Favorite affordable microphone for horns

[Nephilymbass]

So I’ve been working on music in my home studio. I just have a little focusrite interface I run an xlr out of my bass head for bass for or I run two 1/4 cables for my Yamaha keyboard to it. I also play trumpet and would like to add some trumpet to the music I’m working on. I feel like it would add more dynamics to the music as everything besides bass right now is keys and programmed drums. But I don’t want to spend a fortune on a mic. I remember in school we just used basic stuff like shure 57 and 58 mics for trumpet solos in jazz band. So I figured something in that price range

 

[silky smoove]

How much do you want to spend?

 

[AGCurry]

... I remember in school we just used basic stuff like shure 57 and 58 mics for trumpet solos in jazz band. So I figured something in that price range

Well, a lot of people do use the SM57 for horns. It's definitely not the finest choice, but it's usable.

The Sennheiser MD421 is a much better microphone but it's 3x the price. The good news about the 421 is that it's good for almost anything you throw at it, and it's very durable. A good substitute for the 421 is the Peavey PVM 520i, but you have to get lucky to find one (no longer made).

As a trumpeter, you may know this : Placement should be off the bell of the horn, not directly into it.

 

[mikewalker]

these work nice for horns ( and lots of other things too)


Sennheiser e609 Supercardioid Dynamic Microphone | Reverb

 

[Abington]

I'd vote for trying the SM57 for now. You can get one used for super cheap and you'll never regret having one around. They are useful on a million different sources.

As others have suggested, you may want to upgrade to a nicer dynamic at some point (RE20, MD421, M88, etc).

 

[Nephilymbass]

How much do you want to spend?

Under $200 preferably but I have used a 421 recording bass also and liked it so I might wait and get one of those since it would have more purpose I’d be willing to spend a little more

 

[JonasBro]

The few times I've tracked horn players, I've used either a Shure KSM27 LDC (discontinued) or an sE Electronics se8, which is a small-diaphragm condenser. Both worked great - I don't have much first-hand experience using a 57 but those should work well too.

 

[Bonecat]

Not the traditional tool typically used, but I’ve had good luck with my Electrovoice N/D468. Handles high SPLs well and has a useful proximity effect... Also wasn’t terribly pricey when I bought it....

 

[eliascalles]

hard to recommend a mic without knowing what kind of sound you're going for and what kind of room you're recording in. I record a lot of horns, and the "right" mic totally depends on the player, the project, the space etc, but there are some mics that certainly work better than others. of the ones I use, most are not in the affordable category, but some are. I have used the venerable and cheap EV 635a on many a trumpet (it rolls of the highs in a very musical way and it's an omni so no prox issues). if you're going to get a card vocal mic (aka 57 etc) and can swing the extra $ I recommend stepping up to a sennheiser E935 it's an all around better sounding mic imo (still under $200usd). personally I"d avoid cheap LDCs for horns. cheers