Mic Upgrade

L

Lucid1x

New member
Hello, I record rap vocals and currently have an mxl990 condenser mic and 2i2 Scarlett interface. I want to upgrade. First the mic. I only do my vocals right now. Which are mellow sorta. I was wondering if the at4040 would be a good upgrade? And I wondering if I really need to upgrade my interface or if I'm good for now.

If you want to hear some tracks to hear my voice check out my soundcloud

Soundcloud.com/lucidx1993
 
Thats actually the same setup I started with, Interface & Mic. Both are great for their price, and used in the right context can put out some decent vocals. I recently purchased a NT1-A (& FYI, I love it personally), and I think the vocals have more punch and clarity when using it, as opposed to the MXL. I've haven't got to try a at4040, but I've heard great things about them as well.

If at all possible, I would go to Guitar Center(or something comparable near you) and ask them to let you "demo" the microphones, so you get the right one for your particular voice. No matter how great a mic is, if it doesn't "fit" YOUR vocal, its useless. Most places will be happy to pop open a box and let you demo some stuff out.

Good luck!

And my opinion, you sound pretty good on the MXL if thats what you're using on your soundcloud. What exactly are you unhappy with about it?
 
Thanks a lot! Hopefully they have the mics I want to try out and the one your talking about. And thanks but idk I guess I'm just never satisfied lol. There's always room for improvement I guess. & I want to make quality music. thanks a lot!!
 
SM57 is not an industry standard for vocals lol. maybe in a shitty room but 99% of the time, a good LDC is used for vocals in any studio.

What is your budget Lucid?
 
Nutek Studios said:
SM57 is not an industry standard for vocals lol. maybe in a shitty room but 99% of the time, a good LDC is used for vocals in any studio.

What is your budget Lucid?
Click to expand...

The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Bono of U2 immediately come to mind.

Many others have used the SM57 in this capacity as well,
perhaps my memory will be a bit more forthcoming if I jog it by Googling the question.

-Ki
Salem Beats
 
Two or even 3 doesn't make it a standard, the 57 is much better on drums than vocals. However i will say if the room is untreated, maybe an SM7b is a better choice but you need a LOT of clean gain to really reap the rewards. Also Bono liked to record in the control room a lot with the monitors on, hence the 57.
 
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Nutek Studios said:
Two or even 3 doesn't make it a standard, the 57 is much better on drums than vocals. However i will say if the room is untreated, maybe an SM7b is a better choice but you need a LOT of clean gain to really reap the rewards. Also Bono liked to record in the control room a lot with the monitors on, hence the 57.
Click to expand...

I tried to make it clear that there's quite a few more notable artists who have recorded songs on their albums through a SM57:
My challenge is only with bringing them to mind at the moment.

The point is that the SM57 is an inexpensive mic that has been used successfully by major artists with recording their lead vocals,
and will still remain useful for other tasks should you decide later to replace them with something else.

-Ki
Salem Beats
 
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Yeah, there are a lot more options now when it comes to LDC though and most use dynamics for either a shitty room, recording in the control room with monitors on or overly loud vocals, using the pre he has, i wouldn't suggest a 57 or SM7, both need a lot of gain (maybe a cloud lifter) and the scarlet will not provide that. He is better off going with a descent LDC for now then getting a nicer pre later.

which brings me back to budget.

Or he could get a 57.
 
Nutek Studios said:
Yeah, there are a lot more options now when it comes to LDC though and most use dynamics for either a shitty room, recording in the control room with monitors on or overly loud vocals, using the pre he has, i wouldn't suggest a 57 or SM7, both need a lot of gain (maybe a cloud lifter) and the scarlet will not provide that. He is better off going with a descent LDC for now then getting a nicer pre later.

which brings me back to budget.

Or he could get a 57.
Click to expand...

My advice is based on maximizing the $ over a longer time period:
The SM57 will keep its niche purposes after an upgrade,
while a cheap LDC would simply be outclassed and will end up being sold at a loss.

-Ki
Salem Beats
 
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Both SM57 and 58 are dynamic mics that are famous for capturing vocal performances. They're an absolute go to for live sound, and great for recording all aspects(vocals, drums, guitar, bass, ect) within BANDS. Let's not pretend great vocal performances that surpass alot of vocals captured with condensers don't exist thanks to these mics. If you came up in the last decade, you may have been taught differently, but dynamic mics have always played a role in recording all types of audio. We now live in a world where most recordings are done thru 1 channel on an interface in an enclosed environment. While there are better options for these environments, nothing Salem said didn't hold truth. Depending on the OP's environment, an SM57/58 may be exactly what he needs.

http://www.gearslutz.com/board/low-end-theory/154745-yes-sm57s-sm58s-studio-mics.html 2 seconds to google search "SM57 SM58 Studio Recording"

Back to the original question, AT2020 and MXL 990 are the same class of mic. Can't say one is going to be "better" that's left to opinion, you won't hear a significant difference between the 2. By "significant", I mean if all you have to compare is the MXL990 and AT2020 they may sound like night and day to you, but the second you add something better, both will sound like exactly 3:21am on a monday when you stagger home drunk to realize you gotta work in 2 hours, lol. The MXL990 should be a good enough learning tool while saving up to make an investment with a higher end mic. Great time to start playing with EQ, figure out good environments for recording, ways to clean stuff up(noise gates, filters, compression/leveling, ect)so when you make a big jump, the knowledge will be there and you sound will be at the most professional level it can be.:cheers:


EDIT: My bad, thought you were wanting an AT2020. 4040? Why not? Go for it. Decent mic.
 
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Another option is sending the 990 to Michael Jolly and have it modded.

Before any of us can give a true opinion, we need to know his budget and what his room is like.
 
^^^Paying $500 or so for a "mod" that alledgedly make your $60 mic sound like a U87? If I'm remembering right, that's the B.S. being sold there, right? Fair enough, but why not just buy a modded one directly from him rather than sending yours off? An MXL990 is like $60, lol. Just go thru an online site, order one and have it shipped to him, or...take that same $500 or so and go buy a mic!!!
 
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No and no lol. He has some samples of it compared to a U87 AI which is a completely different animal than a U87 (which im a fan of neither, i like a more natural sound). They sound very similair, if you can hear that big of a difference then good on you. Either way, us bickering back and forth about this or that isn't helping anyone or anything.

I want to know his budget and what his room are like.

For reference.

Award-winning microphone engineering from Michael Joly
 
Wasn't "bickering", just not sure a "modded" 990 is the answer. I'm very familiar with the difference between a u87 and a u87ai and distinctively remember the marketing of Joly's "mods' being the idea he can turn you cheap condenser into a U87. That's the impression his consumers have, everyone with one says that's what it's supposed to sound like. Could have the price wrong($500 is what I remember, may have dropped or went up), but from examples I've heard I always gathered this idea, excuse me if my assumptions are wrong.

This "mod" targets entry level musicians who come in buying a 990 by telling them for the price of a decent mic, Joly can make your entry level mic into a top of the line mic. Which if I'm assuming correct is an absolutely false advertisement. End assumption, back to what I absolutely know.

From the sound examples of said mic, I hear nothing impressive and nothing that a mic like the AT4040 can't out perfrom. I remember seeing examples of the 990 mod played alongside the original 990 and thinking it sounded like nothing more than a good EQ job worth of difference. I doubt many people with a ton of mic options would disagree, but going from a 990 to the "mod" would impress someone with no other options.
 
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Never said it was the answer, merely stating it as an option :) We both know there is a BUNCH of options but here we are again still wondering the budget and room situation haha!
 
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