Cheap mic for "vintage" and/or LoFi sound

[erosconpollo]

Any of the many lower-end ribbon mikes out there might provide what you're after.

[spitune]

Thanks. I'll check them out. Guess I automatically balk at ribbons because of price and assumed cheap ones weren't worth it, but it appears I am wrong. Thanks again.

[mstrom]

I have a couple of Fatheads. I think they're really nice for the price.

[OldTimey1]

SM58 through an ART PRO Channel sounds pretty vintage/lo fi to me. or the fat head ribbon

[Jonathawkes]

Just get an old cassette deck and bounce stuff to it and back again.
Requires some lining up after the fact, but it definitely gives you a vintage lo-fi vibe.

[Moonbaby]

What are you recording into? A ribbon can be difficult because of the lower output they usually generate...

[Call_me_Switters]

I have to suggest the safe side of the things!If you aren t sure about what your mic or preamp might deliver on this.Grab the best sound you can and later pass in through a tape recorder,a tube amp,a guitar pedal or anything you can imagine.With a clean signal you can experiment as you wish.With a recorded lofi you cant go back.This might not seem very adventurous and "engineering" but it will pay in time and possibilities.If you still want to go hardcore you can find on ebay some crazy circuit bended and modified mics from telephones,cbs etc that sound really great on the lofi side.You can even put your mic in a metalic cane or any other weird place and see what will happen.In the end of the day still Speakerphone pluging or Camel Phatt might be the ansewer...

[gouge]

for vintage i think of omni mics, so any of the older ev or akg mics might do it. they tend to roll off around 12-15k as well which helps.

i'm currently working through older mics myself to find out what i like and the ev635a is pretty nice and tends to get used everywhere. you could even go for an sm57 for a more focused sound. i also have a 12 gauge red coming which sounds great in the online samples. they are $35 each.

[spitune]

Originally Posted by Moonbaby

What are you recording into? A ribbon can be difficult because of the lower output they usually generate...

I am recording through an Allen & Heath Zed 10 (no FX) into garageband.

[spitune]

Originally Posted by Call_me_Switters

I have to suggest the safe side of the things!If you aren t sure about what your mic or preamp might deliver on this.Grab the best sound you can and later pass in through a tape recorder,a tube amp,a guitar pedal or anything you can imagine.With a clean signal you can experiment as you wish.With a recorded lofi you cant go back.This might not seem very adventurous and "engineering" but it will pay in time and possibilities.If you still want to go hardcore you can find on ebay some crazy circuit bended and modified mics from telephones,cbs etc that sound really great on the lofi side.You can even put your mic in a metalic cane or any other weird place and see what will happen.In the end of the day still Speakerphone pluging or Camel Phatt might be the ansewer...

I hear ya on the safe side. right now I'm using a Sennheiser e609. the sound is good but I tend to get carried away on the "engineering" (mainly because I don't know much about it). I was hoping to go with an old school approach with very minimal tweaking in the post. Thank you.

[spitune]

Originally Posted by gouge

for vintage i think of omni mics, so any of the older ev or akg mics might do it. they tend to roll off around 12-15k as well which helps.

i'm currently working through older mics myself to find out what i like and the ev635a is pretty nice and tends to get used everywhere. you could even go for an sm57 for a more focused sound. i also have a 12 gauge red coming which sounds great in the online samples. they are $35 each.

wow. I was just researching the ev 635a's today good to know I was barking up the right tree. I actually think focused might be something to avoid in this scenario. I have a Senn e609 (I've heard this is a sm57 comp with a cabinet friendly design, which is nice).

[gouge]

i've found the 635a it to be a very handy mic. it does need a bit of gain behind it but it's a great alround mic. a couple of 635's and m201's will go a very long way.

i like the ev mic on fender type brightish guitar tones. i also use one as a talk back mic for the guitarist which gets tracked. i use it on vocals as a default second mic blending it in with the main mic.

there's other ev mics from the same vintage. some are high impedance and others switchable between low and high.

i've got an e609 silver which i never use. i am pretty sure it's different to the non silver version. so yeah, give your mics some space from the source.

i also strive to do minimal post production work. i find if you get the source right and the mic placement right and it sounds great on the way in then all you really need is a touch of reverb/delay some panning and everything works. on the times i don't get those things right i spend a lot of time trying to fix what i broke. to be honest it's easier and better to just re record.

eventually you will recognise what works for you and what good sounds are. you just gotta try a lot of different mics/placements etc to get there. just give everything a go.

i spent hours just adjusting mics and changing cab positions in my room to see what happens. to mic up a drum set takes me 4-5 hours to tune the thing and place the mics. that's a long time but i've got nothing to lose as i'm not earning money from it. after a year or so in my cureent space and a whole heap of new equipment i'm getting quicker as i know how the mics respond best with different gear and placing.

[e3p0]

Love my 635a for this, but I found some old crystal (piezo) mics that came with old reel to reel that have RCA output that sound kinda honky but nice. Mine are Webcor, but EV and a bunch of other companies had similar mics (look like a banana).

I'll try to post a pic.
-e

here is a link to a vid:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvLAFAYEVBE

[spitune]

What about harmonica mics? Like a turner or something. Are they too weak?

[spitune]

Nice! This is actually pretty dang close. Thanks e3p0

[e3p0]

You are welcome. I have three of them now. They kill on harmonica, instant character vocals, and I think the lo-fi guitar thing is the best thing they do.

I have thought about using them on drums, but have yet to.
The ones I have come up alot on evilbay.
-e

[Call_me_Switters]

Some real hardcore lofi...
Circuit Bent Modified Midland CB Microphone Lo-Fi Studio Live Mic | eBay

[hlemke]

I agree on the 635a. I run it into a pretty crappy Fostex 4-track tape deck and play acoustic guitar/voice/harmonica into it from a foot or two away and it reminds me a bit of old Folkways recordings (although a bit higher fi)... not sure if that's the kind of "vintage" you're looking for but I like it. It's a good microphone for other things too though - i don't think you'd ever regret buying one. The lack of proximity effect is nice, and the omni pattern is uncommon and really nice to work with, although it is potentially more sensitive to bad-sounding rooms than a cardioid.

[chessparov]

Another EV 635a vote. In fact for my vocals there's only a handful of more expen$ive mics that meet or (moderately) beat it-including the mighty RCA (or AEA) 44!

Chris

[babooino]

Originally Posted by chessparov

Another EV 635a vote. In fact for my vocals there's only a handful of more expen$ive mics that meet or (moderately) beat it-including the mighty RCA (or AEA) 44!

Chris

my 635a sounds a little 'boxy'...

[Go Nigel Go]

Another low end ribbon that might work is the Nady RSM 8a. It is a phantom powered ribbon which should work pretty well with most low end preamps including the built in ones in the average interface. Output is comparable to a decent dynamic mic, I didn't have to change any settings from my EV RE-20 (except a bit of EQ). Basically the same output level. Not a high end mic, but not without it's charms either. I bought one to fill out an order to get the free shipping, don't regret it for the price. Noise was not a big issue, though there is a little bit that might be objectionable at high gain settings if you want a pristine sound. If you want character, it has that.

[mijome07]

Picked up one of these:



Astatic 332 crystal omni mic made for recording.

[Silent Sound]

Two mics come to mind with your description. First is a Shure 520D, also called the Green Bullet. I prefer the old 520D to the new 520DX, but the DX will work as well. They've got a bunch of midrange, and not much else. Great for distorted vocals when run through an overdriven amp, and harmonica of course. But to me, it's the definitive "lo-fi" sound and can be had for around $100 used.

Next would be the Apex 205 ribbon mic. It's a different flavor, and I wouldn't call it "lo-fi", but I would call it "vintage" sounding. It's a great mic for capturing classical guitar, but it would need a good bit of gain for such a quiet source. So you'd need a Fethead or Cloudlifter to go with it (or a really powerful preamp). The Apex 205 is about $100 and the Fethead or Cloudlifter are $100 and $150 respectively, but they're both very nice things to have around the studio and will probably get used more than you think they would after you've given them a go.

So the first one would be more of an effect piece and the second one more versatile. There are mods you can do to the 520D/DX to use it as a standard XLR mic (comes with a 1/4" instrument jack) that are super easy to do and there are some mods to the Apex 205 that include replacing the transformer to extend it's frequency response. Neither mods are crucial, but they do allow you some upgrade options for the future, should you care to. These mods are well documented on the internet and only require basic soldering skills.

[mijome07]

Great info SS. I also picked up a Astatic M-300. I think it needs a new cable.

I can slightly hear (w/ headphones) when I wiggle the cable, but no voice comes through.

[jakobole]

I use my blackberry But that might be TOO lofi for some

[spitune]

got a Hohner Blues Blaster...I'll see how that works

[BudgetMC]

I've found all kinds of uses for these...

[Call_me_Switters]

Originally Posted by Call_me_Switters

Some real hardcore lofi...
Circuit Bent Modified Midland CB Microphone Lo-Fi Studio Live Mic | eBay

+1 This dude is crazy!

[gouge]

got one of those and it lasted about 30 seconds on the mic stand. i HATE it.

it's hard to hold on a stand and it distorts on anything louder than talking level. and distorts in a very ugly way.

hmmm, actually that description sounds appealing when typed out loud..... e...

it does sound exactly like a telephone when talking. it's great for that.

Originally Posted by BudgetMC

I've found all kinds of uses for these...