ElGenius1 Posted July 18, 2001 Share Posted July 18, 2001 GOOD evening, i need to know what type of microphone i should buy....i'm a novice starting out in this recording tip.....until now, i've used one of those shi*ty microphones that come with an Aiwa Stereo System (to karaoke sing i guess).....but i dont really like the sound.....the microphone was a Sanyo HM-55 (does anyone know about this type of mic? ) but i'm looking to buy a good microphone now that will deliver a good sound....i dont wanna spend a lot of money on one though....a good, decent mic that records well will do the trick...... does anyone have any suggestions for types of microphones i should use? (brand name and model) Also, i'm recording rap mostly......so all i need to do is capture the vocals...no instruments... Dr Dre uses a Sony C800G.....do u know if this mic is good? OR what do you suggest is good? i'd appreciate anyone's professional help....thanks "Los niños escuchan el 'rap'...que les daña el cerebro" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 18, 2001 Share Posted July 18, 2001 I'd suggest a Shure SM-57. It's good for vocals, electric guitar, drums... pretty much anything. You can get them for under $80 most places. It's a good mic for learning the importance of mic placement, too. -Matt M Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olhhyperback.com Posted July 18, 2001 Share Posted July 18, 2001 I'd buy TWO SM-57s so that I can easily compare two different positions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfjunkie Posted July 18, 2001 Share Posted July 18, 2001 sm-57s are the best, definitely most value for $$. now seriously, no rapper in history has ever used that mic. a few dollars more is the shure sm-58, a good handheld vocal mic. it's not a lot better than the 57, but hand any singer or mc one of each they'll all take the 58, because it looks better. seriously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElGenius1 Posted July 18, 2001 Author Share Posted July 18, 2001 yo everyone thanks a lot for your help...... yeah some other dude i met recommended that shure sm-57..... so it must be pretty good, but damn, 80 bucks seems a little steep.... right now i'm recording in my bedroom, but nonetheless, i'm trying to make my *ish* as professional as possible.....maybe u recommend something a little less expensive....(unless i can steal one of them mics from my school....hmmmm....) (yo seriously, Dre said in this month's issue of EQ magazine that he uses that sony mic to record...unless he lied....) "Los niños escuchan el 'rap'...que les daña el cerebro" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RogerSirMusicStudio.com Posted July 18, 2001 Share Posted July 18, 2001 Originally posted by ElGenius1: GOOD evening, i need to know what type of microphone i should buy....i'm a novice starting out in this recording tip.....until now, i've used one of those shi*ty microphones that come with an Aiwa Stereo System (to karaoke sing i guess).....but i dont really like the sound.....the microphone was a Sanyo HM-55 (does anyone know about this type of mic? ) but i'm looking to buy a good microphone now that will deliver a good sound....i dont wanna spend a lot of money on one though....a good, decent mic that records well will do the trick...... does anyone have any suggestions for types of microphones i should use? (brand name and model) Also, i'm recording rap mostly......so all i need to do is capture the vocals...no instruments... Dr Dre uses a Sony C800G.....do u know if this mic is good? OR what do you suggest is good? i'd appreciate anyone's professional help....thanks Suggest you go to a store without your wallet and check out some of the mics. Just do a few today, a few more tomorrow, etc. Your brain can start making all mics sound the same after a short period of time. Plus, I don't know if you've noticed, but in most live performances I've seen, these guys use SM58 shure mics, but they hold the things right up on the screen, effectively changing the characteristics from cardioid to omni, so you can't go by what you see. Most studio sessions I've seen we're talking about a U87 with popfilter, so there's not much different going on than there is in any other type of musical genre as pertains to recording. Depending on just how much money you've got in your budget, you might want to start with an AT 4050. With a 10 dB pad and selectable patterns (cardioid, figure of 8 and omni) you'll have some alternatives. Do not buy a mic because someone else likes theirs. Buy one that YOU like. ------------------ Roger W. Norman Roger@SirMusicStudio.com 10 Hamilton Avenue Silver Spring, MD 20901-3411 301-585-4681 To see the Production Notes on the FATCo Compilation CD http://www.fatcompilation.com/ To purchase a FATCo Compilation CD send order, $10 per CD set check and return address to: Roger W. Norman 10 Hamilton Avenue Silver Spring, MD 20901-3411 301-585-4681 Roger@SirMusicStudio.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RogerSirMusicStudio.com Posted July 18, 2001 Share Posted July 18, 2001 Originally posted by ElGenius1: yo everyone thanks a lot for your help...... yeah some other dude i met recommended that shure sm-57..... so it must be pretty good, but damn, 80 bucks seems a little steep.... right now i'm recording in my bedroom, but nonetheless, i'm trying to make my *ish* as professional as possible.....maybe u recommend something a little less expensive....(unless i can steal one of them mics from my school....hmmmm....) (yo seriously, Dre said in this month's issue of EQ magazine that he uses that sony mic to record...unless he lied....) Well, if 80 bucks is steep, ignore my last post, and don't even dream about any mics you may read about or see the big guys use. Don't get me wrong, everybody has to start somewhere, but when it comes to buying and getting opinions, you're best bet is to start by telling us what your budget is. If I missed that than sorry for any misinformation. ------------------ Roger W. Norman Roger@SirMusicStudio.com 10 Hamilton Avenue Silver Spring, MD 20901-3411 301-585-4681 To see the Production Notes on the FATCo Compilation CD http://www.fatcompilation.com/ To purchase a FATCo Compilation CD send order, $10 per CD set check and return address to: Roger W. Norman 10 Hamilton Avenue Silver Spring, MD 20901-3411 301-585-4681 Roger@SirMusicStudio.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rumpelstiltskin. Posted July 18, 2001 Share Posted July 18, 2001 Originally posted by ElGenius1: so it must be pretty good, but damn, 80 bucks seems a little steep.... ...and then he realizes that he will be poor for the rest of his life because he loves recording... seriously, $80 is pretty well the cheapest you'll go for a mic worth owning. you could get an SM57 or SM58 for $40 or $50 if you buy used. especially since you're starting out, you don't need anything else. what are you using to record? it sounds like you're using a cassette player, rapping over a beat? that is pretty important to know, too. because i like people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
videoeditor1 Posted July 18, 2001 Share Posted July 18, 2001 El G, try to avaoid posting the same question across forums. It's easier to post on one forum, then create a link pointing to the question... http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/Forum2/HTML/002325.html Best of luck on the mic selection... Drew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emile Posted July 18, 2001 Share Posted July 18, 2001 Well I dunno if they still make it but Radio-Shack has a mexican made Shure licensed pseudo 58 that's about half the price of the real thing. It's pretty decent for the price and might just do you good. It also has a switch which is handy in feedbackish situation. Model 33-984d Mexico Emile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notape_dup1 Posted July 18, 2001 Share Posted July 18, 2001 Originally posted by ElGenius1: so it must be pretty good, but damn, 80 bucks seems a little steep.... but it's worth it....IMO. I would avoid a used one though, I bought a used SM57 once and the damn thing crapped out within the month I bought it and besides, god only knows what that mic went through before I bought it. You may have better luck with a used mic than I had, it's a roll of the dice if you choose to take the chance. The one I bought new is still working.(after three years) Good luck, -nt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElGenius1 Posted July 19, 2001 Author Share Posted July 19, 2001 "...and then he realizes that he will be poor for the rest of his life because he loves recording..." lol....that line made me laugh.. "what are you using to record? it sounds like you're using a cassette player, rapping over a beat? " I'm recording right in soundforge, so everything is digital (skipped that whole casette player step), and while rapping, i listen to the beat on some headphones, so that i rhyme with the flow and only my vocals get recorded...then the vocals and instrumental get mixed in soundforge....etc... well for now, i'm looking for maybe some cheap mic that will 'do the trick'...like i said, i'm recording in my bedroom....yet tryin to make it as professional as i can....maybe some mic around 25 bucks...although you'll all probably mock that.... thanks for the help, and i appreciate anyones suggestions on this too... "Los niños escuchan el 'rap'...que les daña el cerebro" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElGenius1 Posted July 19, 2001 Author Share Posted July 19, 2001 double post, sorry. This message has been edited by ElGenius1 on 10-02-2001 at 12:18 PM "Los niños escuchan el 'rap'...que les daña el cerebro" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElGenius1 Posted July 19, 2001 Author Share Posted July 19, 2001 "Getting into pro audio can be as costly as anything you can imagine." yeah that's true....and you've just made me realize that....i guess i'll look into saving up a few bucks for that shure sm-57... thanks again for everyone's help. This message has been edited by ElGenius1 on 10-02-2001 at 12:17 PM "Los niños escuchan el 'rap'...que les daña el cerebro" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtrmac Posted July 19, 2001 Share Posted July 19, 2001 One thing to consider is that a Shure SM-57 or SM-58 is low impedence balanced with an XLR connector. This will probably not plug directly into your computer without a transformer adaptor. Shure makes these but they also make some high impedence mics which will plug directly into a computer soundcard with the right cable of course. Here's a link to one which is a lot cheaper than a 57 or 58 and the high impedence model will work fine. http://www.shure.com/12a.html ------------------ Mac Bowne G-Clef Acoustics Ltd. Osaka, Japan My Music: www.javamusic.com/freedomland Mac Bowne G-Clef Acoustics Ltd. Osaka, Japan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KBP Posted July 19, 2001 Share Posted July 19, 2001 I must say kudos to all you guys being so helpful. I keep reading it waiting for someone to really trash this guy. Sorry it just seems how these boards work sometimes. My first setup was a little (LITTLE) Boss drum machine, a thing called a rock -n- play (was designed to play you're bass along side of pre recorded music) a guitar and bass and a borrowed 58 mic w/ the 1/4 inch adaptor and a junker sanyo cassette player. What I would do is come up with the beats on the Boss. Record that to the sanyo cassette player, then take that cassette out and put it in the rock -n- play. Put a blank cassette in the sanyo and record the bass parts through the rock -n- play with the drum machine recording down to the sanyo. So on and so on. The hiss was wonderfull. I actually thought those recordings sounded as good as the stuff on the radio. Now about $60,000 dollars and 10 years later I'm still at it. Lots of loans and girlfreind fights, Hell my ex wife actually was jelouse of my little home studio. Oh well, what else are we here to do? Hey man seriously, get the 58 or 57. It's one of those purchases that will be with you forever. The best of the best still sometimes use these mics. But for the best for the cheapest. Pick up a 58, a mic cable, a used mackie mixer (for monitoring and pres)and some 1/8th inch adaptors. you could do this for under $300. While you're at it get a mic stand, a hanger, a package of pantyhose and some duct tape. Set the mic up on the stand and take the hanger and undo it so it's one long piece of metal. at one end of it make a 6" hoop and secure it back around itself. Wrap the panty hose around the hoop and mount it with the duct tape to the mic stand so that the panty hose hoop thing is in front of the mic. about 2 to 3 inches away. This will improve you're vocals by not holding the mic causing rumble and will protect the mic from plosives or pops that happen when the air from you're mouth hits the diaphram too hard. GOOD LUCK KBOY PS sorry about the bad english Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rumpelstiltskin. Posted July 19, 2001 Share Posted July 19, 2001 sounds like your setup is pretty tight, but you definitely need to save up some cash and start doing things right. i don't know that you necessarily need a mic stand, but you will need ways to get a microphone signal into your computer, and they're not really that cheap. you'll have to spend about $120 to get a mic and the proper stuff. what you need: SM57 or SM58 microphonedecent microphone cable, 10 or 15 feetXLR to 1/4" impedance transformer1/4" to 1/8" mini plug adapter if you want to spend more money and make your life easier, instead of getting the XLR to 1/4" impedance transformer, buy a midiman audio buddy. it's a two channel mic preamp that will make your recordings sound much better and make recording a little easier. you can probably find that for $80 or $90. it gets pretty steep pretty quickly, i know, but it sounds like you have a great foundation and a lot of ambition, so i really think it's worth saving money for a while and getting started right. good luck. because i like people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott from MA Posted July 19, 2001 Share Posted July 19, 2001 Originally posted by KBP: I keep reading it waiting for someone to really trash this guy. We don't trash new guys... we wait until you've been around for a while, then the beatings begin! http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif Originally posted by KBP: What I would do is come up with the beats on the Boss. Record that to the sanyo cassette player, then take that cassette out and put it in the rock -n- play. Put a blank cassette in the sanyo and record the bass parts through the rock -n- play with the drum machine recording down to the sanyo. So on and so on. Yep... my earliest "multitrack" recordings were done with 2 tape recorders. I would record to one, then play it back and play along with it while recording on the other. Considering I was 8 or 9 years old, I think it was pretty clever. ElG... I know it may seem like a lot of money right now, but (especially for vocals) a good mic is possibly the most important thing you can have for recording. I've heard things recorded with a good mic and a cassette 4-track, and they sounded great. On the other hand, I've heard stuff recorded with a digital recorder, but they sounded terrible because the person used a $50 mic. In the long run, the extra money will pay off. Scott (just another cantankerous bastard) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott from MA Posted July 19, 2001 Share Posted July 19, 2001 Oh.. forgot to mention... even though it's a few more bucks, I would go with the SM-58 over the 57 since you are only using it for vocals. Scott (just another cantankerous bastard) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hippie Posted July 19, 2001 Share Posted July 19, 2001 EL, quit now while your still ahead! this will turn into an undying habit, that will consume your life, leave you penniless, cold & alone. http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/wink.gif In two days, it won't matter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KBP Posted July 20, 2001 Share Posted July 20, 2001 Originally posted by Hippie: EL, quit now while your still ahead! this will turn into an undying habit, that will consume your life, leave you penniless, cold & alone. http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/wink.gif I second it. But ah, the satisfaction. KBP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curve Dominant Posted July 20, 2001 Share Posted July 20, 2001 I'll chime in for the SM57, even though I'm currently switching over to a Joe Meek. I've been using the 57 for vocals for years now, and nobody's ever said, "Damn, you need a new mic," on the contrary, they say, "Damn, you got that sound with a 57??!!!" It's the "magic mic," all around, but for vocals it tends to sound kinda British, which may or may not work for you depending on the kind of music you're doing. Watch out for the midrange when you EQ it going in - avoid getting a "nasal" sound that can occur if you mic close. $80 is not steep for a mic, so re-orient your economic outlook on this racket, as others have suggested as well - they're right. And get a Steadman Proscreen instead of the "pantyhose" style pop screens. Just my $0.02US. E Eric Vincent (ASCAP) www.curvedominant.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfjunkie Posted July 20, 2001 Share Posted July 20, 2001 Meek makes mics? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curve Dominant Posted July 20, 2001 Share Posted July 20, 2001 Meek makes mics? No, actually, Joe Meek passed away some time ago, so he's not making much of anything these days. A local studio is lending me, with the option to buy at a redic-low price, a Chinese built condensor mic that says "Joe Meek" on it. I don't know if I'll actually be switching to it, but I'll update you if I think it's something to look into. It should sound "different" than the SM57, but "better?" - I'll let you know. To quote George Burnett of Presentation Services, "I'm keeping my expectations low, and still, I'm disappointed." A KSM32 is more in order, but the dot-com bubble busted, and...uh...well, the SM57 is a great mic! http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/biggrin.gifhttp://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/biggrin.gifhttp://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/biggrin.gif E Eric Vincent (ASCAP) www.curvedominant.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chessparov Posted July 20, 2001 Share Posted July 20, 2001 Hey Curve, I'll "see" that Joe Meek mike and "raise" you a Studio Projects C1! Seriously, next week I'm checking one out and probably buying it (approx. $200+tax). Have you guys seen the reviews at prorec and such? Rip has an interesting article also about the "ethics" of Chinese mikes. Of course for someone on a tight budget, they'd also have to add $ for some kind of phantom power supply.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curve Dominant Posted July 20, 2001 Share Posted July 20, 2001 Rip has an interesting article also about the "ethics" of Chinese mikes. Chessparov, could you post a link to that article? Sounds interesting. I got the JM47 "Meekrophone" at the crib today - never used, donated by my bud. It's nice, and a killer carrying case as well. I have to get an adapter for the shockmount before I can try it out, but I'll post back when I've cut some tracks with it for a report. E Eric Vincent (ASCAP) www.curvedominant.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfjunkie Posted July 20, 2001 Share Posted July 20, 2001 it 'sounds' good http://joemeek.com/reviewjm47.html let us know how you like it- but start a new topic. hmmm....47..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chessparov Posted July 21, 2001 Share Posted July 21, 2001 Curve, Rip's article at www.prorec.com is titled "The Problem With China". ElGenius, isn't this why God created CREDIT CARDS! (to buy mikes of course) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curve Dominant Posted July 21, 2001 Share Posted July 21, 2001 wager47 posts: it 'sounds' good http://joemeek.com/reviewjm47.html let us know how you like it- but start a new topic. hmmm....47..... Wager, thanks for that link, good lookin' out my bro. I'm psyched now, even though I can't test the mic until I get an adapter for the shockmount, it seems I got a good deal (it was free!!!). When I've cut some vocal tracks with it next week, I'll post a thread called "Meekrophone Report," and give you the low-down. posted by chessparov: Curve, Rip's article at www.prorec.com is titled "The Problem With China". Absolutely fascinating reading, and I encourage EVERYONE to devour this article. It's funny, one of my "other sides" is that I'm a kind of amateur "foreign policy wonk," and this type of reading is the stuff I love. The following I found striking: China is a communist country. Although there have been advances in China's willingness to trade with the West, and to allow some privatization of industry, practically all Chinese businesses are still essentially state-owned and operated. For fifty years, the Chinese government participated in the Cold War, denying Western countries the right to sell their products inside China, as we likewise refused to allow Chinese products into our countries. Instead of allowing Western microphones to be sold inside China, the government sponsored a state facility which systematically cloned the best technology that Germany and America had to offer. What would be considered unscrupulous patent violations in our economy were justified political decisions made on the part of the Chinese government. It is difficult if not impossible to apply Western notions of free-trade ethics to this situation. They just don't apply in the conventional sense. I don't wish to start a political debate, but as someone who is basically "pro-globalization," I have no problem sleeping at night knowing that the mic I'm tracking my vocals with was made in China; on the contrary, I have Chinese friends who are vacationing in the Chinese mainland as we speak, from whom I get periodic emails from describing their adventures, and I actually feel kind of good about using the Meekrophone now. You will specifically not ever see me shedding any tears for Neumann - for decades they adapted modifications made by Stephan Paul, without ever giving him credit or compensation for those innovations. I'm looking at the Meek right now in it's aluminum travel case, and it DOES look quite sweet. You can see the diaphragm gleaming from behind the black metal grille, and it feels solid and heavy and sturdy and confident, and looks really sleek and very black. The shockmount is indeed "pro," very solid and very black. I'm really psyched about using this mic. Thanks for your input, guys. E Eric Vincent (ASCAP) www.curvedominant.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
20to20 Posted July 21, 2001 Share Posted July 21, 2001 Yo, ElG1... Dr.Dre's favorite vocal mic: the Sony C800G goes for about $6000.00 new... http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/eek.gif But I bet he still probably uses SM57's for other things... http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/wink.gif Nickelbob 20to20soundesign Bob Phillips 20to20soundesign Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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