Karaoke Forums

I was wondering if people would be willing to share their experiences with the Mic's they use at home for recording?  Do you use a dymanic mic or a condenser mic?  If you use a condensor mic, do you use headphones or isolation ear bud headphone in this application?  Any input would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks B-) Pete

I use an SM58, and headphones..... both ran through a small nonpowered mixer.

I tried a condenser mic recently on one song, and I guess I didn't know what I was doing with mixer settings... my end result was a very unclean recording. So I gave the mic back and went back to my SM58. (easier to stick with what I'm used to)

I know lots of others here use them though (condensers) so perhaps some people will give you their feedback:)

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I use an Audio Technica AT4033 condensor mic running through an ART TubeMP Pre-amp.  
These mics will run hotter - especially with an outside pre-amp so you have to be careful not to overdrive your inputs on the recording device (or mixer) otherwise you will get distorted reordings.

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I use a studio projects condenser mic plugged into a preamp and then into an m-audio external recording interface.
I used to use a shure sm58 but the better clarity of the condenser has really improved my recordings I feel...well that and learning more about mixing I guess.

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Ah-ha, so that is what I did:)  :D

I'm sticking to my SM58. I think I get vocally too loud sometimes- that poor sensitive condenser mic was probably skeered to death when I sang into it:)

Lonnie, question (since it's the same topic, I'll ask it here) :

I was once told that I should leave my soundcard volume (line in) at a low volume, and use the mixer to get my sound volume. Is that not so with a condenser mic? Cause I leave the SC setting at almost nil, and the mixer volume cranked up a bit. Is that wrong?

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♥ Laugh your heart out, dance in the rain. Cherish the memories, ignore the pain. Love and learn, forget and forgive. Because you only have one life to live. ♥

I wouldn't necessarily leave it very low, about midway is where I set mine, but different sound cards will react differently as well - you want the strongest clean input you can achieve, with your mixer turned up higher, you could have the potential to send a distorted signal to the recorder, if it's the other way around, you are turning up a low signal which will have more noise added - there should be a happy medium between the two.  With my condensor and external pre-amp, I have to have the input on the preamp turned up normal & the output almost to minimum, but the sound card is adjusted normally.

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I was using a Shure PG58 dynamic mic up until a week or so ago.  I am now using a Shure ULS wireless with a Beta87C condenser mic.  The wireless receiver is connected to a Vocal300 which is in turn connected to the mixer.  I record from the mixer's headphone output directly into an mp3 recorder.  During recording, I monitor using Sony headphones connected to the mp3 player/recorder's headphone jack.  Will very soon be trying out my new custom earpieces which should be arriving tomorrow.

Lonman do you use the ART TubeMP pre-amp as 48V Phantom Power?  Or is it strictly for a different sound?  IE:  does that pre-amp give a "tube" sound to the mic?  If it does, does that mean it has a "warm" sound to it?  

I'm just learning a lot of this.  I Don't record into a PC.  I have three mic's, two SM 58's and Sennheiser E835. I prefer the Senn myself. I run that into my mixer along with a vocal processor which goes in on aux 1 and aux 2 giving me effects on two channels.  Then everything is sent to the Cd burner through the (tape out) jacks on the mixer. I was asking about mics because I'd like a warmer sound with clearer recordings.  I guess what Im doing now is giving me pretty good sound but.... it can always get better.  B-)

Never having tried a Condensor mic, I am assuming I'll need to turn off speakers, monitor through a set of isolation ear bud headphones and record in that manner to avoid reprocessing sound from the speakers and getting serious feedback issues???

Any help at all is a lot of help to me. Like I said, Im seriously challanged at this stuff.... all I know is what I have learned with my karaoke system and recording straight to a Cd then transferring it over to my PC so I can crush it down to a smaller bit rate, to get it under three megs.  

Thank you all for your insight and help on this.  Pete

I use the Samson G- Track. Sometimes I like to overdub my Karaoke tracks and I can plug instruments directly into the mic. The cost is not bad either for what it does.

http://www.vocaltrainingwarrior.com/recording_studio_upgrades

http://l.b5z.net/i/u/6106319/m/G-track.mov

Good luck!

museman

When I use the condensor, I use the ART as the phantom power supply as well.  Yes it does warm the sound up not giving it that sterile digital sound.
With any recording, you should be using headphones, an over the ear enclosed design is the best, but a semi-open enclosure is what I use, the AKG K240 are what I prefer.

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