Vocal Mic Suggestions For My Needs...

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ghetto3jon

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hello. i'm looking to buy a LDC for vocals. i know there is no "perfect mic" and the best idea is to try out everything and choose what sounds best...but that is usually not an option. so i'm thinking i could describe my needs a little, and perhaps you could suggest some mics that might perform well for what i need.

i'm in a rock band, and our music tends to be pretty thick and layered. many guitar tracks, and keyboards, and a lot of vocal harmonies. our singer has a pretty traditional rock and roll male range...to give you a better idea, he's been told he sounds like john davis of superdrag a lot.

so specifically, i'm looking for a mic that will help his voice cut through a full rock and roll mix. i suppose our music sounds like "valley of dying stars" era superdrag, or built to spill, or secret machines...stuff like that.

i know it can be frustrating when someone says "what's the best mic" when they could be using it for acoustic guitar or female lounge vocals. so what i'm saying is this mic i'm looking for is pretty much exclusively to be used by our singer. so does anyone have any suggestions for my needs? (up to $1000, i'd say). i've been researching the following mics for starters:

audio technica 4050
audio technica 4047
nuemann tlm-103
shure ksm32
shure ksm44
rode ntk
rode k2
akg c4000b
akg solidtube
blue bluebird
blue baby bottle
blue dragonfly
blue blueberry
mojave ma-200

thank you very much. everyone here is always so helpful!
jon.
 
mmmmmmmmmmmojave
4047
Studio Projects T3
ADK Hamburg II (haven't heard one just want one)
gefell 930 (little pricey)
akg 414
 
Check my sig for tunes using an NTK (Alesis/TripleC/PCM80).There's a couple pop rock tunes and with the right eq it cuts nicely and handles layers fairly well.
 
big kenny, you suggest the mojave? that's one mic i know nothing about...doesn't seem to be available at many places. have you got one? what's it like?
 
i found this site that posts microphone and preamp samples:

http://www.thelisteningsessions.com/sessions.htm

it seems like the audio technica mics (4050, 4047, etc) are mid heavy, and not as smooth as the nuemann tlm103 or some of the other ones. i don't think the audio technicas sound better in the tests, but i'm wondering if that mid heavy, not-so-smooth sound is what i'm looking for. perhaps that would cut and sound good in a big rock mix? i don't know...just thinking out loud. check out that site if you'd like to hear a bunch of audio samples. that site showed me that the preamp seems to affect the sound more than the mic...huh.

jon.
 
You might want to consider a peluso 22 251. In my opinion it would be just what you are looking for.

Another would be a dynamic mic like the sennheiser md421 II. This mic can be surprisingly good for male rock vocals.

If you buy theses mics used you can try them, and if they don't fit what you are looking for, sell them for what you paid.


audio technica 4050
audio technica 4047
nuemann tlm-103
shure ksm32
shure ksm44
rode ntk
rode k2
akg c4000b
akg solidtube
blue bluebird
blue baby bottle
blue dragonfly
blue blueberry
mojave ma-200
Click to expand...


Personally I have tried many of the mics you listed. The mics that stayed for vocal mics (and other uses as well):
AT4047
ksm44
(the at 4050 was very nice, but it was to similar to my ksm44, so I sold it)
Peluso 22 251 (I know not on your list)

In order of preference I would put
22 251
4047
ksm44

Have fun shopping!
 
thanks solafide. the Peluso 22 251 is a very unique suggestion. unfortunately, it might be outside of my price range because a used one would be very tough to find.
 
You might also want to add a Shure SM7 to your list. I find it to be a very good rock mic.

I agree with other posters that the 4047 should be on your short list. The 4050 is a very good mic (I have a couple), but it may be too "polite" for your intended use. Never used a Mojave so I can't help you there. I'd caution you on the Neumann. Some people like them and a large number don't (I'm in the latter camp). Because user opinions vary so much on that mic, if you are seriously considering the Neumann, I think you really want to try it out before making a commitment.
 
now the sm7, that's a dynamic mic, right? for some reason i (like many, i imagine) think LDC when i think of vocals...but maybe an sm7 is a good idea? anybody want to share their sm7 experience?

thanks again!
 
right now i'm leaning towards the at4047...because a couple of you are saying it might work for me, and it's one of the most affordable on my list. in the past, i have been using a mxl v67 and a v69me...is it safe to say a at4047 is a step up from those? because i was not thrilled by either of those mxl mics...they certainly weren't terrible, but those are what i'm looking to replace.
 
Anybody use an SM-7 thru a VMP-2?

I know a 57 sounds pretty decent thru a mp-2nv, I suppose a SM7 would sound really good. Don't know about thru a VMP-2 though.......
 
thanks solafide. the Peluso 22 251 is a very unique suggestion. unfortunately, it might be outside of my price range because a used one would be very tough to find.
Click to expand...

Man they sure have gone up in price! I'm glad I got mine soon after they came out. I paid just a litle over half what the current ebay price is!

I would still buy it at the current price, but I'm glad I didn't have to!
 
NL5 said:
Anybody use an SM-7 thru a VMP-2?

I know a 57 sounds pretty decent thru a mp-2nv, I suppose a SM7 would sound really good. Don't know about thru a VMP-2 though.......
Click to expand...


Let me hook mine up over the weekend and I'll tell you what I think. My VMP-2 is retubed with GT Mullard copies and I think sounds a bit more hifi and has a bit less gain than the stock Sovteks, but I don't think it will make that much difference. I usually run my SM7 though my APIs or P-1.
 
Gefell m930 was suggested, and it's a good choice

the 71s is also a good choice. Just a bit more, but handmade by Gefell, and has multiple patterns, which gives you more options in your recordings.

R0de has some reasonable quality mics as well (though I would go with their tube mics first for this application).

AKC has a nice multipattern as well, which may be of interest.

I'd also check out the Peluso 22 47 short body, which would be at the extreme end of your budget, but has a very interesting character to it when used vocally.
 
What about ribbon mics?

I'm a huge fan of Beyer ribbon mics, such as the M500N. For $1k, you could get a nice ribbon (Beyer M500N), an SM7, and a decent LDC (try to find a MXL V77 ~ $300).

You might end up selling the V77 later for something better, but at least you'll know what worked and what didn't. You'll likely never sell the SM7 and M500 (they are high end mics imo).
 
TLM103 (great for vox in dense mix nice highs)
AT4050 (highs not as smooth but still a great mic)
KSM44 (fat sounding mic not as bright )
 
a friend told me the mojave ma-200 is out of this world. the problem is i was going to pick a mic in the $1000 range, and then find a used one. the mojave is very hard to come by used...does anyone know where i may find a used mojave mic? anyone want to part with theirs? (nudge nudge).
 
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