Some advice needed ..

L

lanac

New member
I am in the process of setting up my second computer as a studio for my husband and myself to do some recording ....


I have asked around .. and I get confilcting views on the Mic issue ...


I am buying a mixing board that is made for the computer .. Tascam .. anyway ..

On Mics .. I know that I will get a better quality recording by using the condensor mic ...

but what I want to know is this .. is it that Big of a difference .. before I go spen 500$ on a condensor mic .. I would like to know ..

Just to give you some background of us so you know where I am coming from .. My husband and I are songwriters .. we are not artists ... although we record our own music so that we can get it out here in our search for people to cover it ...

so now that you know that ... what is your opinion ??

Thanks ahead of time for any input .. Lana Crowley
 
Mic Importance

Your mic will be the most important component in your signal path. The type of mic best suited for you depends on:
A. The room you are recording in,
B. What sound your after, and
C. the instrument your are recording.
For example, I record in an old doctor's house built in 1922. There are times I want more room sound and times I do not. For an intimate vocal part, I might use the best large diaphram condenser mic I had and run it in cardioid pattern so I don't get too much room sound.
If I was recording acoustic guitar, I might close mic with a small diaphram condenser and use the large diaphram condenser switched to omni for the room sound.
Next remember K.I.S.S., "keep it simple stupid." Run your mics thru the best mic preamp you can afford and straight into your recorder. This will give you the most accurate picture of your performance.
Tell us your specific wants and needs so we can help you narrow down some choices.

T. Alan
 
I want to be able to record one and sometimes two acoustic guitars ... and maybe an electric bass at times ..

a female vocal harmony (Me) and sometime female vocal Lead (me)

and Male Vocals lead and harmony (Randal)


as far as drums and extras ... there may be times we will do a harp (harmonica) and keyboard ... but mostly just vocals and guitar ...


Thank you very much ! Lana
 
Lana, what mixer are you considering? And what will the mic before used for primarily...vocals, guitar? Give a little more detail.
 
the mixing board is a TASCAM 300 something I think ... lol..


and the rest is in the above post
 
I guess you posted while I was typing my one key at a time question.:)

I don't think you need to spend $500 on one mic. IMHO, I would go with one of the SP C1's or an SM58 for vocals and maybe a pair of AKG C1000's for the guitars and harp. I listened to a couple of your songs today and thought the mids were a little weak. I think that the C1000 could be some help there.

Rick
 
I am sorry getu .. you are talking greek to me .. lol


what exactly are those numbers?

mics ?? what brand name and such ?

thank you so much !!
 
You're not talking about the model 3 are you? They're a little on the old side I think, and bound to be a bit noisey. BTW, what card and software are you using?
 
welll ..lmfaooo


umm after advice from others ...

we got .. cool edit 2000

cakewalkguitarstudio and then omg .. cubase vst32 (I died when I saw the price)

I have NO idea how to use any of these programs ... but I will hopefully learn ...

I am not sure on the number of the mixing board .... I should have written it down ..

it was the recommended board from the guy at the music store ..

and on the condensor mic .. the reason the guy is recommending the one he is .. is that is has like channels on it .. so that we only need one mic for vocals instead of two .. My voice is very strong and high . and Randals is very soft ... and lower end ..
 
Mic Importance

Right now, for acoustic guitar, I'm looking at a pair of Shure SM 81's. They're pretty much industry standard and would not only prove very beneficial in other situations but hold their value as well. You could also look at the Octava small diaphram condensers if your budget was a little tight.
For vocals, I would look at either an AKG C414, Shure KSM44, or an Audio Technica 4047. The 414 is a classic mic. The KSM44, has a great neutral sound. The 4047 has an excellent vintage sound. Try 'em all out and see what flatters your particular voice. Again, all these mics would prove invaluable in other situations and hold their value down the road.

What kind of preamp are you planning on using?

T. Alan
 
Shure SM58 $99 new. Not a condenser but is good clean mic.
AKG C1000S $199 new. Condenser with cardoid/hyper cardoid pattern.
Studio Projects C1. Condenser similar to Marshall's 67G $299 list.

All of which would be a safe buy used. The SP is relatively new so ya won't find them on ebay yet.
 
T. Alan's right in that what it really boils down to is what you think makes you sound good. You really need to go out and audition a wide range.
 
I breezed thru the thread a couple days ago and just assumed it was about the VX2. I'm not real knowledgable with mic's, but they're whole line is pretty snazzy lookin'.
 
I have two EV mics ... top end ...


one is the male version or normal and the other is a female mic .. I love the way we sound live on these ...

is this what you mean T Allan ??

they are not condensor mic though ...


and I am writing all of these down ... thanks yall !!!
 
Mics

I believe I know what mics your talking about lanac. After the popularity of the N/DYM line which included their 757(used to be the best live vocal mic until Shure came out with thier Beta series), they came out with gender specific models.

Your mics should be fine for demo purposes and for many other auxillary purposes,( lead instruments, percussion, etc...).

The mics I listed were for you to check out if you wanted to update to something to give your recordings a professional sound. They would also be a good investment if you planned on continuing in audio.
I spent thousand$ the last decade on stuff to get me by only to spend more to get me by when the other stuff wouldn't anymore.

T. Alan

P.S.
getuhgrip, the VX2 is by CAD and is something I am considering as well. Let me in on any feedback you may have. Thanks.
 
ok .. and this may be a question you want me to put somewhere else ... which is fine just tell me where to go to post it and I will

but I am not going to be able to plug the instruments into the mixing board ???

or that a different kind of thing ??

and what is a preamp ??

oh man .. I am so lost ...

Thank you for the mic advice ....
 
A pre amp boosts the signal to what is called "line level" which is usable by your soundcard, breakout box, ect.. If you're recording acoustics, you run your mic into the mixer which supplies the power to the mic signal. If you're talking about an electric guitar that's not going thru an amp, you'll need a preamp to boost its signal. Make sense?
 
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