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Mic recommendations?

post #1 of 12
4/27/10 at 5:34pm
Thread Starter 
I know this is a headphone forum but I'm convinced there are people here that do serious recording. I just can't figure out where to ask about it on the forums.

I am pretty happy with my headphone setup for now; after buying Grado 325is and HF-2 I've settled on the HF-2 as they are a more organic sound for classical. The RSA Predator is a good match as well (love having the DAC)

Now, I feel like it's time to start spending my money on recording equipment before I spend it all on Headphones Actually I blame the amazing headphones for making me aware of the quality of my recordings...ie. I want better.

I just have no idea where to start for this. :s

I would mostly be recording violin, violin+piano, or violin+cello+piano.

I've done a good amount of studio recordings and published a number of CDs but I want to have the convenience of being able to record myself and my sisters in HQ whenever I want.

I have an Edirol R09 and have used other Flash field recorders such as the ZoomH2. I just think it's time to move up to something a little (or a lot) better.
I have a 13" MBP so I am assuming I will want some sort of USB interface. Or if you have other suggestions that would work too.

I guess a budget would help with your suggestions. Let's say $1000-$2000 but again, I have no idea where this puts me in regard to mics, preamps, and other devices that I may have not even heard of.

Thanks,
Emmanuel
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post #2 of 12
4/27/10 at 6:12pm
The E-Mu 0404 USB is by many accounts a decent performer as ADC (not sure about its preamps), and it has the added benefit of being a good (again, by many accounts - I haven't tried it) DAC and headphone amp. I use an old M-Audio Delta 1010 24/96 ADC, and a Behringer Eurorack 2642 mixing board for preamps. They sound fine to my ears, though my mics are likely the weak links in my chain currently. I play drums, so I need many channels - you are lucky enough to be able to spend less and get better sound quality.

While I have no specific recommendations, my general advice would be to put the bulk of your money toward one or two good quality full-range, large-diameter condenser mics. As long as the preamp is quiet, it will not make nearly as much difference as the mic unless you want to colour the sound going into your computer (like, as in, distort it warmly with tubey goodness).

I'll be watching this thread, as I also want to upgrade my microphone collection.
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post #3 of 12
4/27/10 at 7:26pm
I highly recommend you visit Studio Central - when I was doing recording, I found that community to be invaluable.



Preamp: RNP (~$500), the best damned preamp you can buy for less than $1500

Microphone: Some kind of small condenser for the violin, possibly for the piano as well - but Id get an extra SM57 for the piano as well, just in case (they go for ~$80, and every recording setup should have one of these mics).

ADC: Lavry has a pretty nice one But the sky is the limit with this
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post #4 of 12
4/27/10 at 7:53pm
And get a large condenser for cello.
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post #5 of 12
4/27/10 at 8:37pm
Emmanuel - it really depends what sound you want to for. There are many, many, many choices within this price range. You need to consider where you will be recording, what kind of sound you want, do you want high-fidelity life-like results, will you be using a MAC or PC, do you have a mic pre-amp, do you plan on releasing these recordings, are you familiar with mastering, etc etc.

The thought that you need to spend a lot of cash to get good results is false. With a little know how and time and patience you can do quite a lot. Depending on the sound you want, you get away with spending as little as $300...maybe less. Also, where are you located? If you're nearby maybe we can meet up.
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post #6 of 12
4/28/10 at 1:57pm
Hmm. There has to be some very specific mice for recording stRings. I would suggest you post at the Steve Hoffman forum. Lots of engineers and recording kinds hang there. You might try giving phil spectre a call ...
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post #7 of 12
4/28/10 at 9:49pm
Check out TapeOp.com A free mag I can't even begin to describe, but lets say invaluable.
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post #8 of 12
4/29/10 at 7:13pm
Emmanuel, shoot me a PM, I can give you some suggestions. Let me know what kind of equipment you already own, and we'll go from there.
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post #9 of 12
4/30/10 at 4:25am
Quote:
Originally Posted by santacore View Post
Emmanuel, shoot me a PM, I can give you some suggestions. Let me know what kind of equipment you already own, and we'll go from there.
X 2.

Santacore knows his $h#t!!
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post #10 of 12
5/2/10 at 2:38pm
Quote:
Santacore knows his $h#t!!
Back at ya man. I enjoyed meeting you and hearing your work at the last meet. If I ever need mastering/restoration work done, I know who I'm gonna call.
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post #11 of 12
5/27/10 at 1:36pm

Depending upon how you want to accomplish your recordings, multi-mic vs. coincident strero pair, etc. will dictate what sort of mixing capability you need.  The best all purpose budget mics for my $$ are the AKG C-1000 condensers.  They can be self powered or use phantom power, sound great, have plenty of reach, pretty neutral, polar pattern can be changed, etc.  So they're very flexible mics and do a great job on instruments and voice.

 

Your recorder...  I've done a bit of looking at portable recorders for low noise and general quality of recording capability.  I settled on the Olympus LS-10 a couple years ago for low noise vs flexibility vs size vs ruggedness.  Many of the recorders I looked at were far too noisy to consider.  The mic preamps that Olympus uses were designed by the same folks who designed the preamps for Sony and they're about the quietest on the market.  I just recently bought a new generation Tascam portable recorder and it was terribly noisy and it went back to the store.  The new Yamaha C24 is the smallest 24/96 unit that I know of that's quiet enough to use and I'm pretty happy with that unit as a portable field recorder.  Both the Olympus and the Yamaha have line in and external mic inputs as well.  Both recorders record a number of file formats and can simply transfer your recordings to your computer for further editing.

 

Best,

kevin

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post #12 of 12
5/28/10 at 11:27pm

Try asking the people in this forum

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