It's been a little while since this thread was started so I dont know if you found yourself a mic yet, but I'm kinda into microphones and have tried/own alot of them so I'll throw a few recommendations out if you want.
The first thing to understand is that no matter how much or little the mic costs it may not be the correct one for a particular voice. You really should try out any mic before you buy it to see if it works with your voice. Especially most of the cheaper condensers as they are mostly made in China and can vary quite a bit due to quality control issues.
Secondly, you have to keep in mind what your goals are for the mic. You've said that you want to do vocal recording so I'm going to proceed with that in mind.
Shure SM57/58 - these are great mics and very versatile. The SM57 is the de facto standard mic for guitar cabinets and very popular for snares also. It's a versatile mic that will do a respectable job on alot of different sources, but will rarely be spectacular. (excepting cabs and snare) It's a good value and is the type of mic that you will probably keep even after you get better ones. If you are sure you are only going to be doing vocals it's not what I would recommend first though as it's not one of it's stronger points(Unless you're screaming). The 57 and 58 are essentially the same mic. If you unscrew the ball end off of a 58 it's almost identical to a 57. The 58 is generally considered more of a stage mic while the 57 is very common both onstage and in the studio. An added bonus to these mics is that they are almost indestructible.
Studio Projects B1 - This is generally regarded as one of the better entry level condensers. It's a solid mic for very little money. I have used one a decent amount and it is quite good on acoustic guitars and other acoustic strings. It's pretty neutral sounding to my ears and doesn't impart a lot of character. Because of that it would not be something I would reach for when tracking vocals, but I wouldn't consider it a great hindrance if it was all I had to use either.
Rode NT1A - This is another popular low cost mic. It's a little more expensive than the SP B1, but it is more detailed also. Rode as a company has a pretty solid reputation and some of the more expensive mics in their line are quite well regarded. The NT1A has very low self noise. I think it's probably the quietest mic of all the budget condensers that I have used. Some people really like this mic for vocals ( I see that Martin uses it), but for my voice it didn't work so well. One thing to consider about this mic is that it is very bright. That can either be a good thing or a bad thing depending on the vocalist. If you tend toward sibilance in your singing (as I do) that's a bad thing. I did get some good acoustic tracks with it though.
CAD M179 - This is another low cost condenser. This mic is solid for vocals and is extremely versatile due to the fact that it has a switch on it that allows you continuously vary the polar pattern from tight cardiod to omni. It isnt particularly brilliant on anything, but it sucks on nothing. All in all this is a very cool mic.
MXL V67g - This mic is kind of silly looking with it's green paint job and gold grill, but despite that and it's fairly cheap price tag, it works really well on some types of vocals. This is not an overly bright mic at all. It's a little hyped in the mid frequency area which can make a vocal sound very big, but also makes it a little less useful for other applications IMO. I do not like it on acoustic guitar at all as it is far too boomy.
Oktava MK-319 - This is a Russian condenser mic. It's pretty dark sounding in comparison to the other mics listed so far. That can sound dull to some people, but it's really just that it does not have an artificial bump in the highs like most cheaper condensers. It can sound good on some vocalists. Especially women and high pitched male voices. This mic can be modded into a much nicer mic for fairly little money after the fact also.
MXL V69m - This is a slightly more expensive mic than most of the others I've posted, but I thought it worth a mention as it is one I use for my own vocals quite a bit. This mic has relatively high self noise, but nothing which would make it unusable. It is definitely not a neutral sounding mic and imparts it's own color to everything you record with it. It's sort of smokey sounding in a good way. Similar to the V67g, but supercharged. It's one of my favorites.
Shure SM7b - This is another dynamic mic from Shure, but a nicer one. This mic is also a little more expensive than some of the others here, but it's definitely worth it. They are easy to find used though (around $300)and they are pretty rugged. I tend to use this when I'm singing a more aggressive/fast rock song. It's never failed me and between it and the V69 it's about all I use on my own voice anymore. One thing to be aware of with this microphone though is that it needs a lot of clean gain from your preamp to get the best out of it. It's also a mic that I find shows an especially big difference from preamp to preamp. Highly recommended.
I've listed mostly condensers here as there are alot more good cheap options for them than dynamics for vocals, but don't be mislead by that. There are plenty of really good dynamic vocal mics for studio use. They just tend to be in the next price range up. (Sm7, RE20, etc) Still they are not as expensive as really nice condensers either though. Condenser tend to have higher outputs so because of that they are going to pick up a lot more ambient sound than a dynamic. This can make a dynamic a good option if you are in a bad sounding room or a noisey environment. Anyway, I hope this helps at least a little if you haven't already gotten a mic.
