Usb Mic and Mixers

[v01d]

A few months back i bought a c03u usb mic without really looking into it too much. I heard some good reviews on it so i jumped ahead and bought it.

Am i now screwed when it comes to hooking this up to a mixer?

 

[Uhdinator]

yep!
It's a one trick pony.
I sell music gear and I try to advise many to save up and get a $149 interface thats USB or firewire (Presonus Audio box or something similar)
instead (and can do 24 bit) and use any regular mic's.

USB mics are a fixed resolution (all Ive seen are 16 bit) and can be used for one purpose........plugging into a computer.

 

[v01d]

yep!
It's a one trick pony.
I sell music gear and I try to advise many to save up and get a $149 interface thats USB or firewire (Presonus Audio box or something similar)
instead (and can do 24 bit) and use any regular mic's.

USB mics are a fixed resolution (all Ive seen are 16 bit) and can be used for one purpose........plugging into a computer.

I've seen some article before on hooking them up to a mixer. The problem is I really don't know what kind of mixer to get. I just know it needs usb inputs. I live in Maine and there isn't anyplace here really that i could purchase a mixer so my only choice is off the internet. I just don't want to waste hundreds on a mixer and it be no good for me

 

[kcearl]

first of all why do you need a mixer?



yup the usb mic was a bad choice but you're not the only one to try and take shortcuts...



Behri mixers are cheap and provide phantom power for condensers or the ability to take dynamics....contrary to popular belief they are actually a solid purchase for a newbie...for all intents and purposes they are quiet enough to record from and there is a ton of them on ebay, c'list etc...which allows you to pass it along when you out grow it

but a mixer in this price range is not an audio interface...and again you have to ask why do you need one...do you plan to record more than one signal at a time? or is it for live purposes?

if not just buy an audio interface...there is quite a few at the $100 or even less range that are adequate to begin with...this will all be a jump from a usb mic..the lucky thing is the next jump isnt that expensive, just a bit of a minefield..


have a look in the mic forum...loads on sub $100 mics by very experienced folks...

 

[RWhite]

Kcearl is right. If you are looking to record yourself or a band live with multiple mics, a small mixer can be very useful. And Behringer makes small mixers starting at less than $100 which are fine for someone starting out.

But if you are looking to record just yourself, a USB recording interface is all you need. And there are many to chose from.