Areoss
Member
Posts: 17
I Am A(n): Aspiring Voice Actor, Writer, Singer
Pronouns: he/him
|
Post by Areoss on Mar 3, 2018 4:58:13 GMT -8
Hey guys. Now that I'm not able to make it to my uni studio as frequently, I'm looking into getting a microphone for home recording. The most notable one I've seen recommended is the AT2020, but due to its need for a phantom power supply, I stumbled upon this microphone pack. www.storedj.com.au/focusrite-scarlett-solo-studio-package-w-pro-tools-and-ableton-live-generation-2Do you guys think I would be better off going with the AT2020 or buying the scarlett studio bundle? Or is there another mic setup you guys would recommend?
|
|
martialmichael126
Member
Posts: 4
I Am A(n): Semi-Professional Voice Actor, Creator/Producer, Audio Engineer
Pronouns: he/him
|
Post by martialmichael126 on Mar 4, 2018 21:10:08 GMT -8
Well, to use the AT2020, you need phantom power as you said (and obviously an XLR input). So that studio bundle would be ideal for you. That said, if your budget is closer to the AT2020 and you can't swing it right now, you can actually get away with something like this. It's a great microphone to use as a backup when you can't get to your good mic (in your case, the ones at the uni studio).
|
|
|
Post by benedict on Mar 4, 2018 21:42:40 GMT -8
Just a general observation, if you have an interface you're happy with, buying components piecemeal will let you build the setup you're after. If you don't already have an interface, the kit doesn't look like a bad deal. But more on that in a sec. Take the rest of this with a grain of salt. I haven't used the AT2020 or the CM25. I found one review that said they upgraded from a CM25 to a Rode NT1 and liked the Rode better. I haven't found any reviews comparing it directly with an AT2020. Looking at the photos of the internals on Recordinghacks.com (http://recordinghacks.com/microphones/Focusrite/CM25) it looks like a Transound capsule and a fairly complete implementation of the Schoeps internal amps. Based on that my guess is it'll have decent self noise and a bright(ish) presence peak. But this is at best a guess based on some pictures on a web page. Again, I haven't tried the mic. For what it's worth, I found the same bundle on Sweetwater for $199: www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ScarlettSoloSG2Sweetwater has the AT2020 for $99: www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AT2020So for the price that StoreDJ has for the Scarlett Solo kit, you could get both mics and find out first-hand.
|
|
Areoss
Member
Posts: 17
I Am A(n): Aspiring Voice Actor, Writer, Singer
Pronouns: he/him
|
Post by Areoss on Mar 6, 2018 5:29:35 GMT -8
Thanks guys, I'm looking into Sweetwater at the moment but I'm not sure if they'll ship to Australia. Also, benedict, what exactly do you mean by an interface? I haven't done any recording stuff outside of my uni studio so apologies for how green I am.
|
|
|
Post by benedict on Mar 6, 2018 13:31:06 GMT -8
Aaaah. It's worth asking Sweetwater if they'll ship to Australia, but the cost of shipping may raise the price too much to matter.
The Focusrite kit comes with an XLR microphone, headphones, and a USB interface. The job of the interface is to proved 48V power to the microphone, to amplify the microphone's output signal to something closer to line levels, to digitize the amplified signal, and send the data through the USB bus to the computer. You can find discrete components that'll do several of these tasks (P48 power supplies, discrete preamps, etc.) but most interfaces provide all of that functionality in one bundle.
If you opted for the AT2020, you'd still need headphones and an interface. If you already have headphones that's a fair bit of savings right there. You can get interfaces from a number of manufacturers for around $100USD. The Scarlett series are solid performers, but there are other ones out there as well. People's choices for interface show up in a couple of threads here, so it's worth looking around. (Searching on the name of any given interface will typically point you toward a thread where other interfaces are discussed as well.)
No apologies for being green. I've got zero time in a studio, so we're even on that score. Everybody's got to start somewhere.
Cheers!
|
|
Areoss
Member
Posts: 17
I Am A(n): Aspiring Voice Actor, Writer, Singer
Pronouns: he/him
|
Post by Areoss on Mar 7, 2018 5:19:06 GMT -8
Checked in with them, turns out their shipping was a little too expensive, so I've grabbed the components that I need from StoreDJ instead.
What I've got ordered at the moment: An AT2020 Microphone, the Focusrite USB Interface, an XLR cable to connect the two together. Is there anything else that I need for a first time setup? I've already got headphones and the focusrite comes with Abbleton, anything else you guys can think I need?
|
|
|
Post by benedict on Mar 7, 2018 15:14:00 GMT -8
That should be plenty to get you going. Past that look into room treatment to control reverberation and have a blast!
|
|
|
Post by mydilsian on Jul 20, 2018 4:31:05 GMT -8
Been looking at purchasing the Rode NT-USB which after seeing and trying out, fell in live with. But have since seen that Amazon Basics have released two microphones and the reviews all seem pretty positive though unspecific, was wondering if anyone on here has any experience with these?
|
|