Microphone Recommendations

Gear
#1

Hi everybody,

2022 has been a fun year guitar wise. I started teaching and I have a little more pocket money to spend on music. My resolution for 2023 is to write and record much more frequently. I’ve been putting it off because I haven’t had much time to learn how to do it all and because there are a few last pieces I need.

I should be mostly set, I have interfaces, a DAW and a nice set of headphones and I have S-Gear for recording electric guitar parts. I will be picking up EZ Drummer soon. We also have a keyboard with MIDI out which should work for most other parts.

I don’t have a good microphone for recording acoustic guitar parts or vocal parts. I’ve been looking at the Rode NT1-A, which I think should be good enough for my purposes, however I’m wondering if I should go for the NT1 instead (a little more expensive) or maybe something else. Down the line I’d also be interested in getting a lapel microphone for recording guitar lessons and a matched pair for recording stereo, so I’d also appreciate recommendations for these also.

If it helps, my interfaces are a Scarlett 18i8 (1st Gen) and a Scarlett Solo (2nd Gen).

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#2

I would avoid the nt1A, it’s very bright, the highs are exaggerated. I had one and sold it. I’ve not tried the NT1 but I’ve been told it’s far better.

I bought a shure sm7b for vocals and acoustic guitar and suits me. As it’s dynamic, it won’t pick up too much dodgy room sound, or seagulls, in my case… I’d recommend a small preamp with it though to boost the signal as it’s very low output and you don’t want to have to crank your interface preamp. Those little preamps are pretty cheap though.

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#3

That’s what I use for my vocals. It was recommended to me by Misha Mansoor (WAY back in the days when Periphery was just getting their name out there) because as @jptk mentions, it won’t pick up much of your room sound. Which you probably don’t want as a home recording artist :slight_smile:

The preamp Misha told me to buy was the Great River…which is not cheap, but it’s known to pair well with the Shure Sm7b. I got good results with it
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ME1NV--great-river-me-1nv

I just did as I was told. You could probably get something much cheaper, as jptk says.

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#4

I have this one that’s essentially an SM7b with a built in pre that uses phantom power:

It’s been great!

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#5

That looks pretty cool! Michael Jackson may not have used that one, BUT technology tends to improve over the years :slight_smile: I’ll have to check around for some A/B comparisons on the sm7b

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#6

Thanks for the warning.

The SM7B looks good, but it’s significantly more expensive than the NT1-A, especially if I need to get a preamp too. My 18i8 has built-in mic preamps, should I chance getting a microphone without one first and see if I can get by without the external preamp? For the price of the SM7B and an external preamp I could get the DynaCaster @Pepepicks66 has recommended and the NT1, and I’d have dynamic and condenser options.

I’m really a total newb when it comes to recording gear. I just never really had the time to learn all of it, or the money to get all the gear I needed together.

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#7

Most people that that use an SM7b need additional gain than what their interface pres can provide (unless the source is really REALLY loud), I’m not sure if there’s an interface with enough gain in production that has pres that hot.

Cursory search of your interface says it’s “up to 60 db of gain”, which IMO is not enough. My interface has 60 db and it needs more.

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#8

Off-topic, but pre-fame Periphery was my favorite. I think I first heard them around 2006 or so, when Casey and Travis were still in the band. I still have a bunch of their old demos on an old hard drive and silly songs like I Lost My Lunch in My Pants.

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#9

This is definitely out of budget for a while!

#10

I use this one from thomann Thomann FetAmp – Thomann Ireland

It’s pretty cheap and I’ve had no issues or complaints with it really.

If the sm7b is a little out of budget at the moment, you could try the NT1 or the alternative @Pepepicks66 suggested.

You don’t need to spend crazy money. Many great vocals were recorded with an SM58 :smiley:

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#11

I read that as “Joe needs to book some lessons with Tom” :slight_smile:

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#12

Is this a good deal or a good microphone?

The 15 watt tube amp I got off here was great for the price.

https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=625879

#13

To follow on from this without making another thread, any recommendations on monitors? At the moment I’m playing through headphones. Thanks everybody.

#14

You should’ve mentioned a price range :slight_smile:

I have some Adam A7x that I’m really happy with. Before upgrading I had Yamaha monitors. The Yamaha HS series (e.g. HS7) are generally highly regarded so that would be my second choice.

#15

I’d like a fairly small pair because of space concerns, and I don’t need a lot of power. If possible I’d like to keep price below €500 for the pair.

EDIT: HS7s are within budget, but I think they might be a little big for my purposes. The HS5s might fit my needs a little better.

#16

As far as monitors, I think I’m decided on the Yamaha HS5s. They’re available individually or as a “matched pair,” which is about €50 more expensive. Any reason to get the pair or better to save the money and buy them as individuals?

#17

You might want to look into buying used. Monitors have a very long life time, and since they’re just sitting on someone’s desk they’ll usually be in mint condition.

edit: the depreciation after buying something used is also ~0, which lowers the barrier to trading up / getting something else if whatever you chose didn’t suit your needs 100%.

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#18

I had to get some to play my synths through and my behringer deepmind 12 has stereo effects so i wanted to utilize this function. i got the class ab monitors off monoprice.

#19

What will you use the monitors for?

#20

Different things I suppose. Learning how to record and mix, playing virtual instruments with a MIDI keyboard controller, and so I don’t always need to wear headphones while playing through S-Gear.