Looking for tips on a half-decent but inexpensive vocal mic to record female vocals in an ultra-basic bedroom recording studio situation. Nothing special in the way of pre-amps available, just what's in the UR22 interface.

Leaning heavily towards a Behringer B1 which seems to sound ok in tests I've watched and comes with a few useful extras (shockmount, case). Can be had around £70 new which should give an idea of budget.

There's a (well) used SE2200A locally for £80 - is it worth stretching to that over the brand new B1?

Anything else I should be considering?

Any advice gratefully received, thanks

Hi. In an untreated room, I would probably rather go for a dynamic mic, such as an SM57 (or something like that) instead of a condenser mic.
I use a Heil PR40 (into a UA LA610) as my main vocal mic in my home studio, and I'm happy with it.
Others may know better.
All the best.

3U Audio CM1. Black model is U87 voiced, and the Teal model is kind of similar to C12/251 capsules. They'd probably be closer to £90 but they're a lot better than a Behringer B1 (and most likely the SE 2200a). The CM1 is single pattern cardioid, not sure which SE2200a model you're looking at (some are multipattern), though if you need a really cheap multipattern condenser I'd look at the iSK BM-600. It's $140 AUD so about £80. Those are new prices I'm quoting, though you'll have to ask Guosheng at 3U Audio what the current price for the CM1 is, mine was 118.00 USD (with free express shipping, though there may be VAT or customs fees depending on where you're from).

Speaking from experience the Black CM1 is an excellent mic. Only 7 dBA of self noise, very neutral, and very sensitive (both in the sense it's articulate but also requires less gain than some other mics). Only reason I don't use mine is because I my LCT 441 Flex gives me more options being multipattern, and has a similar neutral tone. You might be able to find a used CM1 for really cheap since they're sold for new cheap (and because 3U Audio is so new and not a "big name" resale value's not as good)

Of course, remember that a condenser will be less than ideal in an untreated room.

Thanks for that @ Dohreetoh

The SE2200A available locally is the cardioid model. It's the original silver version.

I've had a look at the Teal CM1 and read around (on here mostly) and it does seem the business. Thing is it'll be £100 before import duty and would need a shock mount too, which is another £29. So all up nearly twice the price of the 2200A or the B1. I don't doubt it's the better mic but I think it might bust the budget unfortunately.

I am a female voiceover artist and I like the ISK Pearl, ISK Starlight, and Scarlett CM25 for low-end options. I'm also keen to try the Teal CM-1, but I have to say the ISK Pearl is probably the absolute best mic I've ever used in an untreated room. The small diaphragm makes it extremely forgiving of background noise. It's only $29 before shipping, too. You could get two of them and get the free mount to go with them. Hope that helps!

Get a good mic and find a cheap female instead.

Are you the woman who did samples of those three mics in her living room in YouTube videos?

I've been thinking about picking up either some iSK Pearls or iSK BM-80s to have as cheap travel mics (and for things like sound effects where I might not want to use a mic I care about for recording, like water sound effects, snow crunching, mud, etc.)

I have a Black CM1 I could sell you for pretty cheap (£50 + shipping, £50 is like $85 CAD which is about half of what I paid for it including customs). Has some cosmetic damage but works like new. I can even throw in a shock mount (it fits those cheap universal ones on eBay). I can make a GS Classifieds ad if we're allowed to save the thing for a specific person. I checked the rules, I didn't notice anything saying I can't offer to sell (if I missed it, sorry, I can make an actual classifieds listing if I must, mods please respond to this post if that's the case).

IMO gender has nothing to do with what mic you should buy. It's more about the person's vocal characteristics, style, the kind of music, what accompaniment, etc.

That said, it may well be worth trying a dynamic, and not simply because of the untreated room (at least throw up some heavy blankets if you can). The isK ICDM I think you can still get at half price for a mere $30 which is a total no-brainer, even at a reg price of only $60 can hold its own with mics at several times that price IMO. In the $100 range you have dynamics like the Sennheiser 835 and of course the always-hyped SM58, but I'd be quite tempted to get the Pearl and ICDM which only cost you $60 COMBINED. That's insane.

The se2200 sounds like a great deal IF it's in good shape, and that's always a gamble. If so IMO it's an easy choice. About the only LDCs in your range new I'd probably consider would be the MXL 67G (also about $60 I think), but if you can ramp up your budget more, there are a variety in the $100-150 range that are quality mics.

Yeah, I was really annoyed I couldn't find any spoken word samples of any kind for those mics, so I recorded some super casual samples, despite not having my studio set up in my new apartment at the time. I asked Kris if there was any chance he could make some samples but he never did, alas. But now that I've moved to a quieter city and will be narrating audiobooks again for a living, I'll probably do a proper shootout. (Eventually, maybe. Life is really chaotic right now.)

ETA: I would probably not use a dynamic mic for this situation, as in my experience even the really expensive ones are only vaguely passable for female voices in radio and podcasts. For more nuanced work like vocals or voiceover, you're probably going to be much better off with a forgiving condenser like the Pearl or Scarlett CM25 or Shure 87A.

The iSK Little Gem might be another good option. Not quite as good as the Pearl, but it has 3 capsules, including a super cardioid capsule that could be used for untreated rooms (not a cure all though! You will need to have carpet or blankets somewhere nearby at least, definitely under you if you boom the mic downward at your mouth from above). A hyper cardioid version of the iSK Pearl (without that nasty boost the iSK Little Gem's super cardioid capsule has) would be amazing. If only that existed.

Thanks for all the advice everyone - I'm working through all the suggestions now.

To answer a couple of Qs - the vocal style would be best described as floaty and ethereal. And, so far, utterly drenched in fx I'm aware that the latter aspect makes much of the choosing between this or that mic characteristic a bit moot, but I figure start with a good capture of the source and it'll open up possibilities later. If she can hear she sounds good on her own it'll boost confidence etc. At the minute she's just using a mega-cheap dynamic that came with the sampler she's got.

She's been asked to send some vox tracks to a producer/remixer who's heard some of her stuff online, so I kinda want to help with that. May well come to nothing but it warrants something better than that crappy mic she's got at the moment.

Room treatment is an issue so thanks for that heads-up. I'm reading up on that and we'll do what we can, which might not be much but still.

Going to see the 2200A later today. It's pretty old and much-used but he'll demo it for me so I'll take a view on it when I've seen/heard it. I found a comparison vid yesterday of voiceover work with several mics including the SE and it jumped out at me as being rich and well balanced, much nicer than the others (can't remember what they were apart from a samson C01). Meanwhile I'll look into the other suggestions.

Thanks again

So the SE2200 was pretty grubby looking so I passed, although it worked fine.

I've found a Focusrite Scarlett CM25 for £20 which is almost too cheap to pass up, no? Especially given it's been mentioned by @ radler above.

The Scarlett mic, which is usually bundled with a Focusrite interface, is a surprisingly good mic. Focusrite wouldn’t benefit from bundling a bad-sounding mic with their gear, and it is intended to give good results for inexperienced engineers in random spaces. To find one unbundled at a good price is a gift you might regret passing on.

I do love the Sennheiser 835 on female voices (on many voices), but the CM 25 at a fraction of the price is where you should go first.

At £20 from a shop (and therefore a returns policy) there was no danger so I've gone for it. It even comes with its original xlr cable so another few quid saved there

I'll let you know how we get on.

Yay! I hope it works well for you! It's not going to beat out a Neumann or anything (and truthfully I like my Pearl better), but the CM25 is a great little mic for the price—and that price especially is excellent. It produces perfectly serviceable female voiceover/vocal audio and is very forgiving of sibilance and environmental issues. It's one of my top 3 recommended mics for higher pitched voices looking for an affordable condenser mic, along with the Pearl and Starlight. IMO it sounds better on my voice than much more expensive mics like the Shure SM87A and the AT2035.

I would have gone for a Pearl but they simply aren't to be found here in the UK, so I'd have to get one imported. Could still do that, but I'll see how this CM25 works out first.

Thanks for your advice

I think you are referring to the ISK Starlight, but “Starlight” made me think of the Aston Starlight.
It isn’t in the price range for this thread, but the Aston Starlight, which is usually marketed as an instrument mic, is an amazingly good vocal mic. With the “vintage” switch setting, it is giving me the most beautiful and natural vocals ever in my home studio. I have five LDC vocal mics from $150 to $3,000, an SM7b, other dynamics, and various good ribbons. They do different vocal types well, but the Starlight seems to do them slightly better than the best.
And it has a laser... just had to throw that in.

So she's starting making stuff with the CM25. Recording wise it's still fairly rough as she does it herself and it's just the mic straight into a crappy old Behringer 802A mixer with a Quadraverb+ on the send. Fortunately that works ok for the type of stuff she's doing. I suspect you could probably get similar results with just about any mic though haha.

She's started collaborating online with Montreal artist Exist Strategy and I have to say I'm damned impressed with the first two tracks they've done. She (Cyric) does vox, synths and samples, he does piano, more synths, and the main production.

Not a bad first effort at all, I know it's washed in 'verb but it still sounds a bit "clicky" and "plosivey" to me, she could do with a pop filter - or singing over the mic slightly. A wire coat hanger and an old pair of tights will do the trick given the budget stretched to a £20 mic. Plosives really are the thing ordinary non-critical listeners will pick out as being the thing that makes productions sound amateurish. Good job though, far better than my first effects a billion years ago!

Thanks. I bought her a pop filter too, but forgot to take it over when I gave her the mic

you could try an AKG-C3000.

maybe 200 Bucks.

bright mic but still ok.

Buddha