Whenever I close-mike guitars using the standard approach (SM57, V30, an inch off the grille, where cap meets cone or really anywhere on the speaker keeping the one inch distance), I get an exaggerated low end and lots of top end. It seems to me that the midrange, the very frequency range that defines guitar tone, suffers the most from the traditional close-miking technique, resulting in a scooped-sounding tone.
I have not given up on this technique. After all, it is how most rock and metal albums are recorded nowadays, so there has to be a way to make it work, or maybe my ears are still not accustomed to the modern sound (I spent half my life listening primarily to Maiden, which may be a different guitar sound from today's modern metal).
And, there's fundamentally nothing wrong with my guitar recordings. They sound like they should, which is pretty much exactly like this.
But to me, a great guitar tone sounds like this.
Maybe I've just run into the limitations of close-miking.
I was just wondering whether anyone here knows what I'm talking about when I describe my challenges and what sage advice you might have for me.
I have not given up on this technique. After all, it is how most rock and metal albums are recorded nowadays, so there has to be a way to make it work, or maybe my ears are still not accustomed to the modern sound (I spent half my life listening primarily to Maiden, which may be a different guitar sound from today's modern metal).
And, there's fundamentally nothing wrong with my guitar recordings. They sound like they should, which is pretty much exactly like this.
But to me, a great guitar tone sounds like this.
Maybe I've just run into the limitations of close-miking.
I was just wondering whether anyone here knows what I'm talking about when I describe my challenges and what sage advice you might have for me.
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