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Good microphone for home production?
- Thread starter whit979
- Start date
This suggestion will run your initial cost up a little. There are some good single channel mic-to-USB converters available today which in turn opens up your choices in mics big time.
I read over and over and over again that what is the best mic for TOM'S VOICE may not be the best mic for HARRY'S VOICE, etc. Throw into the mix with the Snowball and the AT2020 the USB mic that Sampson offers.
With a chuckle I ask people why I would buy a $900 or $1,500 mic to capture my $165 dollar voice? If you are going to work the mic very closely in a room that you have deadened as much as possible, you may be hard pressed to determine that any of these USB mics is BETTER for YOU than the others in the category. Just get one and get it working. If it doesn't seem to match your voice, buy the next one. (Easy for me to say. I'm spending YOUR money, not mine! ;D )
P.S. Humor me. Don't harass me that I have inflated the value of my voice at $165.
I read over and over and over again that what is the best mic for TOM'S VOICE may not be the best mic for HARRY'S VOICE, etc. Throw into the mix with the Snowball and the AT2020 the USB mic that Sampson offers.
With a chuckle I ask people why I would buy a $900 or $1,500 mic to capture my $165 dollar voice? If you are going to work the mic very closely in a room that you have deadened as much as possible, you may be hard pressed to determine that any of these USB mics is BETTER for YOU than the others in the category. Just get one and get it working. If it doesn't seem to match your voice, buy the next one. (Easy for me to say. I'm spending YOUR money, not mine! ;D )
P.S. Humor me. Don't harass me that I have inflated the value of my voice at $165.
If you are doing personal voice work that does not have to meet the expectations of big city ad agencies, and the expectations of the people who have the skills and ego to program the big time stations, you may find the simple mic with built-in USB to be more than adequate.
To get your money's worth out of the stand alone pre-amps and processors, you have to have "the ears" to recognize the fine qualities and adjust them.
Some vocal artists are STARS not because their voice is that much better than others, but because their EARS are that much better than others! (I would put Frank Sinatra near or at the top of that list.)
What else might you do with this equipment? If it will ALWAYS sit in your studio and record only YOU, then built-in USB mic can work well. How noisy is your computer? Mine has a fan that puts out an ugly sound at about 350 hz that is 8 to 12 db above all the other hum, hiss and other sounds of the room. And it is a good 10 to 12 feet from my mic. The USB mic cord will limit your ability to avoid computer fan noises. (I'm going to build a "muffler" next week!)
Do you ever plan to go "on location" to do any recording? Interviews? I will take mine out and do on-site recordings now and then. If I am going to record a pipe-organ performance, I may way 50 to 100 feet of mic cord. Try that with USB.
But for a guy sitting in his own voice-over booth with no other needs, you may well find the USB mic to be your best bet.
To get your money's worth out of the stand alone pre-amps and processors, you have to have "the ears" to recognize the fine qualities and adjust them.
Some vocal artists are STARS not because their voice is that much better than others, but because their EARS are that much better than others! (I would put Frank Sinatra near or at the top of that list.)
What else might you do with this equipment? If it will ALWAYS sit in your studio and record only YOU, then built-in USB mic can work well. How noisy is your computer? Mine has a fan that puts out an ugly sound at about 350 hz that is 8 to 12 db above all the other hum, hiss and other sounds of the room. And it is a good 10 to 12 feet from my mic. The USB mic cord will limit your ability to avoid computer fan noises. (I'm going to build a "muffler" next week!)
Do you ever plan to go "on location" to do any recording? Interviews? I will take mine out and do on-site recordings now and then. If I am going to record a pipe-organ performance, I may way 50 to 100 feet of mic cord. Try that with USB.
But for a guy sitting in his own voice-over booth with no other needs, you may well find the USB mic to be your best bet.
B
bobbybooey
Guest
Goat Rodeo Cowboy said:
If I were looking to start up a home studio from scratch today, this is the route I'd go. The Centrance MicPort Pro seems to be the consensus "best in class" for a simple mic-to-USB option.... it's like $150 and has a very good pre-amp for the money (comparable to much more expensive units), plus phantom power for dynamic mics. On that note, I'd probably go with a dynamic mic such as an RE-20 or a Shure SM7B ($350 new)... these are quality mics that will tend to mask acoustic imperfections in the recording area, which you WILL have unless you spend time and money treating your room. So while this option will cost more than a simple/cheap USB mic, you'll get a substantially superior recording chain for your money.
If we're talking about a home setup, you may want to look at aquiring a good USB mixer. Then you can run any combination of mic/preamp that you wish. This will also alow you to import other audio sources into your computer as well (turntable, field recorder, tape, MD...).
I have an Alesis 6-channel USB mixer I use at home and an M-Audio Fastrack Pro for mobile applications. My preferred mic at home is a Bluebird from Blue. On the road I take the AKG C 2000 B. The AKG is a little more rugged than the Blue and fits perfectly in my laptop bag with the rest of my mobile gear.
On a side note, I had to take my Bluebird in for repair recently. Fortunately I live within an hour's drive of Blue's HQ in Westlake Village, CA, so when I picked it up on Friday I asked if I could get a little tour. Mike Gattshall, the service supervisor was kind enough to oblige. Outside of the Bluebird and the Baby Bottle, all of the Blue mics are assembled, by hand, here. They have a nice studio setup where artists can come in and record on the various different mics and hear how they sound, and of course the place is filled with all of those beautiful Blue microphones. It was a quick tour but I enjoyed getting a behind the scenes look at a quality "Made in America" operation. (Thanks again Mike!)
I have an Alesis 6-channel USB mixer I use at home and an M-Audio Fastrack Pro for mobile applications. My preferred mic at home is a Bluebird from Blue. On the road I take the AKG C 2000 B. The AKG is a little more rugged than the Blue and fits perfectly in my laptop bag with the rest of my mobile gear.
On a side note, I had to take my Bluebird in for repair recently. Fortunately I live within an hour's drive of Blue's HQ in Westlake Village, CA, so when I picked it up on Friday I asked if I could get a little tour. Mike Gattshall, the service supervisor was kind enough to oblige. Outside of the Bluebird and the Baby Bottle, all of the Blue mics are assembled, by hand, here. They have a nice studio setup where artists can come in and record on the various different mics and hear how they sound, and of course the place is filled with all of those beautiful Blue microphones. It was a quick tour but I enjoyed getting a behind the scenes look at a quality "Made in America" operation. (Thanks again Mike!)
Why a USB? You can get a Marshall V63M for under $100. Not a bad condenser at that price point.. You'll need a pop screen as it's very touchy. As mentioned the CEntrance Pro XLR to USB converter is $150 (I'm buying one this week for my travel setup to pair with my 416). Can then tweak in PT or Adobe or whatever your DAW. The mention of the USB mixer is a good one too. All depends on your budget.
I've got a Rode Podcaster that sounds awesome-- Not as awesome as my NTK, but for a USB unit, it's quite nice.
Ah but wait!
As one who was on board with USB recording from the original Samson USB mics..(nope..too muddy) to the eventual MXL USB007, 008 etc (nope..too brittle, and hollow sounding)
After some time, they started making these mic-interfaces that connect directly to whatever mic you like..and I was SOLD..I went with my favorite remote recording mic ever the Sennheiser MKH416 and a USB mic interface made by MXL called the Mic-Mate..it was simple and worked okay, but it was a little noisy, only offered three selectable input levels..and didn't hold up very well..THEN I tried the Centrance Mic Port Pro..sounded a lot better AND has a monitor jack for a pair of phones..so it was all there. You could use any mic you like, AND get a headset with an adjustable amp but for some reason they used a flimsy little "mini-USB" plug going into the unit..after about only a month of use the little plug would not stay in the jack, and when it did, it let in connection static..Really dumb to use that little cell-phone plug/jack combo on something that will get tossed around, and plugged in and unplugged a lot..
So I tried the BLUE "Icicle"..HORRID..it should be taken off the market..noisy, and VERY low output..just nuts...so light it felt like there was nothing inside it, and virtually all plastic. Shame on them.
THEN I found "the one" (at least for my needs) the SHURE x2U
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/X2u
It has the full size USB plug, and a sturdy "feel" along with a FLAT area that is rubberized to accomodate sitting on a desk (or car dashboard) and it sounds great! We now have a boxful of the other USB interfaces, and have outfitted all remote voiceover systems with these..Under 100 bucks and the accomodate Vista laptops as well..they are the clear winner for us..I have a box full of the other ones..and we paid full price for them all.
BTW We are using the older, but much wider response MKH415 mics (12V versions converted to phantom) ..on these systems..the current Dish Network TV spots that are running were recorded in the back of my wife's Jeep Wranger in Maine..I'm hard pressed to tell the difference from the studio.
BEST BET for a home voiceover studio is to use the mic you have been comfortable with, or for that matter shop around and find one you really like..then just pair it with a USB mic interface and you are set to go.
As one who was on board with USB recording from the original Samson USB mics..(nope..too muddy) to the eventual MXL USB007, 008 etc (nope..too brittle, and hollow sounding)
After some time, they started making these mic-interfaces that connect directly to whatever mic you like..and I was SOLD..I went with my favorite remote recording mic ever the Sennheiser MKH416 and a USB mic interface made by MXL called the Mic-Mate..it was simple and worked okay, but it was a little noisy, only offered three selectable input levels..and didn't hold up very well..THEN I tried the Centrance Mic Port Pro..sounded a lot better AND has a monitor jack for a pair of phones..so it was all there. You could use any mic you like, AND get a headset with an adjustable amp but for some reason they used a flimsy little "mini-USB" plug going into the unit..after about only a month of use the little plug would not stay in the jack, and when it did, it let in connection static..Really dumb to use that little cell-phone plug/jack combo on something that will get tossed around, and plugged in and unplugged a lot..
So I tried the BLUE "Icicle"..HORRID..it should be taken off the market..noisy, and VERY low output..just nuts...so light it felt like there was nothing inside it, and virtually all plastic. Shame on them.
THEN I found "the one" (at least for my needs) the SHURE x2U
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/X2u
It has the full size USB plug, and a sturdy "feel" along with a FLAT area that is rubberized to accomodate sitting on a desk (or car dashboard) and it sounds great! We now have a boxful of the other USB interfaces, and have outfitted all remote voiceover systems with these..Under 100 bucks and the accomodate Vista laptops as well..they are the clear winner for us..I have a box full of the other ones..and we paid full price for them all.
BTW We are using the older, but much wider response MKH415 mics (12V versions converted to phantom) ..on these systems..the current Dish Network TV spots that are running were recorded in the back of my wife's Jeep Wranger in Maine..I'm hard pressed to tell the difference from the studio.
BEST BET for a home voiceover studio is to use the mic you have been comfortable with, or for that matter shop around and find one you really like..then just pair it with a USB mic interface and you are set to go.
B
BobSacamano
Guest
Hey Jeff,
From what I've heard, one of the strong points of the mic-port pro was the pre-amp,..how is the pre on the X2-U
From what I've heard, one of the strong points of the mic-port pro was the pre-amp,..how is the pre on the X2-U
Bob..for my money the Shure USB interface sounds as good....and the more solid build quality impressed me. The Mic Port Pro IS a fantastic interface (I think it uses a more advanced converter and preamp circuit) ..I just wish Centrance hadn't used that little tiny mini-USB connector. If it is to be sitting, and not toted around the Mic Port Pro is strong indeed.
With the Shure..I can literally connect the mic DIRECTLY to the interface with no mic cable and it works great..(one less wire to deal with) and it holds up to tossing around and getting connected and disconnected with no issues. We took it to the Masters this year for the whole week, and went from studio to motorhome, to car, to golf cart and it came through great.
With the Shure..I can literally connect the mic DIRECTLY to the interface with no mic cable and it works great..(one less wire to deal with) and it holds up to tossing around and getting connected and disconnected with no issues. We took it to the Masters this year for the whole week, and went from studio to motorhome, to car, to golf cart and it came through great.
C
C414B
Guest
I know I'm somewhat old-school, so don't flame too badly.
My home recording setup:
Yamaha MT-100 4-track cassette recorder
AKG C2000B condenser mic with pop filter
AKG C900 handheld condenser vocal mic
AKG D3700 handheld dynamic vocal mic
dbx Mini-Pre mic preamp
Soundcraft Spirit Folio Notepad audio mixer
ART DR-X2100 digital effects processor
BBE 462 sonic maximizer
AKG K240 Monitor headphones
TASCAM CD-RW700 CD recorder
Used most of this gear to record my wife singing the old gospel song, "It is No Secret" for her paternal grandfather's funeral. Mastered on the MT-100 and mixed down to Audacity on our Winderz PC. Converted to a good MP3 and emailed it to my mother-in-law. She burned it to CD and took it and a jambox to the gravesite. She said people were looking around and wondering when my wife mysteriously showed up for the interment.
My home recording setup:
Yamaha MT-100 4-track cassette recorder
AKG C2000B condenser mic with pop filter
AKG C900 handheld condenser vocal mic
AKG D3700 handheld dynamic vocal mic
dbx Mini-Pre mic preamp
Soundcraft Spirit Folio Notepad audio mixer
ART DR-X2100 digital effects processor
BBE 462 sonic maximizer
AKG K240 Monitor headphones
TASCAM CD-RW700 CD recorder
Used most of this gear to record my wife singing the old gospel song, "It is No Secret" for her paternal grandfather's funeral. Mastered on the MT-100 and mixed down to Audacity on our Winderz PC. Converted to a good MP3 and emailed it to my mother-in-law. She burned it to CD and took it and a jambox to the gravesite. She said people were looking around and wondering when my wife mysteriously showed up for the interment.
Cassette decks CAN sound really good..I'd like to hear that!
C
C414B
Guest
Jeff Laurence said:
Jeff,
PM me your e-mail addy and I'll send you an MP3.
I have an Audio Technica 2020 that works really well..i use it on my live internet radio show fri and sat nights as well as f0r voice overs..lots more expensive and better ones out there for sure..but for the 50.00 ebay price..i couldn't pass it up...came with the standard mount as well as the shock mount which i use..it the low z model..not usb. i run it into a behringer ub1240 fx pro mixer simply because someone gave it to me..brand new,,didn't know what it was..but knew i dabbled in all things gizmo-like..lol..have teac 350 top load cassette as well as a teac a 6300 reel to reel running through it as well..everything plugs straight into the pc..i can do wondermous things with all this with plain old roxio 7.... ;D
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