Jeff Bezos recommends the Nuemann U47 it is really good for your needs!

 

Only thing: I would not recommend using mail order on used mikes. Use your local gumtree, Craigslist, or how ever those are named at your region. Then go there, have a test and after that have a close look on the casing for dents or anything like that. Any one drop can reduce quality. After that use a flashlight from the side and try to have a peek at the membrane. It should be as clean as possible. If it was used without plop protection while eating a burger those particles can reduce performance as well. And a cleanup can come costly. This is especially true for large condensers.

 

I would recommend the unknown MC-900
http://www.recording-tools.com/product_info.php?info=p5_mc-900.html

I have around 15 mics most of them in the midrange price but this one hold its own and I often end up picking it for vocals as it just sounds nice and not too top end hyped or too muddy.

 

Neumann U47 or U67 are the ones I would use for vocals and call it "the day", if... you know...
If Jeff Bezos didn't recommend them, obviously.

 

Cheap mic == cheap audio results... Either noisy, lame audio, or cheap construction that doesn't hold up, etc...

I don't go in for cheapness in this area because the mic is where it all starts. If the mic is shitty you can try and fix the recording but the eventual result will sound "fixed". Recommend Neumann KM-184 in this instance which can be used in a wider variety of situations, but is stellar for your particular application here. Yes it's pricey, but it will last, and the audio coming from it is clean, and hot. Not a "Bezos" recommendation here, just good common sense...

 

Last edited: Jul 7, 2025

Lewitt 440 Pure, a friggin awesome sound for vox, instruments, etc. +40V phantom power required

 

Personally, I'd recommend against the SM57 or other dynamic mics for acoustic instruments. I have one, and my interface is an SSL12, which has very good pre-amps, yet even still, if I want to play my classical guitar dynamically and record it, I pretty much have to turn up the input gain all the way to almost the max, and at that point I can hear the noise floor. But of course a strummed steel string guitar will be louder. Still, I'd probably go with a condenser instead.

 

Absolutely. See them in person. Plus, if you get ripped off anyway you have an ass you can kick.

 

I recommended the SM57 in general, usually I would record acoustic guitar in the 2035 I recommended in the same post. My Audient is dead silent, though, never had issues with the preamp, but usually I'll stick to condensers too.

Also, on the topic of condensers vs dynamics vs room:

I also believe people in this thread vastly overestimate microphones in general. I've mixed killer vocals taken in a Steinberg UR22, and an AT2020 in a bedroom somewhere in Japan, at the same time I've also mixed shit vocals taken in some Neumann that had a big price tag on it, in some studio somewhere in the US tracked through some fancy preamps. Having good stuff really helps, but I've found the people who have "what they can afford" tend to care the most about their recordings. Just my two cents.

 

Studio Project C1 is a good affordable (around 250€) condenser mic. It works well for vocals and most instruments. Highs are not hyped.

 

I'm a fan of these too, got a couple of them.

 

I'm still using a Studio Project B1 ... the best price / quality ratio ever to me.
First version with front switch.

It sounds better when my wife record her voice than other ppl using Rode NT1 or even Shure SM7B (twice the price).
Rhode NT1 is "scooped" : not enough mids AND over hyped presence.

You can find one for 100 euros used, 150 new.