I seek a condenser mic with great value.

Wiseguy

I've been writing and composing music for years now, but I've never really gotten my shit out there due to laziness and a lack of vital equipment to record with. I've already got great programs for sequencing and whatnot (Sonar, Sound Forge, etc). But now, since I've got the money and the motivation, I have decided to invest in a good condenser mic for the computer. I'm willing to spend $250 max and of course, I'm not looking for professional studio quality. Just something that will record efficiently without all the annoying buzzing and distortion that usually comes with shitty mics.

Suggestions from anybody would be great. Though, suggestions from fellow musicians would be especially lovely.

kingmetal

how do you plan on plugging this condenser mic into your computer?

tony_important

What are you planning on recording?
If you're going to be doing some acoustic stuff/mic'd amps I would recommend the SM-57
For vocals, you could use the same one, or an SM-58.

Good mics, not too bad for price.

(I know they're dynamic. But I'm just offering based on what the OP might be recording)

racyrefinedraj

Bang for the buck, This Mic is fantastic.

Way under your budget, so get yourself a decent mixer with phantom power while you are at it.

Pheezer

I'm pretty sure if you get a condenser mic you'll need phantom power which means a mixer or an external sound module for your PC. Which is gonna cost some money. If you're going to be using a stock sound card's line-in, well, you're not going to get so much out of your mic/mixer.

EggyToast

If you simply want to plug your mic in to your "mic input," get a Sony mic like this. They're commonly used as portable mics for minidisc recorders, but as they use the 1/8" jack they're simple to plug into a soundcard.

Of course, if you want a mic that actually sounds good, and not just "not bad," you're looking to spend at least $200 for a condenser mic and another $50-100 for a preamp, since it sounds like you don't have one. The Røde NT1a is a very good condenser mic for the price. And if you simply want a way to get a decent mic into your computer, then this or this is what you need to essentially "plug your mic into your computer."

It's funny that you have these music programs that cost so much yet never invested any money in basic recording hardware. Of course, if you do get some decent mics, you need mic stands for them as well.

kingmetal

I'm so glad to hear someone recommend the MXL 990.

if you do want to spend the extra money and get the NT1A, I would suggest you actually not buy it and buy an AKG Perception 200 instead. I have both and the Perception 200 is so much better for the same price.

Wiseguy

I just realized now while looking up info about condenser mics that I do need a mixer. I'm just that oblivious on the topic of recording equip. Well, thanks for all the recommendations and I will check it all out. Guess I'm gonna have to invest in a mixer also. Oh well.

blincoln

You don't necessarily need a mixer. I have an old PreSonus BlueTube that's just two XLR inputs, tube preamp/phantom power, and outputs.

And yes, I use it with two MXL 990s I got for super cheap.

kingmetal

blincoln wrote: »

You don't necessarily need a mixer. I have an old PreSonus BlueTube that's just two XLR inputs, tube preamp/phantom power, and outputs.

And yes, I use it with two MXL 990s I got for super cheap.

this is true, you could get a pre-amp and use adapters to go into the line-in of your soundcard. Presonus makes some really dirt cheap pre-amps. they sound like balls, but they're dirt cheap.

mooshoepork

Other than recording to your pc, what are other options? I am also looking for a nice condenser to record acoustic guitar, and a good pre-amp. My sound-card however is on board.

Pheezer

There are external sound modules that connect via USB or Firewire that you can use to get high quality recordings. They're popular because they let you record on the go with a laptop, and because you can often rackmount them, or put them on a desk where they're a lot more accessible than a card in the back of a PC would ever be. M-Audio makes a wide range of very high quality devices, and some of them are pretty reasonably priced.

matisyahu

anybody have an opinion on this (posted earlier in the thread) or this ? i'd heard that the line 6 has less latency problems. is there other software that performs similar modeling functions?

virgilsamms

I have a Presonus Firepod and a RODE NT2a, and both of those perform great for me, so I guess I'd recommend the manufacturers even if you're looking for slightly cheaper versions. I've heard good things about M-Audio and Focusrite as well.