What price range mic for low end studio?

[nottopdrawer]

I am in the process of replacing my recently stolen studio gear and computer.
I have the green light from the insurance co. to replace items. I will be spending around $3000 on the front end gear.(possibly a little more)
I would like some input on what to get.
I was running Nuendo3 before. Will probably stick with Nuendo though I am considering Sonar since I still have a copy of SONAR6 Producer Ed.
I currently have an adequate PC.
I don't really record bands or anything..just my own projects. Mainly online collaborations. I'm primarily a vocalist/guitar player plus some keys.
I would like a nice Mic, preamp, interface, mixer (maybe a control surface)
I'm just concerned hear with capturing audio as best I can.
A question I have is does it do any good to by a $1000 mic in this price range?or for that matter a motu 2408?

[rty5150]

Originally Posted by nottopdrawer

A question I have is does it do any good to by a $1000 mic in this price range?

yes!

i have a mojave audio ma-200. just about everyone who sings through this mic falls in love with it. plenty of mics in this price range and most are great. the adk TT, bock 195, used peluso's and brauner phantoms come to mind.
killer mics.
$3000 for a vocal chain is pretty significant.
if i were in your shoes, i would get:

ma-200
shure sm-7b
(yes, 2 mics)
a great river me-1nv
dbx 160a or safe sound p1.

[nottopdrawer]

Well I must correct myself. I meant $3000 range for all items including mixer and interface. I'm thinking 7 or 8 hundred dollars per item. Won't be able to afford a stand alone compressor or the extra mic. Maybe 2 inexpensive mics?
Maybe I get an inexpensive control surface to save cost.
I need 1) Mic
2) Preamp
3) Sound Card
4) Mixer

I would love to have that Great River and the Mojave

[rty5150]

so why exactly do you need the mixer?

for $3000 you can get a good rig.

i would recommend:

chameleon labs 7602 or gap pre-73
sm7b
mxl v69 or v67
apogee duet
fmr rnc

you'll still have change left for room treatments and decent monitors if you play it right.

[stereobot]

Hardware aside- why not get Logic Pro? Of course you will still need a good I/O box, but you get so much with Logic Pro especially if you want to add any other production elements. Editing is easy and midi is obviously easy. Plugins all sound pretty good and you get a lot of them, but of course you'll want to stick with a rack compressor. I think Logic is only $400 - $500.. I just don't think you can beat what it offers.

I suppose this also is assuming you do or will be working on a Mac, although for music production I couldn't imagine doing it on a computer running Windows..

[kidvybes]

KEL HM-7u & Shure SM7b > GAP PRE73 > Safe Sound P1 > interface of choice (variation on Rich's suggestion)

[SeniorityFedup]

a good economical setup would be this

-GAP Pre73 preamp. (300)
-AA cm47 fet mic (300)
aamicrophones.com {great specs and range for price range}
-check out foamforyou.com and be ready to spend another 100$ on acoustic tiles/bass traps (200 AND YOUR GOOD) {cheaper than auralex}
- lexicon interface for 400$ and thats about 1200+
- used persian carpet at a flee market 5$ (thats how much i got it here in miami)
- mixer?? youll get tired of its space taking role imho.

then you got enough money to save for a vacation (youll need it for inspiration WHY NOT)

[Ca$h Marty]

I used Nuendo in college and made the transition to Cubase - its basically the same thing. I haven't noticed any difference. I think I read somewhere that it is the same audio engine - the only difference being video stuff.

So if you are doing audio only, perhaps save a few bucks and go Cubase?

[dustyreels]

I like the idea of a ldc and a dynamic. How bout:
at4050 $500
Sm7b $300
Grace m101 $550
fmr rnc $175

that's $1525. Plenty left over for interface, ect. I'm with everyone else, you will regret buying a mixer. I own all of the above mentioned tools and they all serve me well. I'm certainly not getting "low end" results.

[Fast_Fingers]

How is the room? If it's small or not well treated, it may be worthwhile to sort that first.

Personally, I'd get an RME Fireface 400 (two clean pres and room for keys), a NovationZero, Mojave/Bock/Advanced Audio/used Peluso LDC, PR40/SM7b. You can add a preamp for color (UAD 710/Summit 2BA). If you don't have a second monitor on your computer, get that too.

[nottopdrawer]

It looks like I will be getting a MacPro (I was using a PC before). I'm really leaning towards a firewire mixer. Here's my other thread: Tascam DM24 vs Presonus StudioLive 16.4.2 or 01v96
I also want to look at Apogee stuff.
Thinking about a Neumann tlm-103
I may even look into protools
No need to worry about monitors here. That will be taken care of.
My room is not particularly treated. Just some Auralex on the walls and ceiling.

[nottopdrawer]

Originally Posted by Ca$h Marty

I used Nuendo in college and made the transition to Cubase - its basically the same thing. I haven't noticed any difference. I think I read somewhere that it is the same audio engine - the only difference being video stuff.

So if you are doing audio only, perhaps save a few bucks and go Cubase?

Don't have to worry about software, computer or monitors here. That is being covered by insurance as well.

[GoVeganDude]

Originally Posted by nottopdrawer

It looks like I will be getting a MacPro (I was using a PC before). I'm really leaning towards a firewire mixer. Here's my other thread: Tascam DM24 vs Presonus StudioLive 16.4.2 or 01v96
I also want to look at Apogee stuff.
Thinking about a Neumann tlm-103
I may even look into protools
No need to worry about monitors here. That will be taken care of.
My room is not particularly treated. Just some Auralex on the walls and ceiling.

I'd say skip the tlm103 and try for something a little better as an all around mic. I used the 103s as overheads countless times, but never really got past the high end harshness. I used it on vocalists of all kinds and always found myself wanting something tighter sounding. The tlm 103 is has some off-axis stuff that makes it hard to deal with in a mix and it accentuates low-mid frequencies wayyyyy too much. trust me, do yourself a favor and stay away from that bad boy if it will have to be your go-to-mic.
__________________

[nottopdrawer]

Originally Posted by Fast_Fingers

How is the room? If it's small or not well treated, it may be worthwhile to sort that first.

Personally, I'd get an RME Fireface 400 (two clean pres and room for keys), a NovationZero, Mojave/Bock/Advanced Audio/used Peluso LDC, PR40/SM7b. You can add a preamp for color (UAD 710/Summit 2BA). If you don't have a second monitor on your computer, get that too.

It's a small room 11 x 11 with some Aurelex on walls and ceiling.
I always use dual monitors but that will be part of my computer replacement which is a separate matter.

[nottopdrawer]

Originally Posted by DustyReels

I like the idea of a ldc and a dynamic. How bout:
at4050 $500
Sm7b $300
Grace m101 $550
fmr rnc $175

that's $1525. Plenty left over for interface, ect. I'm with everyone else, you will regret buying a mixer. I own all of the above mentioned tools and they all serve me well. I'm certainly not getting "low end" results.

So, what are you guys using to do your mixing with?
A mixer is good for a hub IMO plus I like having a control surface.

[dustyreels]

Originally Posted by GoVeganDude

I'd say skip the tlm103 and try for something a little better as an all around mic. I used the 103s as overheads countless times, but never really got past the high end harshness. I used it on vocalists of all kinds and always found myself wanting something tighter sounding. The tlm 103 is has some off-axis stuff that makes it hard to deal with in a mix and it accentuates low-mid frequencies wayyyyy too much. trust me, do yourself a favor and stay away from that bad boy if it will have to be your go-to-mic.
__________________

I agree. I would seriously try out a tlm-103 before buying it. Honestly I think that mic is a piece of sh*t. It may be what you're looking for but I doubt it. a 414 or a 4050 would be, more than likely, what you're looking for. I'm also curious about the new akg 214. It supposed to be a cardioid only version of the 414 and a good bit cheaper. So if you don't need all the patterns this could be a option. If you do want more patterns, allow me to reiterate, the at4050 is a great mic! I chose it over the 414 and not because of price. Good luck...

[nottopdrawer]

Originally Posted by DustyReels

I agree. I would seriously try out a tlm-103 before buying it. Honestly I think that mic is a piece of sh*t. It may be what you're looking for but I doubt it. a 414 or a 4050 would be, more than likely, what you're looking for. I'm also curious about the new akg 214. It supposed to be a cardioid only version of the 414 and a good bit cheaper. So if you don't need all the patterns this could be a option. If you do want more patterns, allow me to reiterate, the at4050 is a great mic! I chose it over the 414 and not because of price. Good luck...

The 4050 may be what I'm looking for. May get a second mic also.