I might have to get this just for electric guitar. It keeps it really tight, while still coming across full and powerful. As you mentioned, it has grit in all the right areas. I think I prefer this to the sm57, and even the tlm103 for this guitar cab.
I'd say this is a great microphone for singers who lack clarity, naturally EQ'd towards boosting the high-mids, which I actually like to use on a more "throaty" singer. For the price I like it a lot. It's rather unforgiving and that is a good thing in my book. Excellent for male rock vocals, electric as well. Looking great ! :D
I was going to say I like the previous Blue Spark version more than the SL until I opened both of your videos at the same time and listened to a comparison. The Blue Spark SL has so much more warmth in the vocals and a much cleaner sound on the guitar. It may pale in comparison to the Blue Baby Bottle SL but this little sucker is an attractive and quality sounding microphone. To be fair, I'm not much for the brand name, but moreso the body style of this microphone, and finding a decent microphone with this shape can be a bit hard at times.
Great vid and review, as usual. I love the look of this thing, but have never really liked the sound of Blue products. A million years ago, my first mic was a Blue Snowball. I wish I hadn't sold it. Instead, it would have been much more satisfying to see how far I could launch it with an aluminum bat.
Great video. I had the same thoughts on this mic. I've tried using it for a few things and just never found it to give me the sound I was looking or hoping for.
Lol that rain bruh!! 😂😂 Also, I used to bundle this mic option with my lower tier service because I found it quite easy to EQ with its punchy output signal. Tweak highs down to 8 o'clock and boost mids to 1 or 2 o'clock (figuring a 12 noon neutral) and I've found that the small diaphragm lends a woody, throaty lift to acoustic which let's it sit smack in the middle of a mix to anchor a track. #DavezTwoCents lol
I was going to add that the sizzling and aggressive highs might add to the punch in a mix even when lowered. As far as solo, I think it has pleasing character so for certain styles of music it works but I wouldn’t reach for it for a more natural sound. Then again, I’ve never used the mic so maybe it’s perfect in certain placement on acoustics like closer to the sound hole.
Just discovered your channel. Have to say really enjoyed the review. Was in the market for a new mic for the streaming setup and took a look at your USB Mic list, just bought one today. Thanks for the help
i've been wanting a Blue mic ever since i saw cover artists use it in their RU-vid covers back in 2011-2012. And I'm planning to buy one soon, God willing. Hopefully i'll love it 🙌🏽
Sam Hyena Blue was already killed when its founders sold the company and went work for Gibson. The microphones they then created were so horrible that even Bandrew didn't dare review them (and he has reviewed very bad things I must say).
Sonofabyss Their series of dynamic mics is actually pretty good, but overall Blue microphones are valued for their aesthetic appeal in lieu of their functionality, although I think that the Yeti is an eyesore.
Coming back to this review after I've recorded a few covers with this thing. I agree with Bandrew that this is rather unforgiving. If you sound like shit and/or you fuck up when you sing, this will just fuck you up. The boosted high and low end makes anything out of place really apparent. This may also sit too up front and center in the mix without some playing around. However, I find that this also allowed me to play with EQs quite agressively without losing character in my voice. Getting rid of things with EQ is always easier than adding things in post. For the price, if you have good control over your singing voice, this may not be a bad idea.
On an off note, I love how the non-blackout version looks. Once you see it in person, you just can't go back to anything else. Singing into something beautiful is very necessary imo.
Actually your review made me get this 😂 one it's fantastic for recording my fender xl 100 and two it's really not bad on the lead vocals it's no rode nt mic but not far off I think it's a very good versatile mic and for the 199 I just don't see any better option I also record directly into a tascam 24
How do you get the white noise to go away? Just bought it for micing above the drums, and there's this constant white noise/hum sound. I don't want that on my recordings. I'm just plugged directly into my Tascam DP32-SD mixing board. Any advice would help. Thanks
You should really review a middle of the range Lavalier microphone eg. Sennheiser MKE 2. Also, the Shure Beta 87A might be something worth reviewing. Thanks
Hello Bandrew. I'm watching your videos for a long time now and i saw your videos about the Scarlett Solo and the Yamaha AG03 and i want to buy the Rode NT1, because i think that's the right mic for me but i don't know if i should buy the interface or the Mixer... I know they are made for different uses, but i wanna make music with them AND RU-vid videos and streams on twitch and talk in Discord with friends etc. Which is better for doing all these things? With the Mixer i can Mix it live with the software and change my gain and so on and the interface makes it sound better. Sorry for my bad english by the way i'm from germany ^^ Which of these two would you prefer for me for the NT1? And i really know that are two different things but you know what i mean ^^ Maybe someone from your community could help me too :D
Should I buy the blue spark sl (dual layer pop filter) rode psa1 and a goxlr, or rode nt1 kit and goxlr mini *part time streamer looking to upgrade my audio have a blue yeti right now*
Bandrew, I love the “Howard Beale” rant in the closing! (He’s the crazy anchor in the film “Network” and an inspiration for reality TV-yeah, a bit before your time.) Might be an interesting angle to take in the future... ;)
@@Podcastage I actually just order a AT2035 because your review so thank you man, I’ll come back at a later time and give you a rating 1-10 on how satisfied I am with it!! So you know.
Blue spark SL is priced the same as Rode NT1 in my country. The salesman insists that Blue is better. I am not fully convinced though. Male voice need it for lesson recording, any help is appreciated?
Yeah i had this thing for about 2 months, Got it for 30$ parts or repair off ebay, had to re-wire it was all, The head was torn off lol. But, It is a great mic, Amazing quality, Just not for everything though. Really depends on your voice. So, Now I'm Using a Blue BabyBottle and I'm HIGHLY satisfied. lol But, This Spark is great. It did work for some music i would do, But not everything. It's good for lows, Highs not so much. If you have a deep voice this mic will need some tweaks.
what is with people getting broken stuff from the store and not immediately returning that shit? bro if I get a faulty pair of 20 dollar headphones I'm taking that shit back... better believe a 200 dollar mic is going back to the store and I'm getting a replacement THAT DAY.
With non audio gear, that's what I do. For audio gear, I RMA it with the company to see how their customer service is. Blue's customer service for the record is abysmal. There would be weeks in between e-mails and no updates on what was happening; it was a pain in the rear to get this thing fixed. I would not know that had I not RMA'd it to Blue.
I dont get it, I am streaming off my iphone, I am using adapters and power sources. Its actually pretty cool how it all works out but, Im confused what the difference of this vs yeti whiteout 🧐😅 🤨🤨🤨 your talking about numbers i dont get it. I stream cooking videos in my kitchen.
Revision to my last review after watching hours and hours of videos I'm going to go with the rode nt1 for vocals and I'm going to use this little spark to record electric guitar through a fender XL 100 all Into a tascsm ,24 with a TC live 3 vocal processor then mix down to a wave or flac in 24 bit for streaming and use a Sr 16 drum machine all under a grand lol wish me luck lol
You sounded a bit tired of the review routine on this one. Consider doing a collaboration video with a fellow RU-vidr or maybe a do a remote location review. Perhaps mix it up a bit. Keep up the good work, my mic locker and I are very grateful. :-)
That's impossible to answer. It would come down to budget, preference, use case, availability, sound source, required features, etc. There's not an answer of buy this instead. Sorry I can't give you a one word answer, it's just a bit more complicated than that.
