Where can I buy a cheap condenser mic?

$465, what should I buy and why?

• I got money from my four families for christmas (both parents remarried), therefore now I have $465. I am debating between... 3G Chromebook Electric Violin and New Violin Case Digital SLR camera Netbook Blue Yeti Condenser Mic, Skullcandy Headphones, Percussion instruments And now I will tell you MY reasons I should buy (or not buy) those items. CHROMEBOOK- WHY: I really need a laptop and I think the fact that it has 100 mb of free 3G is really cool so that for those very few times that I'm not in wifi and need to get on the internet I can. It has apps that I can use for school and I trust Google products. The Chromebook is supposed to be really fast. WHY NOT: It is mostly built for going on the internet. It is good in that area but allegedly it is average to subpar in other areas. ELECTRIC VIOLIN AND NEW VIOLIN CASE- WHY: I have been playing violin for almost 4 years now and am 2nd chair in honors orchestra at my school. I practice a lot and I feel like I bother my family sometimes because the violin is a lot louder than most people think and my room is nowhere near soundproof. I also just think it would be cool to have an electric violin. Also, one out of the two handle on my violin case broke, there is a screw missing in it, and the strap that holds my violin in it's slot is completely unusable so a new case would be wonderful. WHY NOT:I would have to buy the violin online and slightly cheap for it to be in my price range and I don't know if the company will respond to me if I have problems. I don't have an amplifier for it so I would only be able to listen to it through headphones. Digital SLR camera WHY: I have been wanting to get into photography for quite a while. I learned a lot about it (aperture, shutter speed, ISO, bla bla bla) even though I didn't have an SLR camera. I do not want a point and shoot because I havn't ever heard of one that focuses like an SLR and my favorite thing in photography is bokeh which you create with a point-and-shoot. I have used friends SLR cameras before and I think I have a talent in it (I'm all about the arts, whether visual arts or fine arts). WHY NOT: I HAVE WANTED THE NIKON D5100 FOR ALMOST A YEAR NOW and if I buy an SLR now I won't be able to get it. My dads side of the family doesn't think I should get an expensive camera even though I have never broken or lost a single electronic in my life. NETBOOK: WHY: I need a computer for school and mine is becoming very slow and can only be unplugged for 15 minutes without turning off from lack of battery.. WHY NOT: Netbooks are really on the small side. My dad told me that if I come up with half the money for a macbook, he would buy the other half. Should I save up for that? Also, I don't like Windows and Ubuntu is only compatible with things through Wine which I don't want to mess with, so I really just want the Mac O.S. BLUE YETI CONDENSER MIC, SKULLCANDY HEADPHONES, PERCUSSION INSTRUMENTS. WHY: My family wants me to be famous although I'm really confused at what I should do because when I'm not at a concert, I don't want to be, but whenever I am at a concert, I feel horrible that I ever thought I didn't want to be famous. I am a singer and like to record things and the condenser mic would be absolutely perfect for that. My earbuds broke and I think it'd be nice to have a decent pair of headphones. I would need percussion instruments because there are no realistic ones in the music producing software I have (it's free and I'm using ubuntu so I can't just go buy one as most aren't compatible) WHY NOT: I not sure if I want this as my career path. Also, my computer is getting a little too slow for this stuff! OR should I just do a combination of different parts, or just go crazy at ThinkGeek.com, or go buy a microscope or something? OR SHOULD I SAVE UNTIL MY BIRTHDAY (February) OR EVEN THE CHRISTMAS AFTER TO GET SOMETHING EVEN BETTER (suggestions!) My main interests/hobbies are computers, science, math, World of Warcraft, photography, and musical arts. I seriously cannot decide what to do.

• Answer:

  all of these are good things for self improvement and education. so on that note, im proud of your decisions not to completely BLOW the money on nonsense. the chromebook as you said, basically an internet oriented device. so id say to pass on that. to save for a macbook would be a good decision, but a great computer and let it last you a few good years! and the musical things were good choices too lol i can see why the decision is difficult. but any of these are good choices :) id just recommend holding onto the money for a little while and dont be impulsive that you might regret a purchase. good luck :)