Blue Snowball USB mic (home recording)

Hi guys,

Just want to mention that I recently purchased the Snowball USB condenser mic from BLUE.

It's a really great mic for home recording on your Mac or PC - I use it with Garage Band. I highly recommend it, the sound is very warm and much more enjoyable than most computer mics I've used - and it plugs right into your computer via the USB port.

I got it for about $100 including shipping from http://www.apple.com - it's a very good tool for making demos, etc.



mavrothis

Nice Mav. When do we get to hear it?

Check it out:

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/wa/RSLID?find=snowball&btn.x=0&btn.y=0

I can't believe they're overcharging you that much in Europe...I did see on www.musiciansfriend that it was going for more than $100, but I guess apple has an arrangement with them.

I'm attaching an ussak taksim played with my Dimitris ud using the Snowball and Garageband. I'm still getting the hang of mixing and need to keep experimenting with mic position, but I think you can get a decent idea of the sound you can get using this mic. Also, I'm still kind of waking up over here, so forgive any rough playing on my part.

This mic definitely gives a more full and warm sound compared to the built-in mic in my computer, and it's so easy to play directly into the mac and not have to mix down from an external 10 track like I used to.

Actually, I'm going to share one recording made w/ my imac's internal mic (huseyni), and one with virtually the same settings using the snowball (ussak). Big difference I think, and used the same ud:


Huseyni Taksim - Huseyni Pesrev (Lavtaci Andon).mp3

mic test ud - ussak.mp3

It sounds like I boosted the total volume more on the first recording, but the newest one sounds warmer to me regardless...

Anyway, for the money I think it's definitely worth a try for anyone who records at home onto a computer.

One tip for you, don't unplug your mic from your computer while running something in your recording software - it could cause your software to freeze or quit. You don't want to lose any unsaved changes by accident. Also, there are updates available on BLUE's website for this mic, check them out: www.bluemic.com

Take care,

mavrothis

Thanks Jameel, you really are too kind. I really appreciate it, more than you know.

mavrothis

Thanks again guys.

Hey William. My oud is similar to Spyros' decorated oud by Dimitris, but I'm sure they differ a little as all ouds do in sound. I haven't played them both in the same sitting to really compare them. Spyros' oud is amazing to play, I have to say that of the contemporary ouds I've played, that was my favorite of all. I'd try to put it's sound and playability into words, but I'd just sound like I was contradicting myself, b/c it has so many great qualities.

Revaldo, don't worry about the negative feedback you read, mine came with both the usb cable and the cool little tripod stand. I didn't try any of the other brands of usb condenser mics, I just really trust the Blue name and thought it was worth a try for the price. So far I'm very happy with it.

You should experiment and see how the others compare. Be sure to download the firmware updates for the Snowball so you can switch back and forth from high gain recording to low gain recording.

Let me know what you think, I'd be curious to see how the others sound if you do try them.

Take care,

mavrothis

Mabrouk buddy! I hope you enjoy it.

Don't forget to download the firmware updates from http://www.bluemic.com

mavrothis

Hi,

The 1,2,3 on the back are settings for the way the mic picks up sound. Try each setting and see what works best for your oud, voice, etc. I think mine is on setting 1, using the high gain update.

mav

Hi there,

Just go down to the bottom of the home page (http://www.bluemic.com). The link for the updates is there with a pic of the snowball.



Take care,

mavrothis