Microphone for quiet instruments

[allends]

Hello Gear Gurus,I'm looking to purchase a budget microphone for $600 or less that would have some unique specs for my situation. I'm presently recording my sitar - a rather quiet instrument - in a home studio with a relatively quite PC that sits only about 4-5 feet from the mic. I know, the room setup isn't ideal but that's what I've got to work with.My goal is to choose a decent condenser mic with low self noise that will focus on the instrument and reject as much room noise as possible. With my present omni-directional dynamic mic I'm getting low gain from the instrument and can hear the PC hardrive in the mix. It wouldn't take much to improve this situation but since I'm shopping I'm asking for any advice I can get.Feel free to jump in and offer any advice on mic purchasing even if you don't have the slightest idea how to mic a sitar - the topic is a bit out there .Here's a quick list of mics that caught my novice eye:AKG C 1000 SAKG C 451 BRode NT1-AThanks,-Allen

[sgs4u]

I've been using a Rode NT-2 for a few years, but there are so many great mics to choose from now, in that price range. Hell, you could get a box of 5 decent mics for that price now. Try a few different mics out from a retailer, then make your choice.

[ernstinen]

I use a small diaphragm condenser with a cardioid shotgun capsule pointed 180 degrees from the computer. It's a vintage Sennheiser K2-U which I love. I'm sure there are more current mics that would fill the bill.Ern

[zircon]

Keep in mind if you're going to be recording quiet stuff, noise may be an issue... make sure the other items in your recording chain are up to spec with your mic!

[nickbatzdorf]

I don't know if the Oktava MK019 (or is it MC019?) is still around, but they were ridiculously cheap when I got mine and sound amazingly good. If not, what Ern says is good advice: a small-diaphragm condenser would do well for general instrument miking.Try and use a mic preamp that has a lot of gain, like 60dB. And put that damn computer on the floor under your desk, for heaven's sake! Just that will make a huge difference.

[53mph]

Hi Allen,The AKG C 1000 S is a pretty good alrounder. It takes a battery so you don't need preamp and it's got some kind of internal trickery that they call a Polar Pattern Converter which converts the mic from Cardoid to Hypercardoid, blocking out sourrounding noise, which could be just what you're looking for.I picked mine up on ebay pretty cheaply and have used it for recording everything from instruments to donkeys to ambient street noise.I haven't recorded a sitar but I have recorded violins, ukelelees and very quiet accoustic guitars. It seems to do the job for me.....though I would say that sorting out the noise from your PC would probably make your life easier. Have you thought about a containment box?

[sgs4u]

Quote:I've been using a Rode NT-2 for a few years, but there are so many great mics to choose from now, in that price range. Hell, you could get a box of 5 decent mics for that price now. Try a few different mics out from a retailer, then make your choice. what i forgot to say is - get a small condenser, point it exactly the opposite direction away from your computer, and put a blanket over your computer, while you record. Remove blanket when recording is complete. Don't forget to drink lots of red wine whilst recording. lol

[jeffe]

I've got a couple of C1000'sI'm pretty happy with them. They can be used as Phantom or condenser, and have a phase filter and a filter to narrow the response angle. Great clean sound.If the Mic lead is long enough you can place it in a quiet area, then give yourself a good head start to get to it.The Mic lead is also very important. Make sure you get top quality shielded cable. You get a lot of EMF from crap quality wiring. Dump that hiss.

[hummingbird]

I use Shure SM57 for recording instruments. It doesn't pick up a lot of extraneous noise and it's a good working man's mic, at about $90.H

[sgs4u]

Quote:You also could get a Neumann KM 184... but my choice for your sitar is the C 451 Bgunter the Neuman was what I meant to reccomend. (hic)