Don't Buy a Microphone Before Watching This 

▶︎▶︎ Ultimate Recording Checklist: www.homestudiocorner.com/checklist 🎙 Roswell MiniK47: amzn.to/3t35z8m 🎙 Earthworks SR25: sweetwater.sjv.io/6eQ74q 🎙 Presonus PD70: sweetwater.sjv.io/oqG9WW 🎙 Presonus PX-1: sweetwater.sjv.io/ZQmADz

This actually connects to a bigger idea for me about getting overwhelmed with options and possibilities. Sometimes you need to shrink the canvas in the interest of just getting a painting done. Thanks for this! A great reminder to get back to actual music making.

I’d say Shure SM-57 is essential as well. Can’t go wrong with one of those.

Why'd you have to go and personally attack me like this? I got gift cards to burn, and now I feel bad about buying gear

The rule I try (and occasionally fail) to live by is to only buy gear when I have outgrown the gear I have.

thank you, Joe, for being such a great mentor for all of us home studio people who may either just be getting started, or be a little ways in. Your knowledge is absolutely invaluable, and I cannot begin to tell you how much respect I have for your knowledge. it's a shame I don't know you face-to-face, as you seem like someone who it would be an absolute blast to hang out with.

Up here in Canada we have a great music store chain called Long and McQuades, The last few times I was in there I didn't see anything that I needed. Saw nice toys but I don't need them. I have all I need and so I write and record.

Thank you Joe and Happy New Year!

Hey Joe I'm the one who asked about you not using the minik47 as much the other day I was gonna buy one is why I asked I did and wow it is a great mike very happy with it thanks for all your help on here and happy new year!God bless!

This hurts since I just got a neve 8424 and I’ve been setting up my studio and wiring everything for so long I don’t feel like I’ve recorded anything in ages 🤦🏻‍♂️

Thanks for the suggestions bud!

Thx Joe, Merry Christmas🎄🎄

All true. Plus, if it is software, it requires updates. I don't remember all of the times I have opened my software to start recording an idea and get altered that an updated was needed. I usually jump on it and perform the update and by the time the update is complete, I either forgot the idea or just didn't capture it in the correct groove. Anyway, less distraction more production.

One of the best recordings I've heard was done by a friend of mine who used a cheap Hi-Z mic and a dual well cassette recorder. He now owns a studio in Nashville.

So damn true. The gear chase to music not made ratio is real.

I have a SM57 and a Mackie condenser. I barely use them. But they sound great when I have a use for them.

Good video 👍. I think it's too easy to focus on quality too soon. I've been thinking back to my multitrack cassette days. I think one reason I got more done and had better results is because we'd do a rough demo first and then figure out how to best do the proper version. The plus side is the crap songs never got beyond the rough take and the better songs had better arrangements. So now I'm trying to focus on just getting stuff finished - if the song is good enough I'll do a better version. That means the best mic is the one on the stand at that moment. In a year I'll look back and see if I managed to get more done! 😀

Fantastic advice. Thank you

Hey Gilder, this is wonderful information

It’s easy to spend money on the wrong microphones, too. I spent a lot of money modding SM57/58 mics with only modest improvements. I then did my research and decided to buy a Roswell Mini K87. With Black Friday sales going on, I bought a matched pair of Mini K87s and a Mini K67x. Three mics is one more than my interface, so I bought an SSL12. Since I use the Adobe suite for work, I’ve been using Audition for recording and spend to much time trying to get the effects to work. So, I downloaded Luna and am going down the plugin rabbit hole and have yet to record anything other than a few test tracks. Your video is full of sage advice. Thank you!

You are so right! Sometimes, it happens that I HAVE to go into the "manual guide" of an equipment to check the way it works... I definitly have too much gear. But having looked at your video, I'm sure now I need a Rosewell Mini K47, a pair of Earthworks SR25, and maybe one or two others Presonus... 😂😂😂 Keep on, your videos are great 👍

I started with the same microphone! Though I never made an album. Songwriting is my focus now, to be better. I mean, 20 years of not being very productive, barely finishing one song per year isn't enough.

The fact that you told that Sweetwater story proves your da bomb...I have a similar Sweetwater story and I fkn love their customer service..

Fantastic intro. After playing guitar for almost 30 years, That’s the best advice I could give as well👍

Joe, excellent advice. 👍

Before i started recording, i was a young guy breaking into session work. I used to love hanging around and listening to the engineer. I started to learn how some mics behave. Now 50 something years later, i've discovered 2 extremely cheap cheerful chinese ribbons. One , a TNC Audio ACM3 , ( about $50 us ) had this ability to mask cheap shitty acoustic guitars that clients sometimes bring to a session. The lack of ability of this mic to pick up detail , turned a rattly acoustic into an indistinguishable miniature wall of sound. I used it on their guide tracks. To be honest, i don't really like others playing my guitars. Too personal. They'd leave and i'd replay the part. 2nd is a Nady RSM 4. This suited soft female jazz vocal. However, it had this amazing proximity thing going on that gave you lots of options when setting up the vocalist. Sure you had to nail the singers feet to the floor of the booth once you found the sweet spot. The thing is, for under a hundred bucks i had 2 mics that had a purpose. They are tools that did a specific job. Not great mic's in the quality stakes, but they did what i asked them to do. Now , i've trimmed the mic locker. I just sold my Coles because they didn't really earn their keep. I already had nice overheads and brass sessions became rare. The bloody magnets in them were so powerful , i wouldn't walk around the house with it for fear of flying fridge magnets. I did find, to my ears, the most beautiful sounding mic. Not cheap but my god, the quality. Samar Audio MF65. I Can't speak highly enough about them.

Awesome gear doesn't make an awesome musician. I'm still using Studio One version 2.6 with just some reasonably priced microphones and cameras for my RU-vid videos, and it fits my needs perfectly.

Crazy Joe and I had the same microphone when we started recording..lol

I must admit, some of these midi controllers these days perform so many separate functions, learning one, may just be all anyone needs. but having all four Eventide Factor Stompboxes is a childhood dream. for my electric kazoo and mbira

I’m in my phase of I need everything to make good music but I know better so when I get my last toy imma lock in and commit to music and music only no more stuff till I prove to myself that I have the knowledge to use what I got

Truth has been spoken

I can TOTALLY relate to the inverse relationship of gear and music! :D

I absolutely agree. I was fixated on photography in my 20s. Did tons of photography on an epson, that’s right, epson camera. Must have been 2002. Camera was horrible, I used it constantly. Over the next decade bought more and more gear and slowly stopped shooting. I will say though, my wife buys purses, she looks at them and they aren’t super useful but they make her happy. I buy gear because researching and buying it is a hobby in itself and it makes me happy. Just don’t do this on credit!

Imagine buying a neve, a 2a, a u87, an apollo, buying a daw and being like I can learn all this easy and at once. Oh boy lol

Very valuable advice..it happened to me.

Great video!!

Hey, Joe. Good video. May I ask about the mic you have in front of you now? I don't recall seeing that one before.

thank you 😍

I picked up a $35 Mic from Aldi intended just to record vocal guides as my good Mic plays up. Man that thing is good enough for my main vocal recordings. Has a hard case too 😂

great video.some clients want to see more gear

Good advice. Wish I had followed that 20 years ago. : (

This video is very helpful ✅✅✅. We should be doing more and investing in knowledge.

Guilty. As. Charged. The best home studio question of all time: have I made music with the last piece of gear I bought. You hurt me Joe... but I needed it.

Your logic drove me from not buying a new guitar pedal after not fully enjoying the last one I bought. However I now want a PD70 😂

@homestudiocorner what mic are you speaking into? Sounds better to me ears than the SM7b or the last Presonus you used. Thanks again!

I had a very similar plastic mic coming with my computer in the late 90s. and it sounded OK :-)

This is totally true. Once I got rid of all my synths I started making music again. Weird. Now, I just have one synth/keyboard controller.... UB-Xa and I'm much more productive. Now, I'm eyeing the outboard gear. 🤔

Amateur here, always been a minimalist re gear (though necessity mostly, cost and space), and lately I’ve been using just an iPad, usb mic, headphones, and headphone splitter. On Fridays a friend brings an acoustic guitar and we can be more spontaneous and the result sounds more alive. I don’t have to wear engineer and musician hats at the same time, and my friend doesn’t have to wait whilst I’m messing with gear. Much more fun and much more music

This is true. I wrote much more music tracking into a Tascam. Im kinda new to rec. on a daw. Went to FullSail 20+ years ago in Orlando when NOONE had daws. Faders and outboard gear. I enjoy Studio one 6 pro+ Besides the loop drag&drop/ Impact, Dolby, ect. Its clutter. There's a Tascam track one my channel, the rest is Studio one 6 pro+. Most say they like the Tascam sound, idk. We're all over 40.

I have actually fun setting up gear and making my setup perfect, I spend DAYS figuring out the perfect wiring and I like it, even if it's exhausting and expensive. Do I have to be gear-shamed and made feel guilty by some ex-Sweetwater employee because I don't make music 24/7? Heck no, I am Bob and I like it 😂

Made a lot of really great recordings with a SM 57

The Roswell has the format of the Mackie 91?(or the other way around😅)

"Ooops..." 🤣🤣🤣 Mate, I love your sense of humour. It's so dry you're practically an honorary Aussie!

Rather strange I was just thinking today about getting a vocal mic and you put a video up. I Just sit in my lounge on the sofa with three guitars, a small USB keyboard and Presonus software recording my songs and programming the drums with my wireless mouse.Ive done for years. Its correct what you say, I write class songs with almost nothing.

not me watching this....having just unboxed two DBX 580s, an ASP880, and a WA-87 this week.... Haha. That being said, I've already used the Pres and the 87 will go immediately into use.

You are 200% right man

Hey Joe question.. regarding that sinewave gate kick phatter trick.. wouldn't you have to offset the side chain signal to the original kick? If gate is set to close on each kick and open after to my head that would be like ducking the sine wave.. so I'm thinking your gate opens on every kick and gates in-between?

The only mic I use is from Presonus studio one that I got with Presonus Bundle people make it look so easy on RU-vid to make a song or rap a song 🤦‍♂️ it takes a lot takes an vocals to get it to sound right 😅 than adding the vocal presets

I really want to listen to your first album

That plastic computer mic brought back so many memories

Which sounds better? K67 or K47 for male bariton vocal?

GAS is really a pain, mainly when you will be able to nourish (afford) it continuously. But, like many others (maybe you too, when I see the whole bunch of mics you have at your disposal 😂) I confess that I cannot escape from that. Even with the today’s digital justified attraction, many of us still believe in the “analog difference”, coming from good instruments, preamps, microphones, or other stuff that elevates our sounding panoply choices. E.g. recently I decided to invest in better cans (Audeze LCD-5: a revelation), better acoustic treatment (bass traps and some Gik booth panels), some preamps (2 RND Newton Channel and 1 Neve 1073DPX) and some mics (2 Neumann’s, 1 Royer and 1 GAP) to elevate the quality of my home recordings. Do I regret the choice? Probably never in my lifetime 🤷‍♂️

Thank you for Presonus pd 70!!! Never heard about it, it's fantastic!

Thanks Joe, great video. BTW video cameras for Zoom/RU-vid are the same idea. Better to buy a cheap webcam and first learn how it all works before you spend $0000s and buy a tier 1 mirrorless camera. Nonetheless, for Zoom/ RU-vid, good quality audio is way more complicated than good quality video.

It's funny I have some bonus bucks from Sweetwater and was leaning towards a good vocal mic and was leaning towards the avantone pro cv 12 . Any experience with? I may ask my guy about the Roswell, but I thought maybe having a tube mic might be a little better for vocals

Oh Wow... This video subject looks like it was made for me! Is Joe trying to drop me a hint here.... I mean, that question at 3:05 was def aimed at me! Geesh Joe! cut me some slack dude! he he Great video and ponders, thanks Joe!

@HomeStudioCorner What microphone are you using to make this video?

Which is better the mini k47x or the mini k 67x? (For vocals)

You're right. Ill clear the cart

Saint words! 😇

Joe can you help me with a good microphone

And if do order more stuff it’ll be stuff I actually need like ore stuff I have a ton of knowledge about so I can plug and go

This is way true my focus had been in buying gears no music

Im wondering if you have any idea on how to make music pleasant on both headphones and speakers. Im just a beginner and making music with headphones on and it sounds ok but when I put the same music on speakers it sounds terrible

best advice

love this

Does "making music" include making pre production demos that never get uploaded onto a music sharing platform? Or is "making music" that act of producing songs that the world has access to hearing?

Mr. Gilder, I know you’re a busy man, but at times when I am ready to throw my hands up and quit I instead ask a busy man who probably knows the answer. Either way I think it’s a great topic for you in particular. I’m very interested in your thoughts on the Roswell mini k47x and its relationship with the mini k47. I can’t find anything on RU-vid discussing it. I want one of those mics, otherwise I will probably buy both and return one after trying both. What do you think?

Here’s the happy story: I have tons of everything - guitars, basses, a few very very nice microphones, almost every plugin synth/FX/eq etc - I don’t profess to know how everything works but I make a ton of music almost every day. I am professional but I’ve always been like that. It’s either in your DNA to embrace the process or it ain’t and you get bambuzzled by all your choices. No rules just people doing what they do… or not:) Microphones you need: 1 Ribbon, 1 Condenser FET, 1 Condenser Tube and 1 Dynamic. That’s it:) Maybe a set of stereo pencil microphones for stereo stuff like acoustic guitars.

So guilty of this - at the turn of the century, having to do with synths. I did a little better when it came to recording - a single Studio Projects C1 and Yamaha 01v mixer got used A LOT.

"This thing sounds great!" BLASPHEMY! WE ONLY USE THINGS THE COMMUNITY APPROVES OF! I honestly love hearing about mics that were never on my radar. That being said, I have fallen into the trap of owning a mic collection over the years. It has helped, but I agree that I spent a lot. I have recorded myself though. The information we have online also helps. I found out that I have a raspy voice, and can start targeting mics according to it. I just hate it when the mic recommendations are done solely based on echo chambers. A large issue with the echo chamber was that it could have been 100% solid advise, but it was based on 20, 30, 40, even 50 years ago and it's not based on the many technological improvements that could have happened in the last decade especially. The other one is that "everyone in this community uses this, so I should as well", and they'll exclude very solid sources of information. You can miss out by a lot. For example, the AT4040 is on sale right now. If you aren't in the recording community, you might ignore this mic.

And this is why you no longer work at Sweetwater. ;)

Uh oh, too late.😅

Sure, you are right. Thanks for getting my mind back to reality. 😂😂😂😂

i just recently bought my first "real" microphone and me being the "oh my god i must have this" kind of person i bought the sm7b... dont get me wrong it sounds awesome and i kind of dont regret it but i could definitely be just as well off with something cheaper

It's not necessarily the gear that ruins the making of music, sometimes the music just isn't there and people have the false hope that all the gear will somehow magically make music appear. There is a baseline of equipment and knowledge of how to use it that is necessary (along with the music of course) to get good results however. Waxing nostalgic about recording with a plastic computer mic is fine if that makes you happy but when you record with total crap your time and effort is all locked forever and limited by that gear. If one has something worth recording all you really need is some basic stuff like a 57 or any reasonable budget condenser, an interface, and the skills to use them. Everything beyond that gearwise is small increments of improvement, sometimes worth it sometimes not. We do live in good times as recording goes, an SM57 is still $99, ok quality condensers not much more, and a nice mic like the Mini K47 under $500... add an interface and a computer (that you maybe already own and is paid for) and that's a really solid start with the biggest limitations being recording skills and the quality of the music itself that you have to capture.

SM 57 is better option.

Isn't there a point where the nuances between these mics, for vocals (not all mics in micdom), are so slight that it becomes the splitting of hairs?

You’re forgetting the most important rule of all Joe! “He who dies with the most toys wins!” Also, my biggest fear is that when I die, my wife will sell all my gear for what I told her I paid for it :/

👍

Oh my yougot a lot of mics! Can i have one? 😂

There are 19,000 reasons I promise not to drop $20k on recording gear!

"no it doesent grow anymore". That was my payday. 1:46

Even buying better DAWs will delay your music making.

My fav story along this line was from a band I was in We ran a 2track 1/4" reel to reel and two SM 58's center of room 180* opposite We'd record most jams, best tracks got bounced down to cassette (it was the 1990s) A friend got a copy of a best of tape and shared it with a guy who had just paid $2000 for 24 track recordings of 5 songs He was irked that out stuff sounded better on a $200 rig Master 1 thing, then evolve to the next Mike placement is real

I have the same plastic mic but in black. Probably it's a pro version. lol

Sounds like Bob was too lazy to learn 😂 😂 😂 😂

Weren't supposed to sell Bob what he wanted as a salesman?😅😅

I vehemently disagree with your 1 mic choice!!! You should NEVER get a condenser as your 1 mic! EVER, EVER, EVER!! The reason??? It's because if you only have your 1 mic, your just starting out. When you just start out, you have no idea what room acoustics are. You most likely don't know anything about phase, eq, or proper compression for either colour or level/transient/sustain control. And you don't know about proper placement of said mic either. But the biggest has got to be poor room acoustics, and the cost of getting a halfway decent sound with a cheaper condenser versus a dynamic mic. 99% of the time you'd be better off singing out of a 58 versus using a condenser when in that situation. So the first proper mic should be the new SM7bd. Will provide way less frustration and feelings of "There's no fucking way I'll ever be able to make a halfway decent recording!" Also the Shure Sm7db is way more forgiving, easier to us and can be used on literally EVERYTHING! So it's a great all all-rounder if you want to experiment! And you take "The Room" out of more of it than you could with any condenser mic!

Дякую за це відео. Актуально. поділюся своїм досвідом. Зараз я пишу великий чудовий музичний альбом в синтвейв стилі. Він справді буде крутим. І я роблю це в звичайній кімнаті панельного п'ятиповерхового будинку. Я не маю апаратури, активних моніторі і навіть жодної звукоізоляції. Всього лише дешеві колонки, 2 монітори для виведення зображення, бюджетна міді клавіатура Nektar Impact LX61+, простий аудіоінтерфейс Audient iD4, навушники Bayerdynamic DT770 Pro і мікрофон Rode NT1000. Ну і в 2021 я оновлював свій комп'ютер, зібрав досить потужну машину, але досить бюджетну. І все, більше з обладнання в мене немає по суті нічого. Проте я впевнений, що після виходу альбому, мало хто відрізнить якість музики від тої, яку створювали топ продюсери в дорогих студіях. Отож, якщо я залишусь живим (бо я в Україні в нас війна, прямо зараз повітряна тривога), то ви зможете оцінити мою роботу на початку літа 2023 😊 До речі, те ж саме іноді діє і з VST плагінами. Надто багато різних плагінів тормозять творчий процес.