I am currently using a blue Snowball microphone for most of my recording, although I mainly only use it to talk to other people. When recording stuff like guitars and vocals is it better to buy a microphone that is more meant for that as well as an audio interface which can be quite expensive, or is it better if I just continue using this blue snowball which seems to have been fine for me so far?
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What kind of recording are you doing?– Нет войнеFeb 27, 2018 at 1:09
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3 Answers
The Snowball isn't disasterously bad. But there's no point in swapping it for another 'dirt cheap' microphone. Your next step up might be the Samson CO1U (if you want to stick with a USB mic) or the CO1 plus an audio interface. THere are others to look at too at that price point.
But be aware that the price of competent audio gear keeps falling. And the difference in sound between 'competent' and 'top class' may be less than you imagine (or hope). More than ever 'It ain't about the gear'.
If you want to improve your sound quality in recordings then yes, you do need to get a dedicated microphone, and ideally get an audio interface.
The standard workhorse mic is the Shure SM58, both on tour and in studios. It's relatively cheap and incredibly robust, and can be used for vocals, acoustic instruments, mic'ing up speaker cabs and even drums - although there are microphones for each of these specific use cases that are better for that purpose, none are as good across everything.
But you may not need it. If you are happy with the sound you currently get, then stick with it unless you have a reason to upgrade.
"If it ain't broke, don't fix it."
answered Feb 26, 2018 at 22:41
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Having been spoiled with a U87 for years, I was really surprised last week when I had to record a live vocal on camera for an audition piece, so had to dig the SM58 out. It only took the tiniest bit of shaping before I was happy with it. I'd quite forgotten how useful they can be... & I got the gig, new movie starts filming this week :-))– TetsujinFeb 27, 2018 at 11:23
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Getting a better quality mic and an audio interface would certainly improve the sound quality of your recordings. But whether or not you need to improve the quality of your recordings is really up to you to decide. If your recordings are just for yourself and you're using them as a way to log your progress, or to critique your own playing, etc. then the mic you currently have is fine as long as you're happy with it.
However, if you are recording songs with the intention of releasing them to others like online or locally then you should strongly consider upgrading your recording equipment.
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Thank you. The one last question is, would upgrading have a significant difference?– kogniseFeb 26, 2018 at 23:16
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Yes, absolutely. Even when you already have decent equipment upgrading to higher end (usually more expensive) equipment can still improve the quality significantly. Professional studios put a lot of money into microphones, mic preamps, interfaces, effects, etc. for that very reason. Every one of these things will add to the overall quality of your recordings. It just depends on how far you want to go with it and what kind of a budget you have.– TekkerueFeb 26, 2018 at 23:43
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I've never heard of that brand, but I found some comments regarding it and it sounds very questionable as the quality control on them appears to be pretty terrible. A user on gearslutz said he got a great one and ordered a 2nd but that one was terrible, returned it and the 3rd one was also terrible: gearslutz.com/board/low-end-theory/… How much are you looking to spend for the interface and mic?– TekkerueFeb 27, 2018 at 2:45
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I bought one of those just so I'd be armed for the million questions you see about them. btw, you can get them even cheaper than that, I paid £11, free posting. They're often called BM-800 & are all made in the same factory, whatever name is on them. You must get a proper balanced mic cable & phantom power unit to get them to work properly. After that, they're surprisingly good for a tenner, but they'll win no awards. Dr Mayhem's recommended SM58 industry standard workhorse would be a better bet, imo.– TetsujinFeb 27, 2018 at 11:30