A good mic & what else...?

[Bliciouz]

Hey guys,

I think it's about time I got myself a good mic and stop recording myself with my phone.
I want to be able to deliver nicely sounding demo's and maybe record some vocals to put over excisting audio to post a few covers etc.
I've been reading about the RØDE - NT1-A which had some good review. It's also supposed to be able to record guitar play too.
I have a Yamaha LL6 acoustic guitar with no plug-in so I'll also have to use it for recording that. Aside from that I read that the choice of mic can also depend on your voice? Is that true?
My budget is up to €200 (which is aprox. $270) for a mic (cheaper is great too ).
I'd love to have some advice and your experiences with mics.

I noticed that I also need other kinds of programs and devices to record. What might those be?
Any help is much appreciated.

Grtz Bert

[andygabrys]

basic recording chain:

1. instrument or voice
2. mic
3. interface plugged into computer
4. computer running a DAW (digital audio workstation software)
5. speakers or headphones to hear what you are recording (speakers / monitors to listen back and headphones with monitors muted while recording so you do get a "contaminated" audio signal in the mic with not only the vocal but the rest of the track).

fill in the blanks of what you have and what you don't have. Then look for those things on the net.

there are some very inexpensive packages available (like the ones from Presonus or Focusrite) that often include the interface, the DAW software and sometimes a mic and headphones into one.

These days even very inexpensive products often work very well.

at first don't worry bout a special mic for guitar and a special mic for vocals. Get one that will cover both jobs. a large diaphragm condenser mic can do both well. And they are available for not much $ (like the Gauge ECM-87).

When you develop your ears and your recording skills, then later you can spend more on better pieces of gear.

my opinion of course

EDIT: just saw you also asked about micing an acoustic guitar vs. plugging it in.

My advice (being a guitar player and doing a lot of guitar recording) - always mic an acoustic guitar.

If you use the internal pickup, you will eventually hear that it has a brittle sound that is quite recognizable, and even if a listener can't articulate that the guitar has been recorded via the internal pickup, they hear it. And in general it leads to guitar recordings that are not "broadcast quality". Spend the extra time to mic it.

electric guitar is a different story. skilled use of amp simulator plugins can be very "real" sounding.

[GavinKMusic]

what Andy said above is great advise.

A decent stereo mic might be good to get. That could do vocals and guitar.

Interface to connect into. There are tons of options. Prices vary.

I started on Audacity and the recording quality is great. Audacity is free.

Tried lots of other DAW's. Most you can download and try out before purchasing.

Mixcraft was simple to use and worth a check. If on a Mac then Garage Band is very like Mixcraft. I see a lot of singer/songwriters using Mixcraft or Garage band.

I wanted more control and options so ended up on Cubase but there are all sorts of great DAW's out there. Whatever one you feel more comfortable on is the one for you.

I spent 1 month using Audacity, then went on to Cubase LE and upgraded from there. Now using Cubase artist 7.5

But check them all out.

[davekershaw]

Shure SM7B is worth considering. Used by a lot of top folk.

Got mine from a company in The States on ebay for about £250.

http://www.shure.com/americas/products/ ... microphone

[Kolstad]

What Andy said, and if your room is not acoustically treated, get a Shure SM58 and a Rode M3. Those will hold up for a long time, and even get duties when you've become pro. The Rode nt1a can be a harsh sounding mic, and hard to mix, imo. You may outgrow it fast when your ears get more sensitive. The Sm7b is a nice mic, but needs a lot of gain from a seperate preamp, so probably not for starters.

When you buy an external soundcard, there often comes a daw version with it. That'll be fine for starters. Check them out in advance and make sure it's something that appeals to you, so you will commit to learning it. That'll get you through the hard times.

Check out the tutorials at Groove 3 to kick start your learning. There can be quite a steep learning curve on daw software, so be patient. 6 months is nothing.

http://www.groove3.com/str/

For lots of great free tips, try follow Graham at The Recording Revolution http://therecordingrevolution.com/

[davekershaw]

The Sm7b is a nice mic, but needs a lot of gain from a seperate preamp, so probably not for starters.
/

That is true. I'd actually forgotten that was a problem I found when I first got the mic.
A+ on Andy's comments. He often gives some very informative advice.

[Bliciouz]

Thanks guys, really helpfull comments.
I'll definitly dig some deeper in the stuff you mentioned to get some more info on it.

Grtz Bert

[mojobone]

Recording acoustic guitar and vocal simultaneously is a bit of a different fish kettle; you either have to adjust your mic technique or get comfortable with a lot of bleed between the two. I agree that condenser mics can be problematic in untreated rooms; they tend to be grabby and pick up too much room, but if you move them in close, the proximity effect can ruin the spectral balance. Dynamic mics can be just the ticket, if you have fairly hot, clean preamps, or something like the Cloudlifter. A pair of ribbon mics can be very useful, since the figure-eight polar pattern lets you point the null of each mic at what you don't want it to pick up, and close ribbons can sound great on both guitar and vocal. Some vintage-style ribbons have a rather weak output, modern active ribbons are a little easier to work with, if a tad more spendy.

[andygabrys]

Recording acoustic guitar and vocal simultaneously is a bit of a different fish kettle; you either have to adjust your mic technique or get comfortable with a lot of bleed between the two. I agree that condenser mics can be problematic in untreated rooms; they tend to be grabby and pick up too much room, but if you move them in close, the proximity effect can ruin the spectral balance. Dynamic mics can be just the ticket, if you have fairly hot, clean preamps, or something like the Cloudlifter. A pair of ribbon mics can be very useful, since the figure-eight polar pattern lets you point the null of each mic at what you don't want it to pick up, and close ribbons can sound great on both guitar and vocal. Some vintage-style ribbons have a rather weak output, modern active ribbons are a little easier to work with, if a tad more spendy.

i remember this was an interesting video, on the same topic that mojo was speaking of (regarding using the great rejection available on the figure 8 patterns on ribbons)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_DT_q7K-WI

and the whole series:

http://www.uaudio.com/blog/fab-dupont-s ... -gearfest/