Mics & Pickups

[Rudi]

I want a condenser mic and/or acoustic pickups for recording the following:

Vocal

Acoustic violin

Acoustic guitar (nylon strung –therefore no magnetic types)

My Sure (stage) microphones are not suitable.

I have not heard a transducer type pickup for a long time and am not sure whether they are up to scratch (yet) or not.

The onboard mic in the recorder is not suitable because it picks up background noise such as my breathing (I can’t hold my breath long enough to finish the solos).

So, can anyone recommend a condenser mic?

And maybe a contact pickup suitable for violin and/or Spanish guitar? I’ve seen cheap ones on e-bay and expensive ones (Baggs etc) elsewhere.

[ATom2]

My Shure (stage) microphones are not suitable.

I'm not sure why you say this. Do you have something on the order of an SM57? Seems like that would do the trick.

[Rudi]

Yes I have a SM57 and an older Unisphere.

The manual for the recorder I use specifies that a powered condenser mic be used (2.5v).

[Retrosaurus Rex]

The SM57 is a dynamic mic, I don't know about the Unisphere... Depending on the quality of your voice and your mic technique it is possible to get excellent results with the SM57, but you need a condenser if your goal is to authentically capture acoustic instruments such as those described. It's hard to give very specific advice without knowing more about your situation. For example, the kind of music you're recording, particularly, how "dense" will the mix be? If one instrument is the focus it will be necessary to get a mic that faithfully captures the entire frequency range. Also, the sonic environment you're recording in... For example, I don't need a mic that faithfully captures every nuance of my neighbor's reggaeton music while I'm recording... Also, with a condenser mic you need phantom power, so you will need a pre-amp or a mixing board that can handle this. Each of these is an issue unto itself...

[ATom2]

Yes I have a SM57 and an older Unisphere.

The manual for the recorder I use specifies that a powered condenser mic be used (2.5v).

2.5 is an odd requirement, although I don't have the foggiest idea what is run in Europe. Anyway, I used to have one of these babies and it worked great. (Lost it somewhere)

Hey Mic!!!!

[Rudi]

2.5 is an odd requirement, although I don't have the foggiest idea what is run in Europe. Anyway, I used to have one of these babies and it worked great. (Lost it somewhere)

Hey Mic!!!!

Well Europe was probably not consulted. This is a tiny Boss / Rowland digital recorder. I had enough problems just finding an AC adaptor for it.

[ATom2]

Hello Rudi,

Welcome to the wonderful world of Roland. As some know, I use the Roland 1680. It came with 2 owners manuals, (quick start & Novel) and also an addenum which did little to correct the mistakes in the original volumes. Anyway, these manuals are quite good if you can understand Greek. I chose to learn by trial and error. Mostly error.

Moving on, I downloaded the owners manual for your unit. It is my understanding that you do not need a condensor mic. You can use your standard stage mics if you wish.

You can connect a plug-in powered condenser

mic to the LINE IN/MIC jack. This is just an option for using such a mic. Not a requirement

Perform the procedure given below to use the

plug-in powered microphone.

1.

Connect the plug-in powered microphone

to the LINE IN/MIC jack.

2.

Turn the power on as described in

“Turning the power on” (p. 24).

3.

Press [iNPUT] and then press [TR4] (EXT).

4.

Press [uTILITY].

5.

Use CURSOR [ ][ ] to access the

PlugInPower screen.

fig.06-020

6.

Use VALUE [+] to turn value ON.

If you want to turn value OFF, press [-].

7.

Press [uTILITY] (or [EXIT]) to return to the

Play screen.

If you select TR1–TR4, the data will be

imported in monaural, and if you select

TR12 or TR34, the data will be imported

in stereo.

For example, if you select TR12, the left

channel of the audio file is imported

into TR1, and the right channel of the

audio file is imported into TR2.

If you want to listen to these tracks in

stereo after it has been imported, set the

pan for TR1 to “L50,” and set the pan

for TR2 to “R50.” (p. 44)

Using plug-in powered

microphone

• A voltage of approximately 2.5 V can be

supplied from the LINE IN/MIC jack.

Unlike phantom power, this cannot supply

48 V.

• If PlugInPower is turned ON, you must

connect only a condenser mic that is

compatible with plug-in power. Connecting

any other device (dynamic microphone etc.)

may damage that device.

Leave this power source "off" if you use a "non-powered" mic.

The PlugInPower parameter is stored

individually for each song.

Rudi, I could be totally wrong here, but I don't think so. This is similar to my 1680.

[Rudi]

Tom, its a good job your in the USA, because if you were any closer I would be compelled to give you a hug. A horrifying prospect, I'm sure yould agree.

Looks like all I need then is a compatable lead then.

[Rudi]

Hang on. I've just checked, my mic is a SM58 not a SM57. I'm going to check out the specs of both...

[ATom2]

Hang on. I've just checked, my mic is a SM58 not a SM57. I'm going to check out the specs of both...

The 58 is actually a slightly better mic. The only problem is it will tend to pick up more sound around it. The 57 is more directional.

As far as the hug goes,.....just respect me in the morning!!!

[ATom2]

Here's some more information about Mics and Pickups

Mikes and Pickups

[Retrosaurus Rex]

Cheeky monkey...

[Rudi]

Cheeky monkey...

yes

[ATom2]

Whuuuut?