Budget mics for recording vocals

[sunshiner]

Total noob here. I have just been offered to buy a Behringer C1 condenser mic, but after reading about it and watching some reviews it turns out it's not what they advertise it to be and supposedly isn't that good. What mic do you use? Is it on a budget side of things or some $100 000 Neumann? What mic would you recommend?

[Freddy V-C]

I mostly use an Audio Technica AT2020 for vocals, it seems to be a good “all-rounder� in terms of cheap large diaphragm condensers. I’ve had success using it for vocals, on guitar cabs, for drum overheads (I actually have two of these mics), as an ambient room mic, probably various other stuff I can’t think of. I’m not sure how much they’ll cost in Kazakhstan, but here in the UK they’re about £85, bargain!

[mickie08]

I am no expert at all ut I have one of these and seems to work well

Not sure on UK price.

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail ... lsrc=aw.ds

[dezb1]

SM58 - fuck an mic that wants batteries or spooky power.

[Freddy V-C]

SM58s are decent, but if you’re gonna go down that route then I’d suggest a Shure Beta 57 instead. All the best bits of the SM57 and the SM58, and more versatile than either of those, IMO.

[Josh]

agree on the beta 57, but I own a couple 58s and like those, also got this harp mic that sounds pretty cool doing vocals.

[plopswagon]

It doesn’t matter if you’re just gonna run it through a Rat pedal.

[Thom]

I use a Focusrite CM25mkiii that came as part of a bundle with the interface. Does a good job as far an I can tell.

[sunshiner]

I mostly use an Audio Technica AT2020 for vocals, it seems to be a good “all-rounder� in terms of cheap large diaphragm condensers. I’ve had success using it for vocals, on guitar cabs, for drum overheads (I actually have two of these mics), as an ambient room mic, probably various other stuff I can’t think of. I’m not sure how much they’ll cost in Kazakhstan, but here in the UK they’re about £85, bargain!

Yeah, AT2020 seems to be everyone's favourite mic on a budget. They are close to $200 around here, so a bit on a expensive side considering that our national currency is sort of toilet paper that tends to lose its value just because

[sunshiner]

I am no expert at all ut I have one of these and seems to work well

Not sure on UK price.

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail ... lsrc=aw.ds

I will look into it, a quick search showed that nothing is available locally, so I don't know how much it costs here yet

[sunshiner]

About Sure 57s and 58, they sell them locally, but for some dumb reason(*amber* ) I want a condenser mic. So I'll be probably dealing with ghosts and their powah

[sunshiner]

It doesn’t matter if you’re just gonna run it through a Rat pedal.

Bullshit, you can plug a typewriter in it and it'll still be rocknroll

[sunshiner]

I use a Focusrite CM25mkiii that came as part of a bundle with the interface. Does a good job as far an I can tell.

I've seen that bundle here but I already have a usb interface, so can't go that route

[plopswagon]

It doesn’t matter if you’re just gonna run it through a Rat pedal.

Bullshit, you can plug a typewriter in it and it'll still be rocknroll

[sunshiner]

I'm blasting an riffs in the hot sun. I plugged my typewriter into a Rat and I won

[Noirie.]

Ian Rubbish would be proud.

[paul_]

Not a recommendation per se, but I've been using a Behringer B-1 for like 12 years and it always sounds good for vocals. I've heard the quality is a bit hit-and-miss (like all Behringer/Bugera stuff) with some reviewers going as far as to say "think of it as a short-term rental rather than a purchase" (the MXL990 and AT2020 etc weren't yet on the market when it debuted which is likely the era those reviews hail from; it still costs over $100), but mine has held up well. The first one arrived with a broken shock-mount.

A cheap large diaphram condenser used with a popscreen will generally perform better for low-budget bedroom vocals than any dynamic mic, 58s included. SM58s, like SM57s, aren't actually even that good, they're just an industry standard that doesn't cost too much and is easy to find anywhere, and you can hammer nails with them. People don't use them because of classic mojo or whatever, the Beta 57 Freddy mentioned is more likely to impress in that regard.

Being scared of phantom power is a bit weird in this day and age. I'm pretty sure there's a 48v XLR jack somewhere on my toaster at this point? Certainly any interface or mixer worth a damn.

[sunshiner]

Ian Rubbish would be proud.

Hey Maggy Thatcher, you're all right!

[sunshiner]

Not a recommendation per se, but I've been using a Behringer B-1 for like 12 years and it always sounds good for vocals. I've heard the quality is a bit hit-and-miss (like all Behringer/Bugera stuff) with some reviewers going as far as to say "think of it as a short-term rental rather than a purchase" (the MXL990 and AT2020 etc weren't yet on the market when it debuted which is likely the era those reviews hail from; it still costs over $100), but mine has held up well. The first one arrived with a broken shock-mount.

A cheap large diaphram condenser used with a popscreen will generally perform better for low-budget bedroom vocals than any dynamic mic, 58s included. SM58s, like SM57s, aren't actually even that good, they're just an industry standard that doesn't cost too much and is easy to find anywhere, and you can hammer nails with them. People don't use them because of classic mojo or whatever, the Beta 57 Freddy mentioned is more likely to impress in that regard.

Being scared of phantom power is a bit weird in this day and age. I'm pretty sure there's a 48v XLR jack somewhere on my toaster at this point? Certainly any interface or mixer worth a damn.

Thanks, that's a great perspective on the available choices. Yeah, every interface nowadays has the spooky power. We have Behringer B1s in shops, looks like a viable option though they cost more than AT2020 here, at least right now

[paul_]

Yeah... I would probably go for the AT2020 or MXL 990 if I were replacing it tomorrow, but those weren't around back when I got mine... it was the cheapest solution on the market.