New Studio Mic and Preamp

[Stab Frenzy]

From what I've heard about the Audio Technica LDC's they're somewhat of a jack of all trades master of none kind of thing. Where other mics might sound better and more specialised on certain voices from what I've heard the At4050/4033 series tends to do well on almost any voice but not really BRILLIANTLY on any.

I've heard that generalisations are usually wrong.

[tekkentool]

From what I've heard about the Audio Technica LDC's they're somewhat of a jack of all trades master of none kind of thing. Where other mics might sound better and more specialised on certain voices from what I've heard the At4050/4033 series tends to do well on almost any voice but not really BRILLIANTLY on any.

I've heard that generalisations are usually wrong.

Funny. I heard the opposite

[krzeppa]

From what I've heard about the Audio Technica LDC's they're somewhat of a jack of all trades master of none kind of thing. Where other mics might sound better and more specialised on certain voices from what I've heard the At4050/4033 series tends to do well on almost any voice but not really BRILLIANTLY on any.

My friend uses an AT4033 to record the vocals for Android Lust, and I really like the way hers sound. I would be more than satisfied I could get our female vocals to sound the same.

I'm pretty sure with the AT4033, along with one of the preamps that Stab recommended, I will be quite happy..

[krzeppa]

I just wanted to thank everyone for their input. It was really helpful.
I ordered the Golden Age Pre 73 and the Audio Technica AT4033 the other day. I was able to play around with them a little already, and boy the are going to make a huge difference! My wife voice sounds so much better and fits perfectly into the mix now. The coloration that the GAP 73 adds exactly what I was hoping it would do. Her voice was taken to another level. Thanks Stab for recommending the GAP. I would have never considered otherwise.
As for the Studio Dynamic Mic, I still haven't made up mind between the SM7B or the RE-20. I did like the song Stab put a link to that showed the female using the GAP and an SM57. Perhaps I will see what I sound like on the 57 and decide if I still want to upgrade or not.
Once again, thanks for all the input....you guys are great!

[madtheory]

FWIW, I recorded all of these vocals with the RE-20:
http://pollybarrett.bandcamp.com/

[krzeppa]

FWIW, I recorded all of these vocals with the RE-20:
http://pollybarrett.bandcamp.com/

very nice! Thanks for the link! This has now got me thinking a little deeper. I've been doing more research, and I went to a music shop by my work....I'm beginning to think I would like to go the RE-20 route. It appears to be such a nice well rounded mic. I also think it would fit my vocals well. Thanks again for the suggestions!

FWIW here is one of my tracks so you can get an idea of my vocal style....This was recorded with an SM57 straight into the Mackie Onyx....I thought it was okay, but now I know I can do better....thinking the RE-20 might be a good fit for me.

[Stab Frenzy]

The RE-20 is a nice choice, but try out an M-88 and SM-7B as well at the same time (as well as a Heil PR-30) as they're similar and also worth a listen.

[madtheory]

Beyer 88 and 201 are fab mics. But the really great thing about the RE20 is the rejection is excellent. So you can leave the speakers on when overdubbing the vocal, no need for headphones. Just "point" the back of the mic at the speakers. ONly slightly more spill than you'd get with cans. Suits a lot of singers, they can actually pitch properly this way.

[themilford]

Beyer 88 and 201 are fab mics. But the really great thing about the RE20 is the rejection is excellent. So you can leave the speakers on when overdubbing the vocal, no need for headphones. Just "point" the back of the mic at the speakers. ONly slightly more spill than you'd get with cans. Suits a lot of singers, they can actually pitch properly this way.

Very handy indeed. Love my RE20... however I think the M201 might be a tad more versatile as your only dynamic cardioid... as It behaves a little more like a regular dynamic.

If I had to pick one mic from each category/type here's my list. In terms of utilization.

Ribbon: Beyer M130 (only because having fig-8 is so useful, otherwise the M160 sounds "better")
Dynamic: Beyer M201
LDC: AT4033
SDC: any small AT omni... preferably a pair.

I can record a whole band or do pretty much anything small-scale with this set-up.... A pair of omnis, a clean and accurate LDC, any Beyer Ribbon and any good sounding high-SPL dynamic like a MD421, M201, RE-20 or Heilsound (read as: anything BUT SM-57s!)