Must have Mics for the Home Studio

Must-have Mics for the Home Studio takes a look at a basic mic kit for the home recording studio, incorporating mostly dynamic and small and large diaphragm condenser mics, there is also a discussion of popular modern and historic ribbon mics from Royer, Coles, AEA and RCA. Microphones included in the discussion include Shure SM57, AKG D112, EV666, AKG C1000, Neumann KM54, Neumann U87, OPR Plan 8 Ultra, Rode NTI and others.

[@RodneyMcMinge]

I've been using a 421 as my main live vocal mic for 40 years. I love them.

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

Epic!

[@OAK77uk]

@@jamiedurrantmusician Same here - a staple in any studio - always have a pair around but be so careful with that clip - esp anyone using on stage - so, so easy to have a mishap.

[@andrewwhitehouse1878]

Good to see you back Jamie! Marks mics are great, I recently just got an OPR 251 with his ck12 capsule and it’s amazing sounding!

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

I totally love that thing!!!!!!!

[@OPRmic]

Thanks for the mention Jamie! Glad to that you're enjoying the mic!

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

@@OPRmic my pleasure! The Plan 8 Ultra is impossibly good

[@OAK77uk]

Great overview - I have several of these - all vintage now: re the C1000's a cross pair of these I used to use in Field Recording for Atmos inc having a pair recording a Thunderstorm over the Cotswolds using a Sony DTC-D10 Dat recorder - it had been raining with distant thunder when it went unnervingly quiet I was by a glass external door in the studio making sure I had the 16-Track Tascam MS-16 delaced and covered which was next to a Studio A820 24-track set up for later session: tape was laced but not on. Suddenly the birds went quiet, the rain stopped it was ominous and the feeling electric when there was this almighty explosion, a cafe up the road where my musician son was doing some extra work said that all the people seemed to fall to the floor, no one hurt thank goodness but opposite about 100 yards away the end of a building had it's chimney and top of the attic area knocked down - I thought I had been hit and was walking around saying something like 'I've been hit'... this is one of the best Atmos recordings of an Lightening Strike and Thunder I've heard, the saving grace was that I had the Limiters on: even now when people come to use it I have to warn them not to turn up the volume and still sends chills down me. So those C1000's - can't remember now whether I had those add-on clips which changed the Polar Pattern in or not. Put on a Boom the C1000 and it's later C1000s in a Cross Pair can grab some great Atmos - esp Firework Displays and hearing the people talking the Ooohs and Aaarhs from children and the clink of money being put in the Charity Buckets... I've used the Audio Technica Stereo AT825 for years now for a miscellanea of uses - AKG kindly changed the Barrel after the thread had somehow crossed - you have some great mics and Lavaliere Mics can be a pain literally in the neck in interviews etc - my main 1990 AMS Soundfield ST250 is still my main staple for Atmos and now strangely taken over by Rode in Oz - the 4-heads are amazing - I'll never forget being at APRS in London in 1989/90 when the AMS guy asked me to test out the ST250 I just wish I'd bought the B-Splitter Unit for use in post they are amazing and I'm sure that Rode's new version is also an excellent mic from an equally excellent company. Thanks for posting. Michael (I've subscribed) UK

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

Thanks so much Michael! That’s a totally fascinating story, I’d love to hear your recordings. Are you a sound effect person or a film soundtrack creator or more? J

[@PrantoKoX]

Welcome back... nice video and some nicely exotic mic choices there (perhaps not really home studio "must haves" - usually finances dictate otherwise, and today the market offers many, even too many budget options, not all good of course) alongside some classics & staples. BTW the "M/S" switch on the bottom of the Sennheiser 421 means "Music/Speech", not singing, which is music, too. 😉

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

Thank you for the very kind welcome back; and yes music/speech - I always mix that up! For sure, some mics are not must-haves, a few options to discuss. I guess it's all about budgets as you've pointed out! Cheers JD

[@mezcalheadd]

Great stuff Jamie. Honest and no B.S Most impressed by the condition of yr 57. Mine is half the age and looks a bit more second hand ….. I’d like to add - reckon the 57 is great on acoustics if you’re looking for something a little less Posh sounding.

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

Great tip on the SM57 for acoustics - I assume a little more gritty sounding but still smooth

[@RezTheRezberry]

Thanks for the gems! def going to have to try that 421-N

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

Well worth it!

[@Mrpsblobsoflowendmung]

Lovely Chiltern QM3, had one for many years

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

Where are you based, what happened to your desk, do you miss it?

[@jimi272]

Excellent list! Owning half of those. SM7B for some VoX, some floortom or some guitar cab duty, three sm57‘s for racktoms, snares, guitar cabs. MD421 for Toms & guitar cabs. D112mk2 for kick or basscab. I love my KM184‘s though! Recently had the ability to compare KM184’s to vintage KM84‘s on overheads. The vintage ones sound just a bit smoother in the top end, 184‘s sound a bit harsh in comparison (more needs to be done in the mixing process) but they’re still really great mics…

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

Interesting point re the newer KMs - it seems cheaper manufacturing processes may be to blame. The vintage tube KM54 has a super delicate nickel diaphragm and a now impossibly expensive tube, so components are obviously key. Ah but if the new KMs were recorded for Apogee soft limit hardware then that may help - even better tape!

[@adrianosullivan7548]

Great overview of classic mics. In your opinion what's a mid-range alternative to coles for rooms and overheads that give clarity without brittle top end? Neumann would be great, but apparently I need to eat food every day to stay alive.

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

Maybe order a pair of these guys ... www.openplanrecording.com/product-page/the-grill-stock

[@Mic_Locker_Talk]

Great Collection! Have you ever tried the R88 from AEA? It is magic. I never heard of the OPR, I guess they are only sold in Australia.

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

Cheers, and no I've not personally tried the AEAs - I'd like to see an Australian distributor and see if I can get a demo! Yes, the OPRs are made and sold here, not in shops, directly from Mark the maker. His mics are incredible value for money.

[@DoopekLasica]

About vintage D12, D20, D25, there are vocal mics too :) If You buing one, ensure if they are fully functional. Due to age, they can degrade a lot. I have D25 which is beautiful, but unusable.

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

Very very good point and true… thank you for this I’ll do some research on the vocal mics and mics from AKG of the era!

[@DoopekLasica]

@@jamiedurrantmusician In fact, D20 and D25, almost the same misc, (i don't know, if D12 too) was designed for broadcast purposes. There are lot of pics with them made in TV studios.

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

@@DoopekLasica like I said, I’ll do some research, interesting

[@bigdaddy-fk5bi]

the vast majority of these differences can be compensated for in your daw. just make sure your mic has a 20 to 20 response and youre good to go

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

Well that’s one of the very first comments on this channel that I disagree with. Sure there are mic modelling plugins however and the concept of what you’re taking about sounds logical however a vintage mic like a Neumann KM54 has many components that together react to incoming sound waves and then tubes that process the voltages. All this before it goes to the DAW. Tell me what totally flat wise response mic and what software we could use to mimic a KM54a and I’ll make a video about it. Prove me wrong!!!!!

[@bigdaddy-fk5bi]

@@jamiedurrantmusician ive been at it since the 70s, in chicago ive worked on many things youve heard, back in the day we would only use certain things on an api, or different things on tha neve, today, there is no need for the drama. if you believe you hear what you think you hear then god bless, but the temple of sound days are over. we are dying a slow death and now with ai, it has sped up exponentially. tech has learned and will continue to learn how to mimic the flow of electrons thru circuits or the wrappings of a transformer. ive worked on it, i know. god bless you for keeping the lore of the sonic temple alive, but it is in fact either over or will soon be over. hell, you can throw a scratch track of a acoustic guitar into a computer and ask ai to make a soung out of it for a certain genre, target market, song length, etc etc etc, then they can do the lyrics they wrote in the voice you choose. ive seen it. i didnt mean to be offensive, i just know i can go to an ai bot and have them take my vocal and have them render it on any mic i want and with any other voice they can download enuf vocal samples of to recreate. we are a dying breed my friend. i guess im just too aware of how far gone we are.

[@botbot3698]

is there a significant difference between a modern & a vintage 421?

[@jamiedurrantmusician]

Very good question! I have not done an A/B test on both, I’ll try to do so