Is THIS The BEST Vocal Mic? (Slate Digital ML-1 Review)

[@rbird4945]

It would be helpful if you would demo someone singing. It’s very hard to hear the quality of the different mic samples when the voice is basically speaking in one frequency range.

[@5piece]

I agree that having more demonstrations of different vocalists would be ideal, and in a perfect world, I'd have done that. Unfortunately, I'm relying on artists I have access to show up to help me with videos like this and a singer simply wasn't available. While I could run a previously recorded singer's vocals (recorded on a different microphone altogether before I had the ML-1 or this video idea) through the microphone emulations via the plugin, it wouldn't be the same as what I did with SRE here - being recording him with the microphone itself and then processing it further with Slate's software (which is the true intention). I'm doing the best I can with what I got so I hope anyone watching can at the very least consider this - although moving forward I am trying to find singers that can help accommodate similar videos in the future.

[@jfrosavage]

Did u get the pre amp also? How can I configure the latency to headphone while I record with the pre amp to the Apollo to the mic?

[@emyhR]

What interface was used to capture the raw vocals?

[@ChrisChris011]

FG-800M

[@WIIMTheMusician]

Thank u 5 Piece!! Very curious as to how u record your tutorial audio while showing the visual of your session. I’m assuming you have 2 separate systems recording simultaneously?

[@thebcane]

I love the FG-12, I'm thinking of picking one of these up!

[@5piece]

Interesting! I’ll have to play with that model more now knowing that you like it 🙌🏼

[@MazzilTv]

please comparison with sony c-80

[@ernieg]

seems like you can just add an EQ and get the same sounds

[@5piece]

Eh, maybe, maybe not. Someone made a similar comment below and I think my response there best sums this up. With this logic, why buy ANY mic? You should be able to “just add EQ” to anything and achieve that sound, right? I’m skeptical you’ll get there “perfectly” - especially without spending a good chunk of time chasing the sound. Why chase it when you can just have it conveniently in one package? But that’s just me. If you’re able to pull it off, then have at it my friend and keep me posted on your results !

[@Taylor_Frenchiebaby]

How successful has that been for you? I wonder what the pro producers would say about “EQ can get you the same sound as any microphone”

[@dahlhousestudios]

Ha! I thought I had detected fellow Canadian "accent" on you before! My big studio days were in Ottawa, now I'm in the Yukon. Canadian Studio KZbin unite!

[@rayid2003]

Great vid ❤

[@5piece]

Glad you enjoyed!

[@ruthlessrich4674]

Slate work wit uad interfaces

[@nunu9849]

what about pre amp ? do i need any or vmr pre is enough ? and also what interface did you use for recording them vocals ? it sound good and clean

[@wav446]

thx for vid 👍

[@sreonly]

The one and only 5! Appreciate the opportunity to work with you family! 🖐🏾

[@5piece]

Awready! Thank you for being part of this bro!!

[@BENNYBRICKZ]

Can this mic be used with a scarlett

[@5piece]

Yes, it should as its a standard microphone. You just need to plug it into an interface that has phantom power and accepts XLR input (which is pretty standard for most audio interfaces).

[@nowiknowbeta]

Are you still using Slate Digital ML 1?

[@romanboiarchuk2048]

What do you think about Townsend mic? Gunna, Rich The Kid using this mic

[@5piece]

Can’t say, I haven’t used it

[@gatorbullproductions6246]

Townsend Lab mic is really good, but you have to record in stereo.

[@TheQuesoJC]

Sir difference between this or just eqing a flat vocal?

[@5piece]

Time, effort, convenience, human error. SD has already done the hard work for you and painstakingly emulated these mics. I’d be hard pressed to believe you can achieve the EXACT same thing. Could you maybe get somewhere in the ballpark with EQ alone? Maybe, maybe not. I ain’t wasting my hours doing that. But if you want to, have at it and let me know how it goes!

[@NVRLOSTT]

l don’t have the slate mic but l do have the VMR with the mic emulators, would you recommend to use them with cheap mics? l have a AKGP120 (around $80-100) l feel like the emulators might make my cheap harsh, what do you think?

[@mrvron]

YES YOU CAN USE it to improve the recorded sound

[@5piece]

You could technically but there’s a few problems: 1) if I’m not mistaken, you won’t get access to the emulations without buying the mic. I don’t think it’s possible to get the software (emulations) on their own without owning the ML-1 2) the ML-1 is designed for this purpose, with a flat frequency response so the emulation does the work. Normal mics have their own unique frequency response, which will happen before you even go into the emulations. Basically, using other mics will defeat the purpose and not really replicate the sound you’re after properly (although you could still do it if you don’t care about accuracy) Hope this helps

[@NVRLOSTT]

@@5piece Yeah l understood bro. Thank you!

[@brettjr9521]

Yes you can but you need an ilok

[@GangaBeats]

Hey man, l have no luck of finding out do l need an ilok for it or not. On various places there are different statements about it. Does it work with ilok cloud or l need to order dongle? (Ml1 is on its way to me)

[@5piece]

I believe it works with iLok Cloud so you don’t need a dongle. Based on this: slatedigital.com/system-requirements/

[@producertv4056]

I’ve confirmed it with slate in their Facebook group. Yes you can use the ilok cloud to activate

[@jensen777]

This or tlm 102?

[@5piece]

It’s a matter of taste/preference. I’m not a huge fan of the TLM sound. Sometimes they can be harsh/brittle but also very detailed. The ML-1 is more flat/neutral, and gives you more options with the emulations. If you can, rent / try both and see what you prefer as this is just my personal taste / preference

[@breymienofficial8503]

Slate

[@Taylor_Frenchiebaby]

The TLM 102 was not a great mic and i used it with a very quality audio interface, a treated booth, and good positioning. It picks up EVERYTHING man. The 103 is way better. Don’t listen to any nutjob who tells you the 103 sucks. They didnt know what they were doing and they just returned it as trash. By itself yes the 103 CAN be harsh but you stick a UAD Neve 1073 plugin or 1081 plugin preamp on that mic and you will be amazed. There is a reason the 103 is still a huge industry standard and every big name studio has one including almost every major hip hop artists home studio. But the Slate mic is dope as hell i just gave it a run last night. Tons of mic shootouts showing that it captures 95% of the sound of the 800G as well as the 251.

[@breymienofficial8503]

😮‍💨😍nice

[@5piece]

Thank you! Cheers!