[Pings]

Hey looking for some microphone suggestions for voice and voice-over type stuff. I used to have a Behringer Xenyx Q502USB with an Audio Technica AT2020 setup but it burnt down late last year. I am just getting back on my feet and I would like to make a purchase this weekend. I was thinking about a Native Instruments Komplete Audio 1/AT2020 combo or a Focusrite Scarlett Solo 3rd Gen/AT2020 combo. The Rode NT-USB USB crossed my mind too. What are your thoughts and suggestions?

 

[ilovetoys]

i use a scarlett 3rd gen with a shure sm7b and a ss-1 pre-amp. I had the at2020 and was a great mic. My father is a musician and gave me a shure sm7b as a gift and that's the only reason I don't still use the at2020. I used it for streaming and gaming. People would constantly comment on how nice the mic sounded. 100% recommend it. I know it's a popular mic among streamers and youtubers as well.

My bad, didn't see the date on this.

 

[raoultrifan]

[QUOTE="ilovetoys, post: 15220238, member: 519187"[...]
My bad, didn't see the date on this.[/QUOTE]
Sep 26, 2019, right?

@Pings, you already have the AT2020, so I would suggest the Solo 3rd Gen instead of an USB mic. However, if you're sure you'll never need the Air-mode introduced on the 3rd-Gen and the 1-2dB improvement in THD and dynamics will not matter much for you, then you could also save some money and go with the Solo Gen2 as well (or get the 2i2 Gen2).

 

[PaganDL]

@Pings,

I suggest using audiotestkitchen.com to help you decide, it is a good resource.

Otherwise Lewitt has some good affordable mics for vocals & voice overs.

Hope you have a great day !

 

[Mightygrey]

I'm digging the AT2020 USB+, it saves me the hassle of having yet another box and power cord on my crowded desktop.

 

[The Fink]

I do voiceover stuff and I’m rocking a Warm Audio WA 87 and a SSL SSL2+ interface. The interface is good, but I can’t recommend the 87 enough. Best sub-1k voiceover mic on the market.

 

[Rackhour]

I've been curious about mics - assuming that they're quality equipment, do standing mics and headset-style mics have any inherent technical strengths and weaknesses?

The only stuff that's obvious to me are things like: headset-style has a consistently fixed distance and reduces desktop clutter, standing mics have more positional flexibility....and that's it.

 

[Mimic]

I've been curious about mics - assuming that they're quality equipment, do standing mics and headset-style mics have any inherent technical strengths and weaknesses?

The only stuff that's obvious to me are things like: headset-style has a consistently fixed distance and reduces desktop clutter, standing mics have more positional flexibility....and that's it.

Headphone mics are sometimes useless for quality audio as it is difficult to have a dedicated hi-res recording from an integrated headphone+mic (typically gaming headphones. Not all are bad, but I would say there are better methods to get the same or better audio). In the realm of newscasting and podcasting equipment, then you start to pick up some good gear that is used in a variety of applications.

I personally use track recorders (Zoom makes decent quality ones) or XLR mics with an audio interface.

 

[abheybir]

Blue Yeti is also one of the good options out there. One of my friend has it and is worth every penny.

 

[Paul Mohr]

Mics are really going to depend on what you are using it for and what kind of room you are using it in. If you are gaming, streaming or doing youtube stuff I really wouldn't go nuts on the quality because the compression normally nullifies any of the subtle qualities a more expensive set up will give you. Now if you recording music or doing professional voice overs that will get sent out to people on quality files then yes, it can make a difference.

Also consider what you are doing with it. Are you doing speech vocals, singing, trying to mic an instrument or what? There are different mics with different voicing made for specific needs. And what is your environment like? It is a quiet studio, a reflective room, a room with a lot of background noise like fans and you clicking on a keyboard or is it on a stage. Different mics have different sensitivity ratings and rejection levels. In my case I have a fairly "live" room with reverb and echoes. Plus background noise like my computer fans, cooling fans in the summer, my keyboard, traffic outside and other people in the house that might be making noise. For me a studio condenser mic is a poor choice. Sure they sound fantastic but they pick up EVERYTHING. That is what they are designed to do. Some of the usb mics like the blue yeti is the same way, it is a condenser mic and very sensitive. So instead I use an E835 Sen stage mic that is a dynamic mic. It is less sensitive and is better at rejecting background noise. I also use a dbx286s processor that has a compressor and noise gate built into it. You can do this with plug ins in windows as well. Or sometimes you can pull stuff out in post if you are not using it live.

In the end it depends on what your end goal is, how much you want to spend and how complicated you want it to be. For what I do my set is waay more expensive and complicated than it needs to be. When I am streaming to Second Life most people can't tell the difference between my expensive set up and my hyperx cloud II headset. However if I record them and play them back as a wave file is quite obvious which one sounds better.

 

[fhuang]

any place like head-fi for mic and recording? any suggestion for a simple rig? wired(cheaper and better quality i guess? i'm a headfier after all so mostly prefer wired) or wireless(easy to use?). both portable and stationary. mostly for vocals and will not be in a studio.

 

[Xoxoxcu]

Both the Native Instruments Komplete Audio 1/AT2020 combo and the Focusrite Scarlett Solo 3rd Gen/AT2020 combo are solid options. I've heard good things about the Rode NT-USB USB too. It really depends on your budget and what you're looking for. You might also want to check out some ASMR microphones reviews on https://asmrmicrophones.com/ for more options and insights.