Recommend large vocal condenser under $100?

  • Thread starter Thread starter nuemes
  • Start date Start date
nuemes

nuemes

Be Here Now
This mic will be used to record male vocals and acoustic guitar for slow alt country. I'd like a warm, darker sound rather than a crisp sound from the mic (mind you - I know only so much is going to be available for $100). The preamp is a Presonus Bluetube & Joe Meek C2 compressor running into ADAT.

Mics I'm considering. Please make a recommendation if you have used any of these or if you've had luck with any other large condensers in this price range. Thank you!

MK319 - Bang for buck for at $69
MXL V67G - I've heard good things about this on vocals $99
Studio Projects B1 - $79
MXL 2001 - can be upgraded later through Mojave for $299(?) - $165

________________________________

In art it is hard to say anything as good as: saying nothing.
-Wittgenstein
 
I plan to use my mics for the same applications as you -- acoustic guitar and vocals. My music style is rock, but on the folk/country/blues side. My budget is the same as you too (since I'm just starting-out in home recording). My reseach here has resulted in deciding to buy three mics. Two for X/Y config recording of my acoustic guitar. For this I've pretty-much decided to go with a (matched) pair of MXL 603s (small diaphram condenser). For vocals, the MXL V67G. If my memory serves me well, the characteristics of the V67 is warmer/darker, while the SP B1 is considered brighter. I had thought about saving some money and just buying a couple of B1s since they seem to have a good reputation for instrument and vocals ('tho better on instruments if I'm not mistaken), but I want to be more focussed in the applications and get mics suited to do a job. These are budget mics and I'm not expecting miracles, but I believe that my MXL choices will produce good results for me. Having said all this, I really know squat about mics at this point and haven't heard or used many. I'm just sharing the results of my homework here. Good luck with your choices.
 
same here

I am looking for a decent mic for acoustic guitars too. I recently found out that my C1000s is not suited for that application. I kept wondering why I couldn't get a good recording with it. From what I've gathered, it is better for live applications.
I saw somewhere on here where GC has an Octava at a big discount. Are these decent for acoustic guitars? How about the large diaphram Samson?
I have a MXL 990 and its not bad. Should I stay with it?
Any info will be appreciated.
 
Last edited:
Mxl V67g

Based on posts here and outside reviews I purchased the MLX V67G today at a local music shop for $99. I'm going to test it out this weekend and compare it to the mics I currently own and post results soon. I'm excited to hear if it can do what I'm hopeful of.

Someone else here had posted regarding the looks of the V57G and they were absolutely right: it looks like a prop from Pee Wee's Playhouse.

__________________________________

"Large Marge sent me."
 
ch2os7 said:
I am looking for a decent mic for acoustic guitars too. I recently found out that my C1000s is not suited for that application. I kept wondering why I couldn't get a good recording with it. From what I've gathered, it is better for live applications.
I saw somewhere on here where GC has an Octava at a big discount. Are these decent for acoustic guitars? How about the large diaphram Samson?
I have a MXL 990 and its not bad. Should I stay with it?
Any info will be appreciated.
Click to expand...

The 990 is decent on acoustic, especially if you have two of them and used them as a spaced pair. It reportedly has the same capsule as the MXL 603s, a small diaphragm condenser that is great on acoustic. The larger enclosure of the 990 alters the sonic properties a bit, but I've used it and think it is pretty darn nice for $60. A pair of the 603s will run you about $200.
 
nuemes said:
This mic will be used to record male vocals and acoustic guitar for slow alt country. I'd like a warm, darker sound rather than a crisp sound from the mic (mind you - I know only so much is going to be available for $100). The preamp is a Presonus Bluetube & Joe Meek C2 compressor running into ADAT.

Mics I'm considering. Please make a recommendation if you have used any of these or if you've had luck with any other large condensers in this price range. Thank you!

MK319 - Bang for buck for at $69
MXL V67G - I've heard good things about this on vocals $99
Studio Projects B1 - $79
MXL 2001 - can be upgraded later through Mojave for $299(?) - $165

________________________________

In art it is hard to say anything as good as: saying nothing.
-Wittgenstein
Click to expand...
From the mics you listed... I like the Marshall MXL V67G best. Checkout this thread... http://www.homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=135588
 
nuemes said:
This mic will be used to record male vocals and acoustic guitar for slow alt country. I'd like a warm, darker sound rather than a crisp sound from the mic (mind you - I know only so much is going to be available for $100). The preamp is a Presonus Bluetube & Joe Meek C2 compressor running into ADAT.

Mics I'm considering. Please make a recommendation if you have used any of these or if you've had luck with any other large condensers in this price range. Thank you!

MK319 - Bang for buck for at $69
MXL V67G - I've heard good things about this on vocals $99
Studio Projects B1 - $79
MXL 2001 - can be upgraded later through Mojave for $299(?) - $165

________________________________

In art it is hard to say anything as good as: saying nothing.
-Wittgenstein
Click to expand...

I was reading up alittle about these mics... and just wondering... kind of sound difference would there be between these condenser mic's and a SM57?

I mainly want to record some nice clean acoustic guitar... and the add some vocals to it? Would these condensers be a smarter choice?
 
I don't recommend the SM57 for acoustic guitar. It's a dynamic mic so it won't pick up as much detail as a condender (on that note a SM57 was my first mic and I've recorded a lot of acoustic guitar that way when there were no other options).

You might consider the Studio Projects B1 for $79. I do not own one but it's been mentioned on this sight as being pretty good for its price and able to handle acoustic guitar & vocal. The best bet might be to read up here and then try a few mics out if possible.

The MXL V67G is typically recommended for vocals, not sure how it sounds on an acoustic guitar. I'll try a SM57 against a MXL V67G tomorrow and post results.
 
SM57/58 vs MXL V67

Okay. In the spirit of doing things the wrong way under the worst circumstances I plugged the following mics into a Mackie 1202VLZ and recorded directly to ADAT using a low cost Fender acoustic and my voice at the same time in folk style. Each mic was recorded independantly as I sat in a chair. The mics were aimed about about a foot away facing my neck.

Shure SM57 dynamic: $79
Narrow sounding mic for this purpose. Sounded poor on both acoustic guitar and vocal. Worth the money in other uses though.

Shure SM58 dynamic: $89
A lot like the SM57. Sounded slightly better on voice. Worth the money for loud/live vocals.

Audio Technica PR60 dynamic: ($? was free)
Had the least frequency response of all the mics. Dark sounding, very little top end but on playback I ended up liked that effect for the vocal. Worst mic for acoustic guitar.

AKG C1000S small diaphram condensor: $150
There's a definate improvement in articulation with this mic compared to the dynamic mics. Major issue though is that it has way too much high end for either acoustic guitar or vocal. Considering the mics I own though this is the best sounding default for recording acoustic guitar at this time... Not worth the money.

MXL V67 large diaphram condensor: $99
Much higher output than the C1000S. It picks up more detail than any of the other mics, which includes the most siblance :(. Easily the best vocal mic for this example having the most detail and low end that none of the others had. I found it the worst mic of all for recording acoustic guitar however; it makes the acoustic sound muddy. Worth the money.

Next step: small condenser for acoustic guitar and handling siblance...
 
Can i ask where you're seeing the SP B1 for $79? Everywhere i see it it's $99.
 
ericburnley said:
Can i ask where you're seeing the SP B1 for $79? Everywhere i see it it's $99.
Click to expand...

Music center is the only online place I've seen recently that sells them for $79. You can always get a more known dealer to match the price.

Humbucker music used to have them for $79, but it appears that right now they are only offering it with the "free" shockmount for $99. Since the mount costs $20 normally, I guess that makes the mic only $79. If you don't want the shockmount, you could probably call them and, if you're really nice, I bet they would make you a deal.

http://www.humbuckermusic.com/studprojb1re.html
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top