Some good and affordable recording microphones
Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2005 2:47 am
I listen to several podcasts and visit the popular PodcastAlley Forum on a regular basis. I have no personal experience in podcasting yet, nor am I a professional audio producer, but I believe that what many podcasters claim about audio equipment is valid. I'd like to share what I have learnt so far.
It has been claimed that good animation depends for 50% on good sound quality, especially for the voices. And good sound quality begins with good sound recording. This means you may need to pay some attention to how you record your sound and buy the audio equipment that is best suited for your personal circumstances and available budget.
For profesional studios buying audio equipment is probably not much of a problem. They can afford somewhat pricy studio audio equipment. For indie animators on a smaller budget and without a sound studio, however, this might not be the case. They have to spend every dime as if it were their last.
And BTW studio equipment will not do in most cases, because I guess indie animators typically work from home. At best the recording room has been sound-proofed with boxes normally used to put eggs in (which deflects the sound). Studio microphones are so sensitive, that they will pick up even the slightests sounds. So, if you're recording at home, you'll need something else.
Luckily, nowadays, the quality of lower-end microphones has gone up and practically everyone can afford a microphone that delivers quality sound. Audio podcasters are now at the forefront of a revolution in radio-on-demand delivery and because they are on a tight budget as well, they have to be just as picky what to use for audio equipment as indie animators. I think animators can learn something from those podcasters.
Heil PR-20 — A microphone many (but not all) podcasters particularly like is the Heil PR-20. I think it is good and relatively affordable mic for high quality voice recording.
It is a directional (cardioid) dynamic microphone (which means not batteries needed, and sturdier than a condensor mic) and costs 160 USD (retails at 125 USD at cheapham.com). This seems a lot, but it isn't fur such a high quality microphone. It has a 3-pin XLR connector, which means you'll probable need a special cable if you want to connect to consumer sound equipment.
However, you probably want to connect it to a mixer board, so you can mix several sound sources at once. And good mixers have a XLR mic connector. Behringer UB mixers are good and affordable. You can plug in at least two mics, so two voice actors can talk at the same time, if you ever needed to.
Shure SM57 — Many professional and semi-professionals (podcasters) prefer the Shure SM57, which has been very popular for a long time as a sound-stage microphone (voice and instrumental). Just like the Heil PR-20, it is a uni-directional dynamic microphone. The Shure SM57 retails around 89 USD, which is a fine price. It has a good reputation, but the quality of the Heil seems to be definitely better. The Shure SM57 has a XLR mic connector as well, so you'll probably need a mixer board as well.
Samson USB mic — If you want to have a really cheap all-in-one quality product for around 80 USD retail price, you could opt for the Samson C01U USB Studio Condenser microphone. It plugs in right into the USB port of your computer and you'll need no extra equipment (mixer board), because it all has been built in. As you can guess from the description, this is a condenser microphone, which normally needs external power.
However, all the equipment you normally need for a condenser mic are built in. Normally, condenser microphones need special power arrangements (so-called phantom power) in your mixer board to function, so using a condenser mic is more expensive than a dynamic mic. Therefore, this particular studio microphone seems to be a good deal.
XLR or USB — A possible disadvantage of the USB mic is that you need a computer nearby to record. Although it is certainly possible to record audio without a computer, almost everyone seems to record using a computer, so for practical purposes the setup with an USB mic is just as valid as with a separate mic and a mixer board. However, if you need a mobile setup to record sound (e.g. nature soundscapes or city soundscapes), you will need an additional dynamic microphone (unless you are prepared to haul a laptop along and only record on warm and dry days).
So-called "balanced microphones" (with a shielded —read: XLR— connection) can operate in an electronically noisy environments and the microphone cord can be quite long without picking up any noticable noise. An USB mic can be not further away than the length of the USB cable. So in theory, with XLRs you can record in one room, while the computer is in another room, thus preventing the noise of the computer being recorded. The USB mic doesn't have this luxury.
Furthermore, the sound quality coming out off the Samson USB mic is not as high as that of the Shure SM57 or the Heil PR-20, although the Samson USB has a larger diaphragm than the dynamic microphones. It seems that quality has a price.
Studio microphones — An affordable quality studio microphone, like the Behringer B-2 Pro will give you excellent quality sound, but will lighten your wallet by 190 USD (excl. VAT) and even more for the more expensive mixer board with phantom power. An additional problem with such a typical studio microphone is that it really picks up every sound in your room, so you'll have to sound-proof your recording spot more heavily than with the cardioid mics. In effect, you'll need to create a sound studio to be able to record effectively with a studio microphone (which seems logical if you think about it: studio microphone).
Inputting into your computer — I only want to point out that in many cases your built-in audiocard will be your bottleneck. In many cases an external soundcard is a real improvement over what typical consumer PCs have to offer sound-wise. It would be unwise to invest in a quality microphone and mixer and have the sound quality depend on the low-end soundcard in your computer. And I'm told that a firewire connected external soundcard is much more reliant than an USB connected soundcard, so Mac-users are at an advantage here.
An alternative to recording with your computer (or with an external soundcard connected to your computer) is with an MP3 recorder, like the Endirol R-1. This is an expensive solution (which I would not recommend, unless you really need it), because you'll still need all your equipment —computer, mixer, microphone(s)—and this MP3/WAVE recorder. It uses flashcards to record and those cost several hundreds of USD per GB. The Edirol is shipped with only a 64 MB flashcard, which is only suitable for low-quality recording (or only a few minutes at high quality WAVE). It is battery-powered, so you can use it anywhere you want (provided you use one of the mentioned dynamic mics and a special XLR to 1/8 inch stereo phone plug cable).
Some last advice — People always have their personal preferences. While some people like the sound of a particular microphone, you might not. So, always test before you buy and try to be as well-informed as possible before you step into a profesional audio store or buy online.
Further reading — I hope this article-in-a-message will prevent that you would use (or buy) just any audio equipment. You have to consider carefully before you buy. Additional information can be found in this online article:
• What Microphone Do I Get?
It has been claimed that good animation depends for 50% on good sound quality, especially for the voices. And good sound quality begins with good sound recording. This means you may need to pay some attention to how you record your sound and buy the audio equipment that is best suited for your personal circumstances and available budget.
For profesional studios buying audio equipment is probably not much of a problem. They can afford somewhat pricy studio audio equipment. For indie animators on a smaller budget and without a sound studio, however, this might not be the case. They have to spend every dime as if it were their last.
And BTW studio equipment will not do in most cases, because I guess indie animators typically work from home. At best the recording room has been sound-proofed with boxes normally used to put eggs in (which deflects the sound). Studio microphones are so sensitive, that they will pick up even the slightests sounds. So, if you're recording at home, you'll need something else.
Luckily, nowadays, the quality of lower-end microphones has gone up and practically everyone can afford a microphone that delivers quality sound. Audio podcasters are now at the forefront of a revolution in radio-on-demand delivery and because they are on a tight budget as well, they have to be just as picky what to use for audio equipment as indie animators. I think animators can learn something from those podcasters.
Heil PR-20 — A microphone many (but not all) podcasters particularly like is the Heil PR-20. I think it is good and relatively affordable mic for high quality voice recording.
It is a directional (cardioid) dynamic microphone (which means not batteries needed, and sturdier than a condensor mic) and costs 160 USD (retails at 125 USD at cheapham.com). This seems a lot, but it isn't fur such a high quality microphone. It has a 3-pin XLR connector, which means you'll probable need a special cable if you want to connect to consumer sound equipment.
However, you probably want to connect it to a mixer board, so you can mix several sound sources at once. And good mixers have a XLR mic connector. Behringer UB mixers are good and affordable. You can plug in at least two mics, so two voice actors can talk at the same time, if you ever needed to.
Shure SM57 — Many professional and semi-professionals (podcasters) prefer the Shure SM57, which has been very popular for a long time as a sound-stage microphone (voice and instrumental). Just like the Heil PR-20, it is a uni-directional dynamic microphone. The Shure SM57 retails around 89 USD, which is a fine price. It has a good reputation, but the quality of the Heil seems to be definitely better. The Shure SM57 has a XLR mic connector as well, so you'll probably need a mixer board as well.
Samson USB mic — If you want to have a really cheap all-in-one quality product for around 80 USD retail price, you could opt for the Samson C01U USB Studio Condenser microphone. It plugs in right into the USB port of your computer and you'll need no extra equipment (mixer board), because it all has been built in. As you can guess from the description, this is a condenser microphone, which normally needs external power.
However, all the equipment you normally need for a condenser mic are built in. Normally, condenser microphones need special power arrangements (so-called phantom power) in your mixer board to function, so using a condenser mic is more expensive than a dynamic mic. Therefore, this particular studio microphone seems to be a good deal.
XLR or USB — A possible disadvantage of the USB mic is that you need a computer nearby to record. Although it is certainly possible to record audio without a computer, almost everyone seems to record using a computer, so for practical purposes the setup with an USB mic is just as valid as with a separate mic and a mixer board. However, if you need a mobile setup to record sound (e.g. nature soundscapes or city soundscapes), you will need an additional dynamic microphone (unless you are prepared to haul a laptop along and only record on warm and dry days).
So-called "balanced microphones" (with a shielded —read: XLR— connection) can operate in an electronically noisy environments and the microphone cord can be quite long without picking up any noticable noise. An USB mic can be not further away than the length of the USB cable. So in theory, with XLRs you can record in one room, while the computer is in another room, thus preventing the noise of the computer being recorded. The USB mic doesn't have this luxury.
Furthermore, the sound quality coming out off the Samson USB mic is not as high as that of the Shure SM57 or the Heil PR-20, although the Samson USB has a larger diaphragm than the dynamic microphones. It seems that quality has a price.
Studio microphones — An affordable quality studio microphone, like the Behringer B-2 Pro will give you excellent quality sound, but will lighten your wallet by 190 USD (excl. VAT) and even more for the more expensive mixer board with phantom power. An additional problem with such a typical studio microphone is that it really picks up every sound in your room, so you'll have to sound-proof your recording spot more heavily than with the cardioid mics. In effect, you'll need to create a sound studio to be able to record effectively with a studio microphone (which seems logical if you think about it: studio microphone).
Inputting into your computer — I only want to point out that in many cases your built-in audiocard will be your bottleneck. In many cases an external soundcard is a real improvement over what typical consumer PCs have to offer sound-wise. It would be unwise to invest in a quality microphone and mixer and have the sound quality depend on the low-end soundcard in your computer. And I'm told that a firewire connected external soundcard is much more reliant than an USB connected soundcard, so Mac-users are at an advantage here.
An alternative to recording with your computer (or with an external soundcard connected to your computer) is with an MP3 recorder, like the Endirol R-1. This is an expensive solution (which I would not recommend, unless you really need it), because you'll still need all your equipment —computer, mixer, microphone(s)—and this MP3/WAVE recorder. It uses flashcards to record and those cost several hundreds of USD per GB. The Edirol is shipped with only a 64 MB flashcard, which is only suitable for low-quality recording (or only a few minutes at high quality WAVE). It is battery-powered, so you can use it anywhere you want (provided you use one of the mentioned dynamic mics and a special XLR to 1/8 inch stereo phone plug cable).
Some last advice — People always have their personal preferences. While some people like the sound of a particular microphone, you might not. So, always test before you buy and try to be as well-informed as possible before you step into a profesional audio store or buy online.
Further reading — I hope this article-in-a-message will prevent that you would use (or buy) just any audio equipment. You have to consider carefully before you buy. Additional information can be found in this online article:
• What Microphone Do I Get?
This sees EXACTLY all that I was looking for!!! THANK YOU very much for the info!!! 
I bought in the past a Shure Dynamic Mic for conection advantages and it was a very bad idea... I mean, the quality of the sound could be great, but it capted so low volume sound that you had to rise up the Gain to levels that finally you got more noise that voice... So long time ago I'm searching for an easy and good Condenser solution and this seems the best cooise! 
...They say that it must be too much "new" and try to convince to me with another products... But I'm almost sure that this mic can be the mic of my life 
jaja... Well, I only hope that this condenser microphone pick up the sound with MORE intensity than my Dynamic Shure PG-58, that practically I must put inside my mouth to receive my voice with enough intensity and then, even up the gain to levels that the noise is intolerable 
).