Trumpet & Piano

[RichardT]

Very true, Mike!

[Arpangel]

..
is it financially viable to hire good microphones just for the occasion?

It depends on what you mean by viable.

Hiring good quality mics for a few days is certainly an option and typically far less expensive than buying them. But to use a mic you also need a cable, a mic stand, a preamp...

The major trouble with hiring, is that if you’re not already familiar with the mic's/equipment being hired, it can be a waste of money, if you can only have them for a limited time and it’s not enough to fully learn their characteristics, great if you already know, then you’ll be prepared to make the most of them straight off the bat.

[jimjazzdad]

The major trouble with hiring, is that if you’re not already familiar with the mic's/equipment being hired, it can be a waste of money, if you can only have them for a limited time and it’s not enough to fully learn their characteristics, great if you already know, then you’ll be prepared to make the most of them straight off the bat.

I'm pretty sure if the technical rider named a model-specific requirement, I could hire, say, a U87, put it up in front of the vocalist, and get a decent capture. Without the requirement for that specific mic, I'd reach for one of my LDCs I know... Now if you're hiring to 'try before you buy', you would definitely keep the mics long "enough to fully learn their characteristics", which may or may not be economical.

[Arpangel]

The major trouble with hiring, is that if you’re not already familiar with the mic's/equipment being hired, it can be a waste of money, if you can only have them for a limited time and it’s not enough to fully learn their characteristics, great if you already know, then you’ll be prepared to make the most of them straight off the bat.

I'm pretty sure if the technical rider named a model-specific requirement, I could hire, say, a U87, put it up in front of the vocalist, and get a decent capture. Without the requirement for that specific mic, I'd reach for one of my LDCs I know... Now if you're hiring to 'try before you buy', you would definitely keep the mics long "enough to fully learn their characteristics", which may or may not be economical.

You sound pretty experienced, so you’d probably get it in no time, but some people, myself included in the past, have maybe thought it wasn’t worth it, I didn’t make the most out of it.
I only hire now if a piece of gear I own and know well breaks down, and I desperately need it.

[tea for two]

Would anyone recommend a microphone suitable for recording trumpet and piano together? It needs to be a USB mic.

Barry this could be a tricky one for this forum as most of the forumees tend to go away from usb mic for recording instruments also towards more than one mic.

I've been considering Blue Yeti Blackout, Elgato Wave 3, Uhuru-UM900, all three are USB mics.
I checked out youtube reviews as well as comments.
Uhuru-UM900 at £54 new includes an arm stand to make it easier to angle the mic into different positions.

Here's Sanjay C reviewing a few USB mics for vocals, home studio in 2021
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9OxdE1E7k-o

Thing about Blue Yeti Blackout from youtube comments.
" Blue Yeti bit the dust (USB Connection issues - won't connect anymore) and bought the Elgato Wave 3 in replacement."
"Can we all talk about the fact that the blue yeti over time tends to have a horrific static noise that is audible to people you may be speaking with, it is so loud that you can hear it through their mic. This problem only gets worse over time, I have encountered this myself, and is the reason I am switching to the wave 3."
" I had the same problem. It's actually to do with the knobs on the device getting dirty. It's especially apparently when you change the gain. If you plug in headphones and move the gain knob and it crackles, take apart the device and get some WD-40 in there to displace the crap."

[Wonks]

I feel we may have frightened off the OP. Given the time of year and the lack of other detail given, I'd assume this is someone who wants to record maybe a school concert, or maybe a home performance of one or two of their children playing and wants something better than a phone can provide. Trumpet and piano isn't a typical classical performance mix.

It's not an easy one to answer if it is, as most USB mics are fixed pattern cardioid, which may not be the best choice, but might be OK depending on the room and the ability to position the mic in a suitable location. So if the OP does return, a lot more info is required if we are to provide useful assistance.