Topic: An idea for people looking to buy mics

[mikeincharleston]

ok so this is so tough going through and listening to mics and setups and preamps and a/d and yadayada, and figuring what i can afford and what i like.  it sucks!  anyway what i think would be a good idea would be almost a budget game.  like something that can be put on the archives for future members.  for example, if i gave you 850 dollars and that has to buy you everything from mics to recording device and everything inbetween (cables, batteries, stand, etc) what would you bring me back?  it is something i'd like to see for myself and i'm sure other who are looking for gear would like it.  feel free to use any amount you want, 400...500...950, whatever.  anyone think this is a good idea?  or has it been done before?

mike

[caymanreview]

sounds like a good idea... im sure we could dream some stuff up

[bl6216@yahoo.com]

Here it go's frist high: end  mic's schoeps cmc65 $ 3.320  pre v3 $1500  deck marante pmd-670 &700 any silver xlr cable's about $200 for two  stand Bogen/manfrotto master 13 $145  t-bar shure stero mic adapter $70  and $300 for batteries and any other small things.

next is mid :  pre u-a5 oade w-mod $500  mic's akg 480 $1600 for 2  stand  Bogen/manfrotto quick lock 11ft   $115  mic cable monster cable's  $150  t-bar shure stero mic adapter $70  and $300 for  batteries and any other small things.

low end:  deck nomade jukebox3 $200   mic's sp c4 $220  pre u-a5 oade w-mod $500  stand  Bogen/manfrotto quick lock 11ft  $115   mic cable monster cable's  $150  t-bar any chep one $20  and $300 for  batteries and any other small things.

beginer md and coresound mic $300

I hope that this what you ment. I hope that could be of some help to you.

[bl6216@yahoo.com]

and on the mid put as a deck a nomade jukebox 3 $200 I for got to put this in befor.

[Josephine]

I'll play.  I'm looking to spend around $1,400 for my next rig.
Size is most important since I'll be stealth at nearly all shows.
Less is more, if you know what I mean.
 

[Ed.]

taping on the cheap

13' mic stand $50 (includes shipping)
T-bar - be creative, make your own - i got all the supplies for $15 and it works great.
cables - check out markertek, i made my own 15 footers for under $50 and they sound great...or check out the yard sale section cuz it seems like cables get sold weekly on there.  you'll also need a digital cable most likely - but i bet you can find them on ebay for under $10
mics - seriously, people may scoff, but the superluxes sound really nice for their money.  $240 buys you a case, shock mounts, and a tbar
preamp/phantom power - $200 the UA-5 is great for starters, get a friend to mod it or do it yourself if you know how to solder
recorder - njb3 $200 from ebay.

so for roughly $750 you could have a cheap rig.  sure its not going to be the best out there, but it'll get it done.  not to mention, upgrading is always fun.

[Unitmonster]

for rigs on the cheap, I've been happy with what I picked up here on TS.com.  Used prices:

mics:  AT853rx ($300)
pre:  Denecke PS-2 ($115)
a/d:  Denecke AD20 ($225)
Deck:  JB3 40gig (ebay auction $255)
extra JB3 battery ($28)
rechargable 9v batts+charger ($40)
=======================
TOTAL:  $963

[lds490]

low end:  deck nomade jukebox3 $200   mic's sp c4 $220  pre u-a5 oade w-mod $500  stand  Bogen/manfrotto quick lock 11ft  $115   mic cable monster cable's  $150  t-bar any chep one $20  and $300 for  batteries and any other small things.

Is it really necessary to spend $150 on mic cables for a "low end" rig?  Also, I found a very nice mic stand on ebay for a lot less than $115.

[pfife]

for rigs on the cheap, I've been happy with what I picked up here on TS.com.  Used prices:

mics:  AT853rx ($300)
pre:  Denecke PS-2 ($115)
a/d:  Denecke AD20 ($225)
Deck:  JB3 40gig (ebay auction $255)
extra JB3 battery ($28)
rechargable 9v batts+charger ($40)
=======================
TOTAL:  $963

This, IMO, is a great stealth rig-  you'll be able to find things a bit cheaper- I've seen PS-2's FS for $75,  and I got an AD-20 for $175 used.

[Sanjay]

low end:  deck nomade jukebox3 $200   mic's sp c4 $220  pre u-a5 oade w-mod $500  stand  Bogen/manfrotto quick lock 11ft  $115   mic cable monster cable's  $150  t-bar any chep one $20  and $300 for  batteries and any other small things.

Prices are a bit off, if you go used or yard sale on some items, the njb3 can be had for 175, the Studio projects new cost me $320 plus shipping, you won't find a pair for $220 anywhere, stands you can use a cheap ebay one for around $30 or less, and you have the option of doing your own digimod UA-5 to keep it cheaper at around $225.  Plus canare star quads work well for most people and can be had used around here for $40. 

[pfife]

Here's what I would suggest for a cheap set of good mics (stealth), minus a preamp (most beginners don't see their value... so I'll forgo for now...):

SoundProfessional Mics -
http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/category/110/mics  - for omni directional;
http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/category/120/mics - for cardoid;

Battery boxes-
http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/category/310/mics - IMO, the bare minimum needed is just a batterybox, minus all the frills- you can change your record level in your MD recorder (Sony NetMD-N505, Sony NetMD-N507) or NJB3;

Deck-
NJB3- my 40GB model new was approx. $300.  I have since realized that I don't need nearly 40GB, and 20 would have been sufficient.  I have heard that the refurbs on ebay are performing well, so I wouldn't worry about that.

If you don't want a battery box:

Sony Mics (i.e. - anything with a battery in it;  This is going to necessitate going through the mic-in, and these mics are anywhere from $75 - $100).    Sony ECM-MS907 is  good starting point.  On ebay, "electret microphone" is a good search term;  Most of these should work through a mic input;

My advice to anyone looking to go without a battery box is to spend a little bit more money (as cheap as $20-$30) and get a mic + battery box setup.  It's a huge jump in quality, for not that much money.

my $0000000000000000000000000000000000.02

HTH

[Unitmonster]

for rigs on the cheap, I've been happy with what I picked up here on TS.com.  Used prices:

mics:  AT853rx ($300)
pre:  Denecke PS-2 ($115)
a/d:  Denecke AD20 ($225)
Deck:  JB3 40gig (ebay auction $255)
extra JB3 battery ($28)
rechargable 9v batts+charger ($40)
=======================
TOTAL:  $963

This, IMO, is a great stealth rig-  you'll be able to find things a bit cheaper- I've seen PS-2's FS for $75,  and I got an AD-20 for $175 used.

Yeah,  some of the prices I quoted included shipping to Europe, so you could probably get closer to $900, lower if you went for the 20gig JB3.  At any rate, I'm happy with what the money bought me and don't imagine upgrading any time soon.  For big shows I'd just as soon patch.