Which mic should i buy

They also need no phantom power to work see the 'Phantom Power' box for details , which makes them very popular for live use, but working against them is the fact that their high-end response isn't so good as a typical capacitor mic and they are also relatively insensitive. In practical terms, this means that sounds relying on a lot of high-end detail, such as cymbals, acoustic guitars, pianos and even some voices can sound restricted in the upper frequency ranges if recorded via a typical dynamic mic, though there are exceptions which have a more extended frequency response.

Typically, though, dynamic mics are good up to around kHz, above which their sensitivity tends to drop off quite drastically. The overall sensitivity of the mic determines how much gain you have to add on the mixer or mic preamp to bring the output up to the required level and, while dynamic mics are adequately sensitive for close-miked vocals and fairly loud instruments, they struggle with more distant sounds or quieter acoustic instruments.

In these situations you have to add more gain at the mixer and more gain invariably equates to more background hiss. Although a condenser mic will usually be the best first buy for the home studio, if you decide to go for a dynamic mic then the Shure SM57 and Sennheiser MD are both industry-standard microphones with good all-round performance.

Photo: Mark Ewing Capacitor mics or at least those used in studios fall into two categories — true capacitor mics and back-electrets. A true capacitor mic uses a very thin film to form the diaphragm, coated with a conductive metal such as gold, and, because there is no heavy voice coil attached to the diaphragm, it puts up less resistance to being moved at high frequencies.

The diaphragm forms part of an electrical capacitor and is charged via a polarising voltage enabling it to convert movement to a change in voltage. Phantom power is needed to drive the on-board preamp electronics and to polarise the capsule. A back-electret mic may use a similarly constructed diaphragm and can produce the same level of performance as a conventional capacitor microphone, though models designed for use with batteries are usually less sensitive than their 'phantom power only' counterparts, especially if they are designed for live use.

The principle of operation is similar to that of a conventional capacitor mic, except that, instead of needing an external polarising voltage, the capsule's back-plate is covered with a material that carries a permanent electrical charge within a highly insulating film the electret material.

An example of a popular back-electret mic that offers the same performance as a regular studio capacitor model is the Audio Technica Capacitor mics are used in the studio for most vocal and acoustic instrument recording as well as for drum overheads. They may also be used for recording electric guitar, where they deliver a useful alternative to the dynamic-mic sound.

Although mics can be bought with omni, cardioid or figure-of-eight pickup patterns and every stage in between , the cardioid response is the most useful in a project studio, as it excludes more of the room sound and spill from off-axis sources. Omni mics have a more natural, open sound than cardioids, but pick up equally in all directions and so tend to be used only when the room has a particularly supportive sound or where there is little risk of spill from other sources.

Cardioid and figure-of-eight mics both exhibit a bass tip-up when used close to the recorded source, called the proximity effect, but omni mics don't suffer from this and so may be used very close to the sound source without the tone becoming more bass heavy. Here you can see the relative sizes of typical large-diaphragm and small-diaphragm mic capsules. Photo: Mark Ewing Much is made of the way a mic's diaphragm diameter affects its tonal attributes, but this is more subtle than you might expect.

As a rule, large-diaphragm mics have a slightly fuller sound, but are less accurate when picking up off-axis sounds. For example, in omni mode, a large-diaphragm mic may suffer noticeable high-end loss when used 90 degrees off axis. Conventional wisdom has it that large diaphragm mics around one inch in diameter are best for close-miked sounds, such as studio vocals and guitar amps, whereas smaller diaphragm mics typically 0.

Having said that, either type of mic can produce perfectly acceptable results in either situation, so where you can only afford one mic, large-diaphragm cardioid models are a safe bet, as they should give good results most of the time. The AKG C back-electret mic can be powered either from a normal phantom supply, or from a 9V battery fitted inside the mic casing.

The option of battery power could be very useful if your mixer or recording channel has no phantom powering option. Photo: Mark Ewing The term 'phantom' was coined because no additional wiring is needed to carry the power from the power source to the microphone — it is passed along the microphone cable using the same wires that carry the audio signal.

Phantom powering is only possible with balanced wiring systems the cables have two cores and one outer screen and most studio mixing consoles have their own internal phantom power supplies that feed their microphone inputs.

Depending on the mixer, the phantom power may be globally switched or switched per channel. Separate phantom power supplies are available some running from multiple batteries for mobile use , and all serious microphone preamplifiers also have integral phantom powering.

This is where you can prevent low frequency build up from causing problems in your recording. As I mentioned, that can get expensive. To keep some money in your pockets, one tried and true method, believe it or not, is a simple blanket fort.

My personal favorite is to also flip up my mattress to help absorb even more of the ricochetting sound. If all else fails, you can always try to fix what you have in post with software. Ever wonder why lavalier mics are always positioned right under the chin in the chest area? Some of them can even provide the phantom power needed for condenser microphones. The most common XLR cable for microphones feature 3 pins which you can plug into the Scarlett 2i2.

This little device will take full advantage of phantom power and give your dynamic mic all the power it needs with none of the noise. While condenser microphones usually need some extra juice in the form of phantom power, high-end dynamic microphones can also need a little help.

You can read all about it in our full review , but it basically just gives the audio signal a little boost before it reaches your interface to be recorded. Video and voice chat apps compress your audio as it moves across the series of tubes that is the internet, making the benefits of a pristine audio setup more or less moot, after a certain point at least.

If even that is a little daunting to you, even a decent gaming headset will make a big difference. It's quite likely that it's the acoustic echo cancellation built in to the video conferencing software that's not allowing you both to speak at the same time. If you both try switching to using headsets with boom microphones, that might help.

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I am a teacher and I teach on line Is there a mic that will let us both talk and be heard at the same time? Features Microphones. You may also like. How do noise cancelling headphones work?

What is a telecoil and how does it work? How to clean headphones and earbuds September 28, Read our full Sontronics Solo review. Not every budget can stretch to pro-level prices, yet the burst in popularity of streaming and podcasting has seen a surge in demand for decent quality, simple bus-powered microphones. The iRig Mic Studio is equally at home on a portable device as a laptop or computer, and the price-to-performance balance makes this a very attractive option for anyone on a budget looking to get into recording.

Now the company has gone back to the old name with a recently-released NT1 model that looks very similar to the NT1A but has actually been completely redesigned from the ground up — the only component in common with the NT1A being the mesh grille. So, what does that redesign involve? First up there's the new HF6 capsule, designed to feature a sound signature similar to vintage favourites but exhibiting extremely low noise.

Then there's the fact that the transducer is suspended inside the microphone using Rycote's Lyre system, which should minimise external vibrations. Rode also claims that the NT1 is the world's quietest 1-inch cardioid condenser mic due to the high-grade electronics keeping the self-noise level down to 4.

Read our full Rode NT1 review. The AE is a broad-application high-SPL cardioid design, so should be ideal for percussion, drums, guitar amps and brass.

The weighty brass casing and top grille feel robust, and the screw-tight rubberised clip should see off any wandering drum sticks while providing some mechanical isolation. The proprietary double-dome diaphragm improves high-frequency and transient response. The off-axis frequency response is also reasonably linear up to degrees, and not bad even at degrees off-axis, which could certainly be beneficial when setting up a multi-miked drum kit. Read our full Audio-Technica AE review.

The MV7 is ideal for these applications, with a few neat tricks on hand to make the recording experience as simple and rewarding as possible. We particularly like the complementary MOTIV app, which allows you to choose specific vocal presets to give your sound a professional sheen. Sure, it can handle these applications at a push, but this is a speech-specific microphone and, at that, the MV7 is a highly capable option indeed.

Read the full Shure MV7 review. The Aston Origin may be competitively priced, but it possesses a degree of originality that is uncommon in this range.

The Origin is a fixed pattern cardioid condenser and is the smaller of Aston's two mics: the larger Spirit is a multi-pattern condenser with an extra 10dB of pad available. There are two switches on the stainless steel casing: 10dB pad and 80Hz low-cut filter.

This latter feature means there's no need for a mic clip, though this does limit angle choices to the capabilities of the stand. Read our full Aston Microphones Origin review. The AKG C is a large diaphragm condenser which will excel at everything from guitar amps to acoustic instruments, pianos and vocals. For home studio owners keen to invest in a solid, general-purpose studio microphone, the AKG C represents excellent value for money.

Read the full AKG C review. Like many large capsule condensers, omni mode on the sEa II is unlikely to be this mic's forte, and the MkII's response shows a noticeable dip 6dB around the 5kHz mark. However, in use this wasn't that obvious, and is possibly compensated slightly by the gentle boost above 7kHz.

Either way, both patterns are useful inclusions, and save you the trouble of buying or setting up another mic, should you want to try out different patterns. Overall, sE's upgrade is a success, and combined with the multi-pattern option, the a MkII is more desirable than ever.

OK, the multi-pattern capability has pushed up the price a bit, but there's always the fixed cardioid version if your budget's tight. Issues with feedback rejection and handling noise have to be balanced against tradeoffs in sound quality. In short, yes. The high frequency range is present and well defined, without the harsh hype and phase-shift peakiness that some cheaper condenser mics either display or attempt to mask with an overall HF pull-down.

Read our full AKG C review. As one of the best-respected names in microphones we were expecting good things from the Neumann TLM This large diaphragm condenser promises superlative performance for vocals, and it does not disappoint. Offering crystal clear reproduction across the frequency range, with a nice bump around the 6 kHz mark, the TLM is a specialist mic which will do wonders for your mixes.

All told this is an ideal investment for anyone looking to upgrade their recording gear and take their tracks to a new level. Read the full Neumann TLM review. Electronically, the NTR is active, running from 48V phantom power and has a built-in transformer that offers a high output so that the mic is not so finickity about preamp requirements as other ribbon mics and can, a fact borne out by our tests, be used with a wide range of preamps without having to turn the gain up to noise-generating levels.

Internal shock mounting results in there being no need for an external suspension cradle, which helps with placement and, even though this is quite a heavy mic, the included compact mount which attaches to its base works great at holding it at any angle on a mic stand with little pressure needed to firm it up. On a variety of sound sources we found the mic to deliver a very natural representation of whatever was put in front of it with plenty of low-end and a clear top with a natural roll off, rather than the often overdone brightness designed into some condensers.

Read our full Rode NTR review. The TS stands for Twin System: it works either in regular multipattern mic mode, or in dual mode, providing independent access to both diaphragm outputs. This allows adjustment of the pickup pattern after recording and also opens up some stereo recording options. In dual mode the second diaphragm output is accessed via a miniature three-pin connector on the side of body, and in the carry case there's a mini three-pin XLR breakout cable as well as accessories such as foam windshield, suspension cradle, mic pouch and a rather nifty magnetic pop shield.

All told, it's a well put together and stylish package. So in theory, if you can emulate them with software then you should be on to a winner. There have been a few plugs over the years which have claimed to give one mic the character of another but, given the limitations of the original mic, coupled with any number of mic pres that could have been used, plus the quality of the interface that recorded it, most of them have been pretty disappointing.

Slate Digital have taken that idea and built a complete system which removes as many of those variables as possible.

With everything plugged up, the first thing that's obvious with the Aria is just how natural it sounds. There's definitely a slight presence lift, but this is in the upper mids rather than right into sibilant territory.

Beyond this there's no high frequency hyping, or the brittleness that plagues mics of that ilk. So, one's attention is drawn to the lows and low mids. These feel solid and although there is a small proximity effect, it's not at all overbearing. In use we feel the cardioid polar pattern is pretty broad both in horizontal and vertical directions.

So the sweet spot is large, which is particularly useful for vocals and acoustic guitars. On vocals the Aria delivers a faithful sound, and when you dig in with more forceful delivery it responds very well. With acoustic guitar it's easy to capture a non-boomy sound, and once again the non-hyped sound is great. The smooth response also lends itself to complex sounds such as guitar amp , strings and percussion.

Read our full Sontronics Aria review. With a new large diaphragm condenser mic there's rarely anything unusual to discuss. After all, the focus is typically on the general frequency response, pick up pattern, build quality and sound. Audio Technica's AT ticks all the boxes of a typical high end phantom powered condenser mic with its discrete component design, low noise, high SPL handling and decent shock mount.

Look closer, however, and you will find some special touches. The noise figure is exceptional and the quick release cradle beautifully designed more later. Also worth mentioning is the advanced internal capsule decoupling mechanism and the fact that it's percent hand built and inspected.