#31
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A compressor reduces the dynamic range of a track. It isn't going to eliminate distortion or make a bad track sound good. For tracking, if you're just going to be recording vocals and one guitar, you can probably safely shoot for a level around -8 but you need to pay attention to the loudest parts of the song and make sure you're not coming in too hot.
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Jim 2023 Iris ND-200 maple/adi 2017 Circle Strings 00 bastogne walnut/sinker redwood 2015 Circle Strings Parlor shedua/western red cedar 2009 Bamburg JSB Signature Baritone macassar ebony/carpathian spruce 2004 Taylor XXX-RS indian rosewood/sitka spruce 1988 Martin D-16 mahogany/sitka spruce along with some electrics, zouks, dulcimers, and banjos. YouTube |
#32
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Not a fallacy, and I've put this to the test more times than I count. It's not a sensitivity issue, as much as it is a frequency response issue. Look at a dynamic like the SM57 or the SM7, and notice the sharp drop-off of response starting around 10Khz, then look at the Shure SM81 which is basically flat up to almost 20Khz, like most good condensers. The condensers are hearing the top end of the room (along with all the other typical noises in the house) which many times is just plain unflattering, whereas the dynamic is rolling off the top end for a more pleasant sound. Put on a set of headphones and plug a dynamic mic into one channel of a stereo pre, and stick a condenser in the other channel. Bring them both up to the same level, and listen to the noises in your house with both microphones. If you don't hear more of the garbage of the room in the condenser I'd be amazed! Yes you can roll off the EQ of the extended range of the condenser, but to a beginner this can be daunting. Especially considering most beginners are starting out in a bedroom, or their living room, with no treatment whatsoever. I can't count the amount of times when friends of mine have told me that they've recorded successfully in their houses with dynamics, and then they bought their first condenser and were shocked by what that mic was hearing. And the OP is obviously a beginner.
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#33
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Of course what we really care about is what we hear, but it might be worth recognizing that the human sensory system is very far from a precision instrument in many ways. Fran
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E ho`okani pila kakou ma Kaleponi Slack Key in California - www.kaleponi.com My YouTube clips The Homebrewed Music Blog |
#34
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Frequency response certainly does vary between mics and there are additional issues like resonance and pattern that make big differences in how we hear mics. In a very broadly general way we are usually buying "smoother" response with less uncontrolled resonance and more even polar pickup patterns when we go up the price scale, but of course many other factors enter into the price of mics. I would also suggest that dividing the world into dynamic and condenser over simplifies a bit too much. There are a few dynamics that have extended frequency response like the Sennheiser MD441 and the frequency response (and "detail") of various condensers can be all over the map. Let me end this blather by saying that all we really care about is what we hear, but it's worth considering that what we "hear" is impacted more than we might imagine by things like expectation, experience, visual impact, and much more. Fran
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E ho`okani pila kakou ma Kaleponi Slack Key in California - www.kaleponi.com My YouTube clips The Homebrewed Music Blog |
#35
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Fran
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E ho`okani pila kakou ma Kaleponi Slack Key in California - www.kaleponi.com My YouTube clips The Homebrewed Music Blog |
#36
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I would absolutely agree that if you prefer your vocal sound using the SM7b you should definitely use the SM7b. That mic in particular has seen a remarkable change in status over the past some years, as you may or may not know. It was a designed and originally marketed as a broadcast mic, a competitor to the dominant EV RE20, and as I recall it didn't succeed in sweeping the market. But when Bruce Swedien used the SM7 for Michael Jackson's vocal on "Thriller" the mic began to be seen as magical. That eventually led to one of the longest joke threads ever on Gearslutz: https://www.gearslutz.com/board/so-m...ke-thread.html Fran
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E ho`okani pila kakou ma Kaleponi Slack Key in California - www.kaleponi.com My YouTube clips The Homebrewed Music Blog |
#37
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__________________
Jim 2023 Iris ND-200 maple/adi 2017 Circle Strings 00 bastogne walnut/sinker redwood 2015 Circle Strings Parlor shedua/western red cedar 2009 Bamburg JSB Signature Baritone macassar ebony/carpathian spruce 2004 Taylor XXX-RS indian rosewood/sitka spruce 1988 Martin D-16 mahogany/sitka spruce along with some electrics, zouks, dulcimers, and banjos. YouTube |
#38
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But I'll also say again that our auditory system is far from a precision instrument. I've done tests using SPL meters, matched levels, and 1 khz test tones rather than plugging in headphones and I've satisfied myself that the mic geeks are right, with matched levels dynamics hear the same room as condensers, just with a different tonal balance. They don't hear much above 10 khz, but there is very little energy up there anyway. They'll both hear the motorcycle going by on the street, the refrigerator cycling in the kitchen, and the TV in the kid's room. I think that in answer to the original question I'd recommend that a beginning recordist select a nice medium priced multi-pattern condenser at about the same price point as an SM7b and learn to deal with all the issues that arise in home recording from that basis. Just an opinion, of course. Fran
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E ho`okani pila kakou ma Kaleponi Slack Key in California - www.kaleponi.com My YouTube clips The Homebrewed Music Blog |
#39
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And even at home I almost always use condensers over dynamics, and deal with the noise as best as I can. I've actually used the M179 mic recording at a friends house and it was decent little mic. And it worked pretty well in a non-treated environment. |
#40
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Thank you all for the suggestions and comments, I appreciate it! I actually did some digging around in my closets yesterday and found an Oktava MK-319 that I bought many years ago and had totally forgotten about. I quickly tested it to see that it's working (it is) and I plan to do a better test for sound quality later today.
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#41
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I have not bought a mic for my studio in over ten years. I attribute that to not buying bottom tier gear. Here is what I'd want for a basic home studio mic setup. SM 57 at the top of the list. If you have a hundred bucks period for a mic, buy this one. Then I'd buy a large diaphragm condenser and shoot for something in the over $300 range. I have a Rode NT2 but Audio Technica and many others make good mics. I'm not a fan of cheaper Mics but I'll have to admit that the Rode NT1a is pretty decent. Then you round things out with a pair of small diaphragm condensers. A good sounding acoustic guitar can sound great in stereo. I bought my SM 81s one at a time as I could afford them.
Anything higher end than the above, and I'd have to start thinking about a quality mic pre. The trick is getting your whole signal chain to match. Buy a thousand dollar mic, and it will point out weak links.
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2007 Martin D 35 Custom 1970 Guild D 35 1965 Epiphone Texan 2011 Santa Cruz D P/W Pono OP 30 D parlor Pono OP12-30 Pono MT uke Goldtone Paul Beard squareneck resophonic Fluke tenor ukulele Boatload of home rolled telecasters "Shut up and play ur guitar" Frank Zappa |
#42
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I have experimented with both dynamic and condenser mics and get good results either way. My dynamic mic of choice is an SM7B with a FetHead or CloudLifter. My Condenser mic is an AT4050ST. Both sound fantastic.
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#43
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For recording vocals, I often prefer my Sennheiser MD421 to my Rode NT2. But that’s me.
There is no such thing as ”a good microphone” though. It depends on what you want to obtain, what you want to hear. |