Condenser mic headache.... Help!

[melibreits]

I've been working on some recording projects with my Korg D-1200 unit, and have run into a bit of a snag.... I recently upgraded my recording setup to an MXL 990 condenser mic, which seemed to get pretty good reviews for its (lower end) price range--I had previously done some recording with my Sennheiser performance mic. Anyway, I love the clarity and natural sound I get with the condenser, when it works! I've been experiencing some real frustration, as I will attempt to do retakes on certain tracks, and I cannot seem to get the mic to pick up the sound of my vocals clearly, even though my unit is reading a signal.... and when I play it back it sounds very faint and muddy. I have tried setting the mic at all kinds of different angles and nothing seems to help.... And yet in another recording session I can record a track and do retakes and they sound crystal clear and beautiful, even though I haven't done anything different.... I can't figure out if there could be a short in my mic, or if it could be a glitch in my recording unit.... I'm really getting frustrated with this. Any suggestions?

[teb]

Things to try:
#1 - Assuming that your condenser needs phantom power, double-check to make sure it's turned on (small slide switch on back near XLR plug, red light on deck lights up near plug).
#2 - Mess with the trim knob next to the input. My number one input gets a bit strange at times and gives a soft, distorted signal. Temporarily cranking the trim knob way up will suddenly bring it back to life and you can then adjust the trim as needed with a louder, clear signal. This could be a flaw in my machine or it might be something common to the model.
#3 - Push the "Meter/Track View" button. Now use the four-way cursor arrows to move the selection on the screen over to highlight that little arrow in the top left corner of the LCD screen. Push the "Enter" button, a new screen will come up. Using the 4-way cursor, select "Pre-Fader Level" from the list of options and push the "OK-Yes" button. Push the "Input/Output/Solo" button and be sure that the input is being sent to the track(s) you want it to be on. Now push the "Meter/Track View" button again. This will bring the meter back up, showing a small band for each track. Now test your mic and adjust your levels using the trim knob so that you have a good level but are not clipping the signal. Finally, using the slider for that track, bring your volume up to the desired level.

That pretty much covers the options for the 10% of the machine that I actually know how to work, but there are most likely a lot of other possibilities that I am not aware of.

[melibreits]

Thanks, Todd!

I've tried everything you've suggested, except for the second part of #2, cranking the trim knob back up and re-adjusting. In fact, the problem may have something to do with the trim knob--my first couple of retakes on the song were clipping, so I had to roll the trim back a little, and then the next vocal tracks I recorded were so soft and mushy they were unusable, even though I sang them perfectly and they should have been technically flawless. Now I'm also wondering if it has something to do with using the "Modeling" option with the mic, because in the last song I worked on my vocals were sounding pretty good, but I wanted to try modeling a vocal tube mic with a limiter to clean it up a little, and it was after that things started to get a little weird, although I have used this setting before with good results....

My mic is plugged into input 1, so it's interesting that you've experienced the same phenomenon--I wonder if it is a flaw in the Korg unit? Before I got the condenser and started using it to record my acoustic guitar parts, I had always kept my mic plugged into input 2.

Thanks again, Todd--let me know if you discover any other quirks with the Korg unit--this does put my mind at ease a bit.... I will try again today!

[Scastles]

Mel, I had the same problem once with a Tascam unit. It only had two inputs. While it worked fine in one, the second input varied in its quality with the condenser mic. Generally poorly. Come to find out it was a problem with the unit, and not the operator.

[jps]

I assume you are getting the phantom power from the D1200's input, if so maybe the mic is not always getting enough voltage. A lot of condenser mics these days are made to work from a range of voltages from 12V-48V, but it could be possible that the low end of the range is really not enough to provide good, consistent performance from the mic. Try an external phantom power supply and see if that solves the problem.

[melibreits]

Thank you, thank you, thank you, everyone.... I am once again saved by my friends at RickResource!

I got a chance to try recording my vocal track again.... First I tried Todd's suggestion of tweaking the trim knob all the way up and then back down to the desired level, but no luck there.... so I decided to plug the mic into the #2 input, and voila! I got a perfect vocal track on the very first attempt. It's sparkling clean and crystal clear, with no hint of muddiness or weird soft distortion.... Now let's hope I never have the same problem again as long as I use input 2! It seems that my recording unit has its share of odd little quirks, but when it works it does a pretty decent job, LOL! I'm guessing that the trouble was not with the microphone.

[ram]

so now that you have it solved.... a sample?

[melibreits]

All in due time....

I'm planning to submit this one to RRF CD 2, after I send it off to get a little help from a friend.