Vocal Recording Microphone

[perfectturmoil]

Hey guys.

I haven't posted here in about forever.. but I have a musician question, and this was one of my favorite musician forums back in the day ;-]

So I am buying the Tascam US-428 (USB multitracker) to do some recording with.. I'm probably going to be using my guitar's line out right into the multitrack (at least for now). I want to get a better vocal mic, however. I have an SM58, and it treats me well, but I think its starting to get a little bit staticy (of course, that could easily be the very tired cable ;-] ) and I would like something a little more studio-vocal oriented. Something like these:

http://www.music123.com/Large-Diaphragm-Studio-Mics-d1162.music?src=microphone

I'm looking to spend around $150 or so.. would it be a good idea to get a studio mic? Would I be better off just getting another SM58? Maybe a Beta58? Any other suggestions?

Also, I know that the SM57 is a favorite for instrument microphoning, but are there any other alternatives anyone wants to bring up?

Thanks :-]

[Obsessor Of 41]

For some reason I thought you got banned.

[perfectturmoil]

For some reason I thought you got banned.

haha.. no.. at least not to the best of my knowlege ;-] just been doing other things.. I keep wanting to get back into tape trading and all that fun stuff, but I can never find the time to re-organize my collection, and get everything together again. I always wanted to serve a real ftp (and had a small one for a while a few years ago) but I got to college, and they don't allow file serving :- [

oh well..

[onemanguitarban]

See if you can find a dealer who still carries OKTAVA mics, they will sound 10X better than a SURE dynamic mic for vocals, or acoustic guitar. And they will fit in your budget!! Their mics should cost about $500 but they don't anymore, you can get them for about $150 because they are made in Russia, and the value you of their money went WAY down. Any one of their condensor mics would do the trick, just make sure you have Phantom power. They will make your recordings sound MUCH more professional than using a 58 or BETA58, trust me, even lay-people had told me they can hear the difference in an A-B comparison.

And as you know a guitar line out is NOT the way to record a guitar, unless you have a Taylor ES system, then you might me alright. I'd get an OKTAVA mic and use it for your guitar, then record your vocals with it in another take. (Assuming you are recording an acoustic guitar) If you are recording an electric guitar using the line out, good luck getting a decent sound without some help.

[Obsessor Of 41]

See if you can find a dealer who still carries OKTAVA mics, they will sound 10X better than a SURE dynamic mic for vocals, or acoustic guitar. And they will fit in your budget!! Their mics should cost about $500 but they don't anymore, you can get them for about $150 because they are made in Russia, and the value you of their money went WAY down. Any one of their condensor mics would do the trick, just make sure you have Phantom power. They will make your recordings sound MUCH more professional than using a 58 or BETA58, trust me, even lay-people had told me they can hear the difference in an A-B comparison.

And as you know a guitar line out is NOT the way to record a guitar, unless you have a Taylor ES system, then you might me alright. I'd get an OKTAVA mic and use it for your guitar, then record your vocals with it in another take. (Assuming you are recording an acoustic guitar) If you are recording an electric guitar using the line out, good luck getting a decent sound without some help.

Are you specifically referring to the Octava "MC012A" Small Diaphragm, Condensor? I guess most people just refer to it as a pencil condensor, because that is what it is....well I've got three, and got them all for a steal. I think we ended up paying $100 for each, and as you say, they're very versatile. We've used them to mic percussion kits, drum kits, or instruments.

[onemanguitarban]

Well any of the OKTAVA condensor mics actually, the MCO12 series are great, probably my main mic for acoustic guitars, and I've used them on vocals as well. I can't remember the numbers, I think they have a 319 or something, that is bigger that sound great as well. No one makes a better mic for the money than OKTAVA. I mean, a REAL mic for $100, who else can do that!! They also make ribbon mics, but I haven't tried them. They have 3 different condensor mics that are widely availible (or used to be) then they also make changable capsules to get different pickup patterns, I would recommend any of their three condensors as I've used them all, just can't remember the other numbers off the top of my head. All of them should be able to be found for around $150 a piece, except of the MC012 set that comes with all the different capsules, and the wooden box, that cost more.

[perfectturmoil]

Do you know of any online retailers that carry Oktava? I've looked and I've come up empty. The only music stores anywhere around me are Guitar Center (big, and dont carry them) and Daddy's Junky Music (not quite as big, but pretty sure they don't have any).

Music store wise in my area, theres a big rift. Either its a junky little store out of someones house, or its a huge guitar center. All of the medium sized (IE not a corporation, but still have a few products in stock) got put out of business.

Any advice? Also, Ive read about the Rode NT3, and the Audio Technica 3something or other that I happen to forget the name of ;-] Would you suggest either of those two for instrument micing? I guess I convinced myself to do it right the first time :-]

[acmorgan]

just replying so i can read about mic info...

[acmorgan]

go on e-bay...they have quite a few "oktava's" for sale

[onemanguitarban]

I'd try ebay. I got mine at Guitar Center a few years ago, I think they stopped carrying them. I was told that they were taking away from the sales of their more expensive mics that they had a higher mark up on, so it ended up being more economical not to sell them any more and make people buy mics that cost $300+

I was pretty up set about that. The whole Guitar Center/Musician's Friend partnership has made me pretty mad before, but I won't go into that.

[perfectturmoil]

go on e-bay...they have quite a few "oktava's" for sale

Last time I checked, there werent very many available, and they weren't in the 150 dollar range either.. Interesting..

[perfectturmoil]

Also, I tried editing the post to add this, but apparently that option is turned off.

But I was perusing music123, and noticed a few M-Audio microphones that both sold for 99 dollars. One was small diaphragm, one was large.

http://www.music123.com/M-Audio-Nova-Large-Capsule-Cardioid-Microphone-i133968.music
http://www.music123.com/M-Audio-Pulsar-Instrument-Mic-i149886.music

I know that M-Audio is a great company for at least other types of music equipment. Any experience with these lower end microphones? I read a few reviews and they seemed to be pretty good. Gold diaphragm this, class A that, just looking for some more input :-]

[onemanguitarban]

I see a couple Oktava 319s with Buy it now at under $110. I didn't look at the shipping, but it couldn't be that much for a mic.

They also have some Oktava mics that end in a couple of days with Free shipping that are under $90 right now.

As for the M-Audio mics, I've used them briefly and they are OK, but are definately lower end condensors, pretty good but not great. M-Audio does make some good products, but it is kind of like.....take Sony as an example, sure I'd buy a CD or DVD player from them, but if I want speakers, I buy them from a company that only makes speakers, like Klipsh. Same rings true for mics, Neumann, Schoeops, etc.

I'd still think about the Oktavas, ebay is a hassle, I know, but if things work out, I think you will be happier with one, and never NEED an "upgrade." Sure if you get real serious you might want to get an Neumann or Schoeps, but you probably wouldn't Have to, unless you needed different pickup patterns. Just my .02

[Firedncin8nancy]

hey, thought id jump in here and ask a question. I use an m-audio usb mobile pre to record and i ususally go straight from guitar -> mobile pre and that records straight to the computer. You mentioned that its not the best way to go, and that using a mic would be better. I use a mic similar to the sm-58, and I know thats not an instrument recording mic but what do you think of this: recording 1 channel direct from guitar and having a 2nd channel be the mic and have it positioned near the soundhole and record that aswell. would a mix of the 2 be better than one or the other?

[perfectturmoil]

...would a mix of the 2 be better than one or the other?

The best way to find out which sounds better is to do it yourself :-] Try it all, and try different placements for the mic too.. IE putting it near the bridge, putting it near your fingers on the fret board, putting it far away.. see what sounds best to you. You will probably get better sound with than without the mic, and a little bit of playing around on the computer will make it sound even better.

And you can get some cool things with different mic placings.. room echo, fret noise, etc. All depends on what you thing sounds best

regarding ebay: wow. theres actually mics there. when this thread first went up, i swear there were like 3.. in the 3-400 dollar range. cool.

what would you think would be best.. try to get two of the mk012's, or one of them and one of the 3somethings?

[DaveHead36]

Wow, no one is mentioning the MXL (pronounced Marshall) mics. These mics are awesome. Not to mention a hell of a deal. I bought a pair for $120. They came with a carry-case, stand mount, and a shock mount. I wound up getting the 990's and I love them. They work great as an instrument mic and even better as vocal mics. The one problem I have with them is they have a hump at around 12k. But if you're running it through any kind of mixer, this is solved by backing off of the highs a couple of dB. Some people have trouble using them because they don't say Shure or Audio-Technica on them but if it sounds good, no one will notice. No one will be listening to your recording saying "ooh he's using a MXL 990 instead of a U-87!". You can find them online at musicians friend or in person at guitar center. In fact we wound up using MXL's to mic the piano at a todd rundgren show because our 414's crapped out on us. Go figure!

DH36

[perfectturmoil]

So apparently I can get Oktava microphones through my guitar center.. go figure :-]

MC012 for 99 bucks. MK012 for 99 bucks.

Are these the same microphone? I'm pretty sure that they are.. but.. ? Guitar center has both listed in the system. Which should I order when I order them?

I think I'm gonna pick up two of these (just to have one.. cause according to you guys they sound awesome). Is another one of the Oktava microphones better suited to being a vocal mic? Or are these just as good? Cause since these are cheaper than I thought they would be, I was thinkin of buying the two for micing instruments and whatnot, and then getting another Oktava mic for vocals. Bad plan? Good plan? ??

[onemanguitarban]

MC012 for 99 bucks. MK012 for 99 bucks.
Which should I order when I order them?

I think I'm gonna pick up two of these (just to have one.. cause according to you guys they sound awesome). Is another one of the Oktava microphones better suited to being a vocal mic? Or are these just as good? Cause since these are cheaper than I thought they would be, I was thinkin of buying the two for micing instruments and whatnot, and then getting another Oktava mic for vocals. Bad plan? Good plan? ??

I think the MC and MKs are pretty much the same thing. As far as which mic is best suited for vocals, I would give the nod to the M319, they are a little bit better suited for vocals, but the 012s are great too. You will need a pop filter to record vocals with these. If you do order two of the 012's you might want to see have much they are selling a stereo matched pair for. Hopefully it should be $199 and then you would have a pair of factory matched mics. The ultimate little rig, for recording say an acoustic guitar and vocals, would be to have a stereo pair of 012s for the guitar, and a M319 for vocals.

[perfectturmoil]

The ultimate little rig, for recording say an acoustic guitar and vocals, would be to have a stereo pair of 012s for the guitar, and a M319 for vocals.

Nice.. thats what I'm gonna go for.. I dunno if they will have matched pairs, but I hope so. Tie it in with a few monster cables, and recording here I come :-]