Microphone Stands

Welcome back everyone!

Last post discussed how to take your at home studio on the road if necessary. Having the opportunity to run sound at a event, I couldn't pass up the chance to show everyone how I roll on the road.

With that being said, this post is going to take us back to the development of the at home studio and show the next step to take in the creation of your studio!

Now that we have our interface, we have selected which DAW we are going to record with, and we have selected a few microphone options, it's time to get some mic stands so we can start setting up our session and get ready to record. Ideally, you as the at home engineer/producer don't want to be holding the mic for yourself or for the artist you are recording.
Mic stands pretty much all come in the same shape, but there are some different sizes and features on some stands and today we are going to discuss these features.

This is the cheapest stand I was able to find. It is available through Sweetwater for $19.95.
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/MicStdLt/
Included with all mic stands is going to be a base for the stand to sit. What is pretty much standard on all stands is the the base has a knob which allows the entire base to move up on the mic stand. The legs then fold in and the stand because much easier to store. One of the biggest limitations on the stand is that the stand only moves up and down at one break point. This is great if you are recording vocals and maybe a guitar, but for anything else, the limitations on the position of where the stand can reach will turn anyone away from this stand.

A better option to go with instead of a fixed stand would be this:

This stand not only have the same style base, with three legs and an adjustable base to raise up and down, the same single break point to heighten or lower the stand, but also come with a boom option, which will allow the engineer to mic instruments with more precision.
What's nice about the boom is the adjustable level that will allow the boom to move up and down. This allows for the stand to be shorter and you can raise the boom to reach a higher point. One limitation to this style stand is that on the boom there is no break point. Some other stands have one or two break points on them which allow for even more control and accuracy when micing up a setup. Having these extra break points would allow for opening up more space and not having a clutter or stands when recording. This comes in handy with drum tracking and micing a full band.
This stand is available through Sweetwater for $24.95
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/MicStdFBoomL/

Next we have a short stand available through Sweetwater for $27.95
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/MicStdShortBm/

This stand is the same design as our other stands, featuring adjustable base, fold in legs, one break point to heighten and lower the stand, plus the boom arm that allows for more accuracy. The only different with this stand is that it's much shorter than the first two stands mentioned. A full sized mic stand can usually be adjusted between 36" and 64" inches, while the short stand can be adjusted between 17" and 27".
A great way to use this stand would be micing a kick drum, bottom of a floor tom, back side of a kick drum, bottom and top of a snare and amplifiers. Since the stand is so short, it rarely gets in the way of micing any other instrument and has precision control with the adjustable boom arm.

Next we have a standard sized stand with more precision control. This is the stand I use when I do all my at home work. It's available on Sweetwater for $34.95
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/MicStdBoomLt/

What's great about this mic stand is the boom arm has an adjustable break point on it. This means the boom arm can go from 19" to 37", freeing up space if you have a tight mic setup. The adjustable boom will allow the engineer to place the stand farther from the source, but still reach the source with the adjustable arm. Another great this is the boom arm on this stand unscrews, essentially leaving the stand looking like the first stand mentioned in this post. This allows for different attachments to go on this stand such as a t-bar mic holder (allowing two mics to be mounted at once), or even placing a headphone amplifier on the stand.

Finally we have our stands for overhead drum micing, or room micing. This stand is available through Sweetwater for $169.95
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/StuBoomW/

This stand allows for the heights between 40" and 82". This is great for overhead drum micing because a standard size stand will have a hard time reaching over the top of the kit. If you decide to use a regular stand for overhead, the odds of the stand falling over are likely because of the full extension needed. This stand allows for a lot more flexibility and height control. The big base on this stand will allow for the stand to move up a lot higher and not have to worry about tipping over.
Another great feature are the wheels attached to the base of the stand. This allows for easy movement when placing this stand in your setup. The only downfall to this stand is if you are working at home and don't have a big enough space to store this stand, it will take up a lot of room and might get in the way of some things. (Especially if you purchase two of these stands!)

Keep in mind that most microphones will come with their own mount, but you will need a stand in order to place that mount.

Please comment and leave feedback on some stands you may prefer over what I have displayed. Also, if there are any funny mic stand stories you would like to share, please leave the story in the comments section.

TTYL,
BCEB

 *It's not about how fast you can pump something out, it's how efficient you can use your knowledge to create the best available product while delivering a professional experience.*

(My story is short. I used two regular sized stands just recently at a live event to mic overheads on a hand percussion setup. I didn't have the mounts that came with the overheads, so I ended up duct taping the mics to the stand in order to capture the performance. Embarrassing...I know!)