My 1st Condensor Mic

Vocality

Finally decided on buying my first condensor mic after 10 months on the course and decided to buy Rode nt1a bundle, got it a really good price in the uk £135. In my opinion it's great value comes with pop shield, quality xlr cable and shock mount. This is a large diaphram condensor mic and only just set it up, noticed it replicates my voice quite accurately and having the convenience of being able to sing further away from the mic was useful compared to my dynamic mic.

It's a very sensative mic so may need to look at making an acoustic insulated booth of some sort though @doc_ramadani has the same mic and he mentioned it was a little harsh, reckon that was down to trebel boost circuitry and that can be adjusted by turning the mic offset reduces top end a little.

Well looking forward to experimenting with my new purchase, it certainly feels a decent quality build and with a 10 year warranty pretty good.


Vocality

HuduVudu

The only difference between men and boys are the price of their toys

Vocality

@HuduVudu Hi Shane Haha I knew you would have approved , not too expensive though, worked hard at my singing and you do have to reward yourself sometimes.

George

samw2019

Hi, nice going Rode make good equipment! I have a cheap Behringer condenser it's awesome for the money and condenser mic. really are great for recording. A booth proper is ideal I guess but companies make good acoustic guards that go behind the microphone and isolate the sound pretty well. I myself use a make shift guard out of cushions stuffed in a wardrobe to varying degrees of success but it seems to isolate the sound some and remove the bad acoustics of the room.

Vocality

Hi @samw2019 I think will go for the make shift option on booth setup just something to absorb unwanted acoustics.

Will experiment to find the best results.

HuduVudu

I say the neighbors can piss off

samw2019

The neighbors should be doing their LAH-AH's too!

Just saying, but, things that cause problems with acoustics are many uneven surfaces found in a room (books, chairs, desks, tvs and so on), metallic surfaces, glass. A few cushions in a semi circle around the back of the microphone, a wardrobe with doors opened being useful, seems to work. Then I apply digital reverb to my songs in my Reaper software. Nothing like a good room with good acoustics of course, but it works.

DogMeat

I'm a happy NT1 owner. My friend who works with +10k mics described is as "pretty decent". Thats a real compliment from him

Wigs

Im thinking of getting a dedicated recording mic, my girlfriend just told me the one I've been using is more for live acoustic. And I thought a condenser mic was a condenser mic😅 @Vocality can't wait to hear your first demo with your new toy!

Vocality

@wigs I don't want to be the bad workman that blames his tools, this is just a hunch and I might be wrong but this new mic seems to be helping me pitch better. On the other hand might just be getting better anyway. Just a side note AKG 636 mic is a condensor mic that can be used in live and studio situations it has anti-feedback and anti-shock, Frank Sinatra used the previous model akg 535, it's a handheld mic as well i was gonna buy it but it was more than double the price, might be one to look into depending on how much your willing to spend.

@Dogmeat Rode is a good make and the further up the food chain we go in more expensive mics the increments of improvement narrow anyway, so much looking forward to using the new mic in my future demos.

Vocality

Chris82

@Vocality This is awesome. You are correct about acustic treatment though. These mics are much more sensitive and pickup a lot more sounds. You could just start with some Bass Traps and then add in some foam on the walls. I got my foam from Amazon for a decent price and it works well.

I found this guide extremely informative and helpful when I was acoustically treating my booth:

https://ehomerecordingstudio.com/acoustic-treatment-101/

doc_ramadani

Hi George, @Vocality

you know that I think that the NT-1A is a little bit harsh but nevertheless it is a great choice for us newbies to make our first experiences with a large diaphragm condensor I still use it and it does a good job. But ... it is a little bit harsh.

Congrats, George.

Doc

Vocality

@Chris82 thanks for the link, once I get my spare room cleared of junk, will set up a booth with that acoustic foam and doing it with headphones is a must.

@doc_ramadani Marco hope you had a nice break, there no point in spending loads on a mic at this moment and like you said it’s ideal for beginners. Happy with my purchase it’s a step up in quality from my dynamic mic.



Vocality(George)