While this means that you may have to put in more time in post-processing, it does allow for greater flexibility. Like its sibling, the Spirit focuses on sounding natural rather than flattering, and that’s in part because a crack team of engineers and producers helped decide on its voicing. The Spirit is an affordable UK-built microphone with tried-and-true vocal capturing talents, with a similar build and cardioid pickup pattern to the exceptional Aston Origin. ![]() Polar patterns: Cardioid, Omni, Figure-eight.It’s made even more versatile by its three polar patterns (cardioid, omni and figure-eight) a -10dB pad, great for capturing louder sources, and a low-cut for curbing unwanted proximity induced low-mid boost while in either of the directional modes. No matter what you point the U87 at – singer, bassoon, guitar, congas – it just seems to handle it beautifully. It’s been endearingly referred to as “every engineer’s second favourite microphone” because it’s such an able all-rounder. The Neumann U87 is so ubiquitous that we couldn’t possibly leave it off this list. We recommend pairing this with the WS4 windshield, too, just in case you find yourself working with a singer that tends to get too close to the mic, as it eliminates any chance of capturing an errant plosive. This straightforward microphone pairs well with vocals and comes with an internal shockmount and pop filter. With the PodMic, the brand has created a no-frills dynamic microphone that could be considered the SM7B’s little brother, for a third of the price. Rode’s commitment to making professional recording tools more affordable is impressive. A popular fix for this is to pair it with a Cloudlifter, a low-noise external mic preamp that adds 25dB of clean gain. One thing to note about the SM7B’s lower sensitivity is that some cheaper audio interfaces may not supply enough mic input gain to get a workable level from it. It features a built-in windscreen, making it resistant to plosives and is the mic of choice for many broadcasters (ahem, Joe Rogan). Its low sensitivity makes it ideal for use with loud vocalists, as well as with other loud sources where a sensitive condenser might be overwhelmed. ![]() The SM7 or, later SM7A and SM7B versions, have seen their share of famous users, including Michael Jackson and James Hetfield of Metallica. The SM7 has been in production in one form or another since has the 70s, and as far as dynamic mics go, it’s a popular one for vocal tracking. ![]() For example, the warm qualities of valve condensers can complement sources with a lot of high-frequency content, such as a soprano vocalist or bright cymbals. Picking a microphone with the right voicing to match a source’s timbre can also work to the engineer’s advantage. Sometimes that eliminates a bit of the room sound, but what you gain there, you lose in microphone sensitivity.” And it’s slightly narrower in its polar pattern. He offered this advice: “Sometimes going away from a condenser mic and towards something more like the Shure SM7B because it’s got a built-in pop filter, you can physically get closer. In our recent interview with Paul Pritchard, the Abbey Road engineer discussed tracking vocals in a small room.
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