounds pretty good on my voice. I'm thinking now about picking up some new mics. I hear about octava and mxl, but I think when I bought the c100s mics that was my one-time cheap OH expenditure. Should I get something nicer, or is the C1000s so bad that I will be pleased with a pair of Octava or MXL or Studio Projects budget SDCs?

How much difference one hears depends on many things… like the equipment, room, listener, and etc. Listener example... people with good hearing and a trained ear can hear big differences between microphones... whereas, someone with an untrained ear but with good hearing may only hear a slight difference.

How much are you willing to spend for a matched pair of SDC mics... what is your total budget ($)?

 

[mrface2112]

out of curiousity, i'd throw that NT1A up as a mono overhead and see how it does. maybe you might want a 2nd one of them instead.

i'd also steer you away from the 603's as overheads. they're great for some other things, but in my experience, they've got much of the same things you don't like about the c1000's.

and maybe try one of those c1000's as your snare mic and see what that does for ya.


cheers,
wade

 

[Supercreep]

Thanks, guys. I'm exited about trying the C1000s on the snare, Wade. Are you thinking instead of, or in addition to the 57?

I spent a year in the studio construction forum lurking before building the room and so have it done right, double sheetrocked 9 X 14 outbuilding, compressed fiberglass bass traps in the corners, foam on the ceiling for the highs, sound diffusion on the wall behind the monitors,etc. I think the room sounds good, very transparent.

I'm thinking maybe 800-1000 for the pair... I know that's still cheap but I'm hoping for a big improvement. I think the 57s and 58's are pretty good on toms, snare and bass right now.

 

[noisedude]

It's a good point - try it on snare. Stick it next to your 57 and compare the sounds, or try on on top and one on bottom (I would guess 57 on bottom but that's just my instinct).

 

[DJL]

Thanks, guys. I'm exited about trying the C1000s on the snare, Wade. Are you thinking instead of, or in addition to the 57?

I spent a year in the studio construction forum lurking before building the room and so have it done right, double sheetrocked 9 X 14 outbuilding, compressed fiberglass bass traps in the corners, foam on the ceiling for the highs, sound diffusion on the wall behind the monitors,etc. I think the room sounds good, very transparent.

I'm thinking maybe 800-1000 for the pair... I know that's still cheap but I'm hoping for a big improvement. I think the 57s and 58's are pretty good on toms, snare and bass right now.

He means using the C1000S inplace of the SM57 on snare... and I recommend a matched pair of Josephson C42MP mics... and you're going to want/need a good kick drum mic at some point in time too.

 

[mrface2112]

give it a go both with and without your 57--put it right next to it. try it on top, try it on bottom. play around with it. given the tracks i've heard made with em, it seems like it might have the right kinda bumps for snare.


can't recommend anything in that price range--that's out of my league for SDCs, although my BLUE dragonfly is a quite nice overhead mic. i only have one of them, though, but it's great for a mono overhead.


cheers,
wade

 

[bleyrad]

i'd also steer you away from the 603's as overheads. they're great for some other things, but in my experience, they've got much of the same things you don't like about the c1000's.

wow. i would sure as heck disagree with that. i've rented c1000's as overheads and own 603's which i use on the same cymbals. the 603's totally kill the c1000's.


Here a demo with the 603's as overheads, only effects on them are compression and a touch of verb:

http://www.appletonmusic.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=297

And here's some demos with 603's on acoustic guitar:

http://www.appletonmusic.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=292

Surprisingly, they've also worked well for me on female vocals.

 

[Supercreep]

wow. i would sure as heck disagree with that. i've rented c1000's as overheads and own 603's which i use on the same cymbals. the 603's totally kill the c1000's.


Here a demo with the 603's as overheads, only effects on them are compression and a touch of verb:

http://www.appletonmusic.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=297

And here's some demos with 603's on acoustic guitar:

http://www.appletonmusic.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=292

Surprisingly, they've also worked well for me on female vocals.

Very nice acoustic sound indeed. Damn.

Thanks for the clips. With that as a starting point, I'm looking for something a little bit less sterile. Anybody have any experience with the SM81?

 

[DJL]

Anybody have any experience with the SM81?

Yeah, the SM81 is what I call kind of a flat/neutral sounding SDC mic... meaning... what goes in, comes out, no big bumps, scoops, or etc (but not to be confused with a measurement type mic). The Shure SM81 has been a studio standard mic for years... and IMO, is a "must have" type mic.

 

[Supercreep]

Yeah, the SM81 is what I call kind of a flat/neutral sounding SDC mic... meaning... what goes in, comes out, no big bumps, scoops, or etc (but not to be confused with a measurement type mic). The Shure SM81 has been a studio standard mic for years... and IMO, is a "must have" type mic.

Thanks for your time... I appreciate it.

Do you think it would be appropriate for rock drumming? They're not crazy expensive... I don't hear about them too much. Also, I don't find fault with the pres on the 896HD, but would a nice pre make a bigger difference in the OH sound than a new set of mics?

 

[DJL]

Thanks for your time... I appreciate it.

Do you think it would be appropriate for rock drumming? They're not crazy expensive... I don't hear about them too much. Also, I don't find fault with the pres on the 896HD, but would a nice pre make a bigger difference in the OH sound than a new set of mics?

My Josephson C42MP mics get used more than my SM81's as drum overheads but the SM81's work too. By the way... the SM81 is my favorite hi-hat mic. I don't know enough about the 896HD to comment... sorry.