Microphones for... hardcore vocals?

[AaronHall]

Hi guys, first post here.

Question. Is the Audio-Technica AT 2020 a good mic to be using for harsh metal vocals? I just bought this thing and am new to recording equipment, so any feedback would be appreciated.

Additionally, my budget for a mic currently is around 100-230$.

Mic suggestions are welcome, and all that.

[Ed Driscoll]

It’s always fun to talk about microphones, but the reality is that the room you are using it in, and the context of how you are recording is equally as important as the mic itself. Based on its Amazon page, and the fact that Alan Parsons, in his book, The Art & Science of Sound Recording, has raved about its big brother, the AT-4033, as “a great general-purpose mic. With a higher output level than many other condensers and a slightly enhanced top end response, it’s great for many vocal applications,” the 4020 could be fine for your application.

 

But are you recording with a full band? Are you building up something track by track yourself, with say, drum loops or a drum machine, individual guitar and bass parts, and then the vocal on top of the layer cake? In either case, It depends on the quality of your room. If the acoustics allow for it, a condenser mic like the AT-4020 and a decent pre-amp will give your voice a bit more high-end. But condenser mics  are often akin to the wide angle lens on a camera. Back in 2015, when I wrote a product review on the Reflexion portable vocal booth, I transcribed a quote from David Stewart of Sweetwater, when he interviewed Mitch Gallagher about how he built his product studio in an hour-long YouTube interview:

Quote

It really is vital to [treat the room before recording in it]. Sometimes what I tell people who want to get a good recording sound with microphones, is to start with the player and that’s usually the most important thing, and then the instrument, and then the next thing is the acoustics. It’s sort of in that order, in my estimation. Look, I’m VP of sales at Sweetwater. I would love to sell everybody these really expensive great microphones -- and they are great -- and they do sound good. And they’re going to pick up your crappy room really well, and reproduce all that nastiness really well. So boy, I just can’t say enough how important it is to go ahead and tackle those acoustic issues right away.

 You don't need a project studio as elaborate as Gallagher's just to record vocals if you're, saying, laying down guitar tracks via something like the Pod or amp modelling software. But when it comes time for vocals, a condenser mic, if not recorded in an acoustically treated room, really needs something like the Reflexion filter or the GIK “PIB” portable isolation booth and a couple of duvets behind it to minimize the room.

 

If you're not prepared to treat your room to reduce reverb and slap, consider a dynamic cardioid mic. It won't have the same high-end bite, but it's a much more narrow-focused beam and will minimize room nastiness. The "lowly" Shure SM58, or the Shure SM7B Dynamic Vocal Microphone going into a Cloudlifter pre-amp might be much better choices than a condenser if recording in an untreated room.

[AaronHall]

Wow, that's a really good answer. Thanks. I think I'll invest in something like the PIB in the long run. I will need to be a very portable person in the coming years, and I can take that with me, without having to sacrifice a better sound.

 

I'll clarify, it is currently just me doing vocals, although soon I'll be working with a buddy of mine who does guitar. Still, I expect to really only need equipment to reliably record myself.

 

I looked up the AT-4020 you mentioned. Did you mean the AT-4021?

[angine]

I found audio-technica ath-m50x review on https://bluebuzzmusic.com/audio-technica-ath-m50x-review/ not so long ago and ordered them for my home studio. Hope it will be useful for you too. I'm new in music production but these headphones are my favorite

[Tandem Unicycle]

Make sure to not use any sensitive microphones, such as ribbons. You'll break the thing!