What microphone should I buy for all my vocals?

What equipment do I need to reduce latency for overdub recording rap vocals with a laptop?

• I already plan on getting a condenser microphone, which I know I will need a phantom power source for. I am not planning on doing anything other than overdubs with music that someone else is making, and I'm using headphones to do this. My main problem is latency, and I don't need information about microphones, speakers, filters, headphones, or anything like that. I am on a very tight budget and my main concern is the equipment between my microphone and my recording program, which is Audacity because I don't have money for a better one at the moment. I care far less about quality right now than I do latency, and my goal is to spend as little money as possible. From what I've read(but don't fully understand), I need a preamplifier, an audio mixer, and a USB audio interface. Again, my budget is low, so I'm not looking to pay for a full professional recording studio, but getting rid of latency is of the utmost importance, so I'd mainly like to know if it is necessary to have every one of these to eliminate the latency. Note that I am only using one microphone, music from the computer, and headphones to listen to the music. I'd really like to be able to save myself the trouble of getting the money to buy all of these and I feel like it might be possible to exclude one of them. Remember that LITTLE-TO-NO LATENCY IS MY MAIN GOAL, I don't need high quality, just not total crap quality. Would the USB interface with headphones plugged directly into it be enough to reduce latency and omit the need for the mixer? If I'm using nothing but one microphone, how does the mixer even contribute to my latency? Can I somehow plug the mixer into my computer directly, so I don't need the USB interface? If I decide not to use a preamp, will my quality just be a bit worse, or will it totally go to ****? For that matter, does a mixer or USB interface act as a mic preamp by itself? Does the preamp affect latency? Will not using a mixer hurt my quality too much? If I somehow omit using a USB interface, while still using a mixer, will it hurt my quality? Where do I plug in the headphones while recording for minimal latency? Will having all of these things plugged in affect latency? Can the audio USB interface work like a mixer and eliminate latency if I plug the microphone and headphones in there? Can I make up for lost quality if I don't use a mixer, but do the mixing on the computer? I hope I'm not forgetting anything important. Basically, I have an awful budget, so I'd like to have to buy as few devices as possible. I still want quality, but I don't need amazing quality, just good enough. Latency is my biggest issue, and I'm doing nothing but overdubbing songs with rap vocals. I'd also really appreciate details to go along with answers, so I know how my recording will be affected, and why you suggest it. My main goal is to omit the need for as many of these devices as possible, primarily with latency reduction in mind. All answers and information is greatly appreciated. Thank You (:

• Answer:

  There's a lot of BS floating around the internet, but you're asking the right questions. To record a mic, you need a mic, a preamp, and an A-D convertor. What a lot of people seem to miss is that your PC already has a built-in preamp and A-D convertor in the form of your sound card! In your case, the trouble is that you need phantom power. So you'll either need to get an internal or external sound card (aka interface) that can supply phantom, or a mic with built-in USB interface that supplies its own phantom power (I'm thinking of stuff like the Audio-Technica AT2020). That you need a mixer is a myth. I struggle to understand why that belief is so pervasive. A mixer is for mixing signals. If you're not trying to mix various signals together in the analogue domain, why use a mixer? Granted, mixers do have other functions like supplying phantom to a large number of mics or giving you dozens of preamps or EQs for cheap; but a home studio hobbyist doesn't need those features. It's only when you start buying a buttload of either mics or analogue outboard gear that a mixer becomes a necessity. Low latency is all about the drivers and the connection speed. Internal sound cards often use interfaces like PCI, which is plenty fast. The problem is usually the driver; however, there's a nice little driver called ASIO4ALL which makes your Windows sound card compatible with Steinberg's ASIO standard, allowing for low-latency audio.