Studio Monitors

LowFi

MIC PREAMPS

My first condenser — Studio Projects C1

It's easy to get taken over by the desire to buy new and expensive microphones. It's often referred to as "mic lust," which I certainly have experienced, especially while perusing a pro audio catalog. But nowadays there are numerous inexpensive, quality choices for those without a lot of cash.

A few years ago I saved up my money to buy the Studio Projects C1 condenser microphone, which was touted as poor man's Neumann U87. It cost me $239 from Sweetwater.com.

Getting my first real studio microphone was both exciting and frustrating. It was exciting because I finally had this impressive-looking microphone with wonderful 20 hz - 20 kHz specs. But I quickly discovered that there were down sides too. Because it was such a sensitive mic, it picked up computer and other ambient noise in my home studio. That was kind of a bummer. And I learned about the true meaning of the word "siblance."

I recorded a friend, a R&B/Gospel singer named Tina Mosley. Her S's sizzled way too much. Here's an example of Tina's voice on the Studio Projects C1.



Conversely I used the C1 to record my cousin Bob Day, who has a wonderful baritone voice. The recording, which was made using an AudioBuddy preamp to a Sharp mini-disc recorder, sounds great. I think the C1 really works for his voice.



So I learned that microphones have difference characteristics and sound differently on different voices. That's an important lesson to learn.

Do-It-Yourself

Homemade microphone with $3 Radio Shack electret mic element

A while back I made two small microphones using condenser microphone elements that cost just over $3 each. Altogether, with cables and connectors, the mics came to about $10 each. The mic elements (RS #270-090) are omnidirectional signal-to-noise ratios of 60dB.

Take a listen. I think these little microphones sound surprisingly good.

LISTEN TO THE HOMEMADE ELECTRET MICS

Examples of DIY microphones