I'm inching ever closer to being ready to bring in some new gear and have been wondering if purchasing yet another mic will be money well spent. If anyone out there has any suggestions they would be greatly appreciated. Particularly if you have oodles of experience recording female vox. I've got the mics I need for live performance but I'm still on the hunt for that holy grail recording mic.
I still have my AKG perception 100 I use occasionally. I don't record vocals or other sounds too often. 100 bucks, at least in a store. Don't know about online, it does require phantom power. So I would get a tube amplifier of some sort as well. I have a Studio V3 Valve amp to power mines.
I agree with GramoChopin . I have an AKG Perception 200(now sold as Perception 220) and paid about $160 at Guitar Center a few years ago. Now on sale for $149, lists for $350. Exceptional mic for a reasonable price. Comes with shock mount and rugged case.
How do we feel about ribbon mics vs condenser mics? I was reading an interview with the guy who tracked and mixed down Paramore's most recent album and he had lots of good things to say about capturing Haley's vox with a ribbon mic which piqued my interest since she and I seem to traverse a similar range.
I have never used a ribbon mic but I have heard that they can have a silky smooth sound to them. I believe they are just as fragile as condenser mic if not more so. I would suggest going to somewhere like Guitar Center that has a lot of mics on display and see if they will let you record yourself with the mics that you are interested in to see what you like the best. Don't know if they will but its worth a try.
I use the blue baby bottle cardioid condenser microphone roughly $400 good for female vocals as far as gentle singing no punk rock or screaming into it, better for that would be the Shure SM7B Cardioid Dynamic Microphone which is roughly $350.
I'm not sure if the SM7B is good with instruments or not but the blue baby is good for acoustic guitar and trumpet as for as I have tested.
The baby bottle requires phantom power and SM7B does not.
The cheaper the mic the more mistakes in your vocals the microphone will cover... in this statement I'm being very general. The more expensive you go the more it will be specified towards a specific vocal. Listening to your tracks you have on your page the SM7B would work well for your style but definitely see if you can get your hands on the other microphones they are talking about before buying anything. Test out what you can you can find someone who will let you. I'm not sure your price range.
I'm inching ever closer to being ready to bring in some new gear and have been wondering if purchasing yet another mic will be money well spent. If anyone out there has any suggestions they would be greatly appreciated. Particularly if you have oodles of experience recording female vox. I've got the mics I need for live performance but I'm still on the hunt for that holy grail recording mic.
Any USB mic by AudioTechnica works wonders for me.
I still have my AKG perception 100 I use occasionally. I don't record vocals or other sounds too often. 100 bucks, at least in a store. Don't know about online, it does require phantom power. So I would get a tube amplifier of some sort as well. I have a Studio V3 Valve amp to power mines.
I agree with GramoChopin . I have an AKG Perception 200(now sold as Perception 220) and paid about $160 at Guitar Center a few years ago. Now on sale for $149, lists for $350. Exceptional mic for a reasonable price. Comes with shock mount and rugged case.
http://www.guitarcenter.com/AKG-Perception-220-Condenser-Microphone-104842315-i1391481.gc
I really like the Rode N1TA, comes with a shock mount and windscreen. It sounds great on everything from vocals to instruments. http://www.amazon.com/Rode-NT1A-Anniversary-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B002QAUOKS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1417445661&sr=8-1&keywords=rode+nt1a
Also the guy from The Recording Revolution has done a review on it on youtube if you want to check out his input. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33yCeYiqdQc
How do we feel about ribbon mics vs condenser mics? I was reading an interview with the guy who tracked and mixed down Paramore's most recent album and he had lots of good things to say about capturing Haley's vox with a ribbon mic which piqued my interest since she and I seem to traverse a similar range.
I have never used a ribbon mic but I have heard that they can have a silky smooth sound to them. I believe they are just as fragile as condenser mic if not more so. I would suggest going to somewhere like Guitar Center that has a lot of mics on display and see if they will let you record yourself with the mics that you are interested in to see what you like the best. Don't know if they will but its worth a try.
I use the blue baby bottle cardioid condenser microphone
roughly $400 good for female vocals as far as gentle singing no punk rock or screaming into it, better for that would be the Shure SM7B Cardioid Dynamic Microphone which is roughly $350.
I'm not sure if the SM7B is good with instruments or not but the blue baby is good for acoustic guitar and trumpet as for as I have tested.
The baby bottle requires phantom power and SM7B does not.
The cheaper the mic the more mistakes in your vocals the microphone will cover... in this statement I'm being very general. The more expensive you go the more it will be specified towards a specific vocal. Listening to your tracks you have on your page the SM7B would work well for your style but definitely see if you can get your hands on the other microphones they are talking about before buying anything. Test out what you can you can find someone who will let you. I'm not sure your price range.