Upgrade mic or pre?

[NolensVolens]

I currently have a Studio Projects C1 microphone and am planning on purchasing a firewire interface.

To get the best value for money, would I get the best sound from buying a firebox and better mic, or from using the C1 and buying a Mackie Onyx 400F?

Getting a good vocal sound is my main priority.

 

[kojdogg]

I currently have a Studio Projects C1 microphone and am planning on purchasing a firewire interface.

To get the best value for money, would I get the best sound from buying a firebox and better mic, or from using the C1 and buying a Mackie Onyx 400F?

Getting a good vocal sound is my main priority.

The Firebox and Onyx have different numbers of analog ins (4 vs. 8 respectively). If you get the Firebox, will you end up needing more channels in the future? If you're doing mostly home demo & singer/songwriter stuff, is 8 channels going to more than you need?
I have a Mackie Onyx 1220 and the pres are really good, though I usually end up using outboard ones instead (UA m610 or CL 7602) for vocals. The a/d converters (another important component that will influence the final sound) on the Mackie are reported to be very good for the price as well, but beware if buying the Mackie 400f-- the whole Mackie firewire line is known to have incompatibility problems with some computer processors and/or chip sets. If you're strongly considering one, I'd check the Mackie Forums to see if your computer model is addressed there.
If there are no compatibility issues, and if you're not going to need more than one or two channels at a time, Mackie makes a new firewire interface called the Satellite that has two Onyx pres, though it has received some mixed reviews.
Mics, pres and other analog outboard gear is generally regarded as a good place to invest (digital stuff, inevitably is eventually rendered obsolete), so depending on what kind of chain (i.e. pre, interface, etc.) you're using now, you'll probably experience an increase in quality in either case.

 

[NolensVolens]

Thanks for the reply. Yeah the number of inputs doesn't make a difference to me - I'm just looking to get a good sound and so want a firewire interface that will give me that. I'm also considering the fireface.

 

[kojdogg]

Thanks for the reply. Yeah the number of inputs doesn't make a difference to me - I'm just looking to get a good sound and so want a firewire interface that will give me that. I'm also considering the fireface.

That's a great unit (from reputation-- never had the chance to use one). Microphones and A/D converters are very important-- I've read the point made somewhere that they are the parts of the signal chain that transform the signal from one form of energy to another, so the fidelity (or conversely character) of the translation is very important to the sound. Preamps also make a huge difference as the most crucial stage of delivering the mic signal to the converter.
What microphones are you considering and what is your budget? There are a lot of knowledgeable users here.

 

[NolensVolens]

I think my budget is around $1200.

 

[dgatwood]

Post a clip of your voice with the C1 somewhere and we can probably give a much better answer.

That said, it's almost like asking whether you should tune your cello with the pegs at the top or the fine tuners at the bottom. The mic is like the coarse pegs. A mic change can make a very dramatic change in the very character of the sound. The pre is more like the fine tuner. You should usually upgrade that only after you have a sound that you mostly like.

If your mic choice isn't already good for what you're recording, upgrading the pre to improve your sound is like polishing a turd. An SM57 will likely sound bad on vocals even if it's going through a Neve, while, a Neumann U87 will sound at least passable on vocals even through a Behringer Eurodesk.

 

[Soundmind??]

As stated above, there are a lot of vairables. You need a good signal conversion path from the sound source to the computer, or other digital recording media. How good a signal path depends on the type of instruments and the complexity of the project. The need for expensive, high quality gear stands out when you are mixing muliple tracks, where details will be muddied in the mix without good converters. For simple projects, $1200 should get you a decent sound. I'd look at a mid priced preamp with built in converters ($600-700) and the rest on a mic. You may want to look at a solid state preamp at that price range and look at an inexpensive tube mic if it best suits your voice. If you're looking at improving your signal path, a mixer is not the best option on a limited budget. You're just be getting 8-12 cheap preamps with a lot of ways to route the signal, not the best method to get a good track to the digital world.

 

[wheelema]

If all you want is one gold vocal channel you might consider the Speck MicPre 5.0 with a Shure SM7B.

Supposedly an unbelievable combination.

 

[tdukex]

Yes, if you ar only doing vocals why not invest in a single channel of great pre. You could even get a John Hardy or Great River for that price. If you need two channels and FW interface, I would do more research and strongly consider the Fireface 400 from RME ($1,000).