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Post by StringStorm on Jan 6, 2017 21:48:04 GMT -8
Any thoughts on WHY you favor the C01U? What's it do for you that the other ones just don't? That factor that draws you back to it? Just curious! And also I'd like to have your thoughts here, for other people looking for mics. ^_^ Bought it for cheap. Bundled with a pop filter to boot. It just works soon as you take it out and plug in it. Its so well built that I can use it as a toy to play fetch with a dog on a park made out of concrete and it would still work. And if it did break, its so cheap that I can get another one using whatever change I find on the floor. Being both sturdy and cheap is fine and dandy. But what really sets it off is that it sounds bloody amazing.
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Post by JonoVO on Jan 7, 2017 17:05:15 GMT -8
Mic geeks: What are your FAVORITE mics, and why? = ) Anyone who's known me for more than a minute knows I love my Oktava MK-105 and that I have a few Shure LDCs I'm fond of (The PG-27, for a cheapie, is my babydoll. Yes I'm aware it has a really high noise floor. But you'd never know it when I'm done with it.) ; ) I've also got a 1981 Soviet-made Mk-18 that I still use on occasion (the darn thing's almost as old as - *AHEM* - well, that's not important.) But I wanna know what mics YOU like, and WHY. (I.E.: Most of mine have a flat response across the mids, are cooler than some other mics, and have some extra top-end to them, which is handy when I do bass characters to give them a nice texture, and really helps with the super-high pitched ones as well, if you work the mic from further back.) Tips? Tricks? Good mics for certain purposes? Favorite all-arounders? Amazing one-trick ponies? Lemme know! I love mics! ^_^ EDIT: P.S. Let's stick to some more mid-grade mics. Everyone knows a Neumann U87 is just sooooo, SOOOO nice, and if you wanna mention something like that it's fine but I'd like encourage some esoteric mid-grade stuff, too, like maybe for instance a Pearl PML Priority. XD I know we talked a lot about mics on Skype before, but I'll throw this one out in the public eye. The Aston Origin is my new baby and I'm enjoying the holy poop outta it. The quality is very good for a $250 mic (2016 price). One such video on youtube compared 4 mics together and the Origin was one of them that sounded better than the expensive mics currently on the market. I'll shamelessly link my review of the mic on here cause ya know....shameless promotions!
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duffyweber
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Post by duffyweber on Jan 7, 2017 18:00:44 GMT -8
I know we talked a lot about mics on Skype before, but I'll throw this one out in the public eye. The Aston Origin is my new baby and I'm enjoying the holy poop outta it. Jono: I remember that! And it is one heckuva good mic. Glad you've been enjoying it! You'd just gotten it when last we talked. Good to know it's doing what you wanted. ^_^
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Post by JonoVO on Jan 7, 2017 19:10:49 GMT -8
I know we talked a lot about mics on Skype before, but I'll throw this one out in the public eye. The Aston Origin is my new baby and I'm enjoying the holy poop outta it. Jono: I remember that! And it is one heckuva good mic. Glad you've been enjoying it! You'd just gotten it when last we talked. Good to know it's doing what you wanted. ^_^ It better be doing what's needed lol, otherwise it be a very expensive paperweight, not a good one at that.
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Brian Corbin
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Post by Brian Corbin on Jan 7, 2017 20:44:23 GMT -8
The AT2020 is also an XLR mic, yes? My advice: play with one before you buy, if the shop will let you, and get a good interface to go with it (say, a nice PreSonus or Scarlett 2i2 or above - the Solo has a different pre-amp chip than all the others, so I'd spend the extra $15 on a 2i2/2i4) and maybe consider looking at an AT4040. Shure PG42 is good as well (cheap and easy on the pocketbook, though it has a strong top-end. It might throw you off, as its a lot brighter than the Yeti, but you might give it a listen anyhoo.) You'd probably LOVE the SM27, but that's getting a little more up there in price. The AT2020 also comes in a USB version, which is what I'd be interested in, at least in this phase of my "career." It's not quite as good as the XLR version, of course, but it's still decent. DANG that AT4040 is a slick-lookin' piece. Woo-ee! Sadly, my budget is pretty nonexistent (divorce, moving, seriously strapped for cash) so looks like I'm going to have to wait and see what the future holds.
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duffyweber
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Post by duffyweber on Jan 8, 2017 5:41:06 GMT -8
The AT2020 is also an XLR mic, yes? My advice: play with one before you buy, if the shop will let you, and get a good interface to go with it (say, a nice PreSonus or Scarlett 2i2 or above - the Solo has a different pre-amp chip than all the others, so I'd spend the extra $15 on a 2i2/2i4) and maybe consider looking at an AT4040. Shure PG42 is good as well (cheap and easy on the pocketbook, though it has a strong top-end. It might throw you off, as its a lot brighter than the Yeti, but you might give it a listen anyhoo.) You'd probably LOVE the SM27, but that's getting a little more up there in price. The AT2020 also comes in a USB version, which is what I'd be interested in, at least in this phase of my "career." It's not quite as good as the XLR version, of course, but it's still decent. DANG that AT4040 is a slick-lookin' piece. Woo-ee! Sadly, my budget is pretty nonexistent (divorce, moving, seriously strapped for cash) so looks like I'm going to have to wait and see what the future holds. I TOTALLY get the whole strapped-for-cash thing. I've run an IT business since 1998, and moved it once in 2004. Both times I had to pound pavement for a couple years and so I totally know where you're at. BUT! When you're ready: There's a lot of back-and-forth about buying used equipment. I've been careful, and never had a problem, but the Scarlett 2i2 gen2 has come out, and the gen1 is going for a song on eBay (and STILL really great stuff!) as well as the 4040. You might could get your hands on both for under $150-$200 all told easily, including shipping.
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duffyweber
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Post by duffyweber on Jan 8, 2017 5:45:32 GMT -8
It better be doing what's needed lol, otherwise it be a very expensive paperweight, not a good one at that. I also wanted to mention (regarding your "shameless promotion" ) that you sound absolutely phenomenal. You've got it cleaned well, it's crisp, yet warm. The sound is lovely, soft and pleasant, and the mic really flatters your voice. Your delivery is good too. Bravo! And on an objective note: you've got a very nice voice.
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The Uncertain Man
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Looking for some gentle feedback on how to improve my demo.
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Post by The Uncertain Man on Jan 8, 2017 6:40:38 GMT -8
The AT2020 also comes in a USB version, which is what I'd be interested in, at least in this phase of my "career." It's not quite as good as the XLR version, of course, but it's still decent. DANG that AT4040 is a slick-lookin' piece. Woo-ee! Sadly, my budget is pretty nonexistent (divorce, moving, seriously strapped for cash) so looks like I'm going to have to wait and see what the future holds. I've got the AT2020USB+ and it is such a good step up from my old Blue Snowball. It is incredibly sensitive however, and I now have to turn it down to 20% sensitivity to avoid picking up my pc fans and other noises. You could do with grabbing a good pop filter and wind shield however, as it tends to pick up hissing and pops, etc.
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duffyweber
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Post by duffyweber on Jan 10, 2017 6:38:45 GMT -8
XD DUDE! Nice one! The GXL series mics are really sweet. CAD makes a good product. = ) And you're absolutely right about the mic making the voice, to some extent. Lots of people, myself included, sometimes use a different mic when the script calls for "gender ambiguous character" as opposed to "booming monstrous demon-man on steroids." The low pickup on the bass end will help with teen voices, as it scrubs the low registers out if you accidentally hit them, but it's hard to sound wise and blustery that way without a little EQ.
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Post by JonoVO on Jan 10, 2017 9:04:23 GMT -8
I've always been a fan of the Blue Yeti for starting out since it sounds so much better the Snowball and a better investment. But I finally upgraded to a MXL 2008 and I'm so in love with it that I don't think I could ever go back to the Yeti. Once you get away from the Yeti, it's like breathing fresh air. (gathers in air) ahhhhhh, smells good!
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Post by atgonzalez on Jan 10, 2017 10:44:43 GMT -8
Between me and my brother, we own 2 Samson C01Us, a knock off Samson C01U, a Blue Snowball, a PDMIC58 (a dynamic microphone is a Shure 58 knockoff and I only use it for public speaking or two concerts) and I've found that I get the best direct audio recording... from the Blue Snowball! But only with a lot of environmental treatment and only when we record in Sam's closet with a lot of blankets. I get good results from the Samson but I find it makes the good parts sound better and the bad parts sound worse. We have to do a lot of tinkering in Audition to make the audio sound clear.
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duffyweber
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Post by duffyweber on Jan 10, 2017 11:52:40 GMT -8
I would LOVE to get my hands on an Elation KM901. Siiigh.
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Post by Rebekah Amber Clark on Jan 10, 2017 17:28:18 GMT -8
(Something technical went wrong quoting duffyweber -- I'm talking about what you said using different mics for different character voices) Oh, so THAT'S it! I'm sorry, I just thought people with a lot of mics were either collectaholics or needed to record other assorted people (to match the mics to) on a regular basis.
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Post by JonoVO on Jan 10, 2017 19:07:11 GMT -8
(Something technical went wrong quoting duffyweber -- I'm talking about what you said using different mics for different character voices) Oh, so THAT'S it! I'm sorry, I just thought people with a lot of mics were either collectaholics or needed to record other assorted people (to match the mics to) on a regular basis.
I think that over time, I'd be more of a collectaholic of mics...one of these days I'll go on a mic shopping spree lol.
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duffyweber
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Post by duffyweber on Jan 11, 2017 5:20:03 GMT -8
(Something technical went wrong quoting duffyweber -- I'm talking about what you said using different mics for different character voices) Oh, so THAT'S it! I'm sorry, I just thought people with a lot of mics were either collectaholics or needed to record other assorted people (to match the mics to) on a regular basis.
Well, I don't deny that I'm also a bit of a "collectaholic" too. ; ) But yes, different mics are nice for different things. I've got a nice ribbon mic for when I'm doing a 1920-1970s "radio announcer" bit. For 80s/90s radio sound, I'll use the same ribbon mic at 70% and cut it with about 30% of my LDC mic. (Which isn't how they actually did it, but I get the same effect.) For both, you'll want to emulate radio band by rolling off the EQ hard and fast at 60Hz on the low end, and 4000 on the high. EDIT: Those old-timey over annunciated radio voices that seemed oddly punchy? It's because the men were primarily baritones whose voices the radio band scrubbed a portion of the low end off of. The over-articulated style was so it could be heard easily on early radios - which weren't what you'd call hi-fi. If you're going for that effect, be sure to pronounce things insanely clearly and emphasize each syllable cleanly. It has the odd effect of making men sound like a bad 1940's detective movie actor, and women sound like they're imitating Groucho Marx. XD
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