"Help me decide what to buy" thread

Sober · Post by **Sober** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 3:06 pm

Allright. Mics. As of this writing, I have:

(2) AT3035's, which serve as my main guitar and vocal mics.
SM57
SM58
Peavey Diamond vocal mic (SM58 copy)
I've ordered a 55SH, waiting for its arrival

Basically, I feel like I need a good drum mic set. I've been shouting praises of the Fusion set from Audix, but I think I want to start with something a little nicer. The audio guy at my new job said the 57 set was good, but what about overheads? I'd like to get it all in a set, simply because they usually come in a cool case. But if I have to buy everything seperate, then so be it.

How about 4 beta57s, a beta 52, and a pair of SM81's? The 81 is damn expensive, but I'm not sure what else to do. I want this to be the only mic set I'll ever need to buy. Blue? Leaf?

Also, a really nice vocal mic.

ken · Post by **ken** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 4:20 pm

If you really must have a set, try the Earthworks set.

http://www.earthworksaudio.com/29.html

All those cheap premade packs have strengths and weaknesses. I don't think any of them are very good.

You are better off with a nice pair of overheads, or a nice stereo mic, a 57 for snare, something nice for kick and toms. There are a lot of good options, so it depends on the sound you are going for.

Ken

Sober · Post by **Sober** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 5:22 pm

Well, this is why I'm thinking about this:

Now that I have a real mobile setup capable of producing quality results, I'm going to try to sell the service. Go to little rich kid's garage, set up mics for them, and record their demo on site. Same thing for live performances.

A drum mic set that can operate in any environment, and will be apropriate for any style is what I'm looking for.

I've also heard rumors of a new Presonus product called a Firespread. It's not on the Presonus site, but supposedly my store got one today. More details once I get a good rundown on it.

ken · Post by **ken** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 7:08 pm

That's no reason to buy a drum mic pack. You can just as easily bring separate mics or just make your own nice Pelican case for them. What is your budget? I do well with my MXL 603s for over heads, 57 on snare, ATM25 on kick, and ATM pro 25s on toms. I can't stand the AKG D112, but some people like it. I also got a used Shure 91 for kick which has been pretty good, and very easy.

Oh, I want to try out the Sennheiser e609 on toms. I hear that is a good one.

Ken

Sober · Post by **Sober** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 7:31 pm

We occasionally used the D112 at the club, and I found it to have little attack. It was good for the R&B bands, though, as it has a big responsive bottom end. The best use I got out of that was using two mics on the kick. On the outside, I put the D112 up to the hole cut into the head. On the other sie, I put the kick mic that comes with the fusion set (f12 I think) right up next to where the beater struck. Eq'ed the d112 big and low, and the f12 high, and I had a nice full, snappy kick sound.

Anyway, I don't really trust the MXL name. I had a couple of their mics for one night and I wasn't really impressed.

I now have two of my buddies talking me towards a Taylor.

Leaf · Post by **Leaf** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 7:43 pm

I don't think I can offer any "advice", but I'll tell you what I use. I personally think dudes like Ken and BLUE have more knowledge of drum mics than me...

I've got a d112 on the kick, and a d112 (from ken cause he hated it so much!) on my 16" floor tom. The rack toms all have 57's, and the snare has a Beta57. I've been using my MXL 603 on the hi hat.

I had to give my overheads back to the buddy who lent them to me, and so I've been micing my ride with a beta 58 and the crashes over my hihats with an AKG c 418.

I need to get some more mics too! First some shit hot overheads, then a good mic for under the snare, then... more. always more....

Dan-O from Five-O · Post by **Dan-O from Five-O** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 11:05 pm

I can tell you from personal experience that the Shure SM 81's are very solid as drum overheads and acoustic guitar mics. I can also tell you from personal experience that Oktava makes a very solid condensor, but we only used it as an overhead drum mic and they were original Oktava's and not the new ones being branded with that name. I also have the D112 which as long as you're willing to spend time with it, works pretty well. Maybe more so in the studio than live, but in either case, it takes a willingness to work with it.

In reference to the Shure's or the Oktava's, they won't come cheap and may or may not have a case. But as Ken said, the case should be the least of your concerns.

ken · Post by **ken** » Mon Jan 30, 2006 2:08 am

I think Leaf gets a great drum sound on his recordings.

Not all MXL mics are good. In fact, we modded all of mine recently to make them sound better. I think the 603s are great on acoustic guitars and work fine as overheads. Especially for the money. I don't really like my V67G, but I use it on Erin, and you tell me if her vocals don't sound great.

Ken

Henrietta · Post by **Henrietta** » Wed Apr 05, 2006 2:44 pm

I'm gonna buy a new bass soon. Does anyone have any experience with these Goldtone Banjo deals? My local store doesn't have 'em in stock, so not much chance for me to try one out...

http://www.goldtone.com/products/detail ... ea2=bb-400

Me$$iah · Post by **Me$$iah** » Wed Apr 05, 2006 8:08 pm

Wow .

Henrietta, that looks amazing....I want one

Henrietta · Post by **Henrietta** » Thu Apr 06, 2006 10:53 am

Seriously, it looks pretty sweet.

Musician's friend has em for $650. The harmoney central & musician's friend reviews say it's both built & sounds great, but is neck-heavy and the thumbrest is kinda uncomfortable.... so I really want to try before I buy.

Meanwhile, last night I gave into temptation & picked up a used one of these (mentioned in the bass recommendations thread): http://www.ibanez.com/guitars/guitar.asp?model=SRX700

So, I guess now I won't be getting the Gold Tone anytime soon.

Sober · Post by **Sober** » Thu Apr 06, 2006 7:21 pm

GJ on the SRX700, that's a seriously sick bass. I wouldn't worry about not liking the goldtone, because if you didn't like it, someone on here is bound to like it and take it off your hands.

Speaking of basses, my t40 is under the knife. If the problem isn't fixable, I may need a new bass.

Screaming Poet · Post by **Screaming Poet** » Wed Apr 12, 2006 7:31 pm

I have a Warrick. I think it gets a pretty kickass sound.

Sober · Post by **Sober** » Wed Apr 12, 2006 7:32 pm

You mean a Warwick?

Screaming Poet · Post by **Screaming Poet** » Wed Apr 12, 2006 7:43 pm

yeah sorry Warwick

j$ · Post by j$ » Wed Apr 12, 2006 8:08 pm

Dionne Warwick?

Sober · Post by **Sober** » Fri Apr 14, 2006 1:39 pm

My t40 is back in action! Still needs some tweaking, but the performance has been greatly improved.

On topic: I know good hard-drive speed is important, but are external hd's worth a shit? And is that even an option for me, as I'm recording with a firewire interface? I'll see if it's possible to swap the one in my machine.

I need to do some upgrading on my laptop before I can really trust it to be a commercial resource. Ram is my biggest need, as I'm at 512. I'll want to jump to 2g. I'm allright with my processor at ~3.5G.

Drum mics, and at some point another Firepod to really expand my live capabilities are on the list.

ken · Post by **ken** » Fri Apr 14, 2006 2:40 pm

Fluffy recommended that Macally firewire enclosure to me, and I've put 7200 rpm drives in it and it works really well. Great for tracking with the laptop and mixing on the desktop.

Ken