Best Mics for Vocals

Don O said:
So I was doing some homework on large diaphragm condenser mics a few weeks ago and ran across a good YouTube video. What got my interest was the guy saying that you should not leave condenser mics out in a room or studio for extended periods of time. They should be stored in their case with a bag of fresh (or re-baked) desiccant. Does anyone know if this is true or is this guy way anal about his mics? I’m buying some nice condenser mics and would like to know if I need to give them special attention.
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Yep...I case mine sometimes...just because the circuitry is not functioning/working, doesn’t mean the diaphragm isn’t working when exposed to high SPL. Ribbon mic’s should be stored vertically, as well, to prevent “sag”.
 
DBi5 said:
After reading this thread a quick note re: applying a High Pass Filter to a guitar for live or home studio recording and mixing.

The frequency for the open 6th string in standard tuning (E2) is 82.4 Hz.
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Excellent point! Don’t forget there can be enhanced low frequency content due to microphone proximity effect.(room/stand etc rumble)
:cheers:
 
In my humble opinion, there are a lot of really good microphones on the market.
Most of them are great.

The real trick is knowing how to interact with and use a certain mic.

If you only have a cheap mic, it can still be great if you know and learn how to use it....trial and error.

That being said I don't use condenser or ribbon mics very well. I have a few, but they don't work well with MY voice and projection..
I'm accustomed to the SM58 and a dynamic ball mics give me the most consistent performance.

If I could only have 1 mic, or recommend a single vocal mic, it would also be the SM58 (with a switch)

My .02 cents worth.
 
Yargnad said:
I use both high and low pass filters on almost every channel across the board. There are plenty of inaudible frequencies outside of the human hearing range that contribute to the overall noise floor in a recording. Obviously muting all unused channels helps, but also cutting out ultra low frequencies and ultra high frequencies on everything cleans up a recording pretty good right off the bat, especially when you're using proximity effect with microphones and capturing more of the room sound.
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Totally agreed. My best quality recordings have been a result of the appropriate use of high and low pass filtering, and gating/editing silent passages appropriately.
To the point that I’ve gone in and edited tom mic bleed manually...etc.
 
Yargnad said:
I used to get that hardcore into editing in the digital realm, but since I've been doing mostly analog based recordings recently, I'm kind of hung up on sidechaining a gated compressor and letting that do the dirty work for me.
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I can totally see that... I was hardcore into drum recording, and could never get satisfactory results from gating alone on individually mic’d toms...at least not with my crap old setup. Digital editing was a much better solution for my old rig. Running 6 tom mic’s, and 2 snare, I didn’t have the hardware to cope.
 
Robert Herndon said:
Oh....and I use the SM-58S personally with the on/off switch.
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Well,
SM58 is a good choice for live stage vocals, because it rejects background noises.

But not the greatest for studio recording.
Studio vocal mics are much more expensive if you want the good ones.
Those type high performance vocal mics cost 10X more than a SM58.

In other words: you should own
A. at least one Neumann, preferably a tube mic.
B. An Electrovoice RE-20
C. A Sennheiser mic, 421 etc...
D. A PZM (pressure zone microphone)
 
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Cadorman said:
I was going to get a 58, but after everyone told me the 57 was only so so for guitar I figured I should get a consensus. Now if I'm going to start swinging it like a lasso I will get a 58 for sure.
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This is the first time I see someone say the 57 is not great for amp mic'ing.

My experience is: can't go wrong with SM58 for vocals, SM57 for amps, though the 57 can be great for both uses.
 
Yargnad said:
It's not that it isnt great, but it's one dimensional on guitars. It will always sound the same and it needs to be touching the grille cloth to get that sound even.

For guitars I prefer the Senn e609/906 made in germany models.
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I won't argue as people have different perspectives... Might as well be.

There's the Sennheiser team and they're awesome mikes, but I don't think I've ever even heard another musician mention any cons regarding the 57... Been using one myself for years for most live and recording situations myself and it's always had my back.
 
I think one of the reasons that make the 57s and 58s so popular is that they're VERY roadworthy. They deliver great quality but they're cheap, easily replaceable or serviceable. Some call them the "Volkswagens of microphones"
 
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