Cleans - how many tracks do you do?

[abt]

I've always been a double track guy when it comes to cleans. I'm talking about picking, or general clean rhythm. Lately I've been listening and wondering how often it's just one guitar instead of two or more.

 

[Machinated]

depends but generally I only do 2 tracks if the part is REALLY crying out for it.

 

[bryan_kilco]

Usually double. Or at least get the take doubled to have the option.

 

[greyskull]

Depends on the part/song/style, but yeah, I normally double but mute parts I won't want later.

 

[Heabow]

For some clean arrangement stuff on distorted guitars now I tend to track 3 times. Sometimes because I want the clean to be in the center and give it some subtile wideness with the other ones, or by contrast because I want one on each side and add some "glue" with one in the center that's mixed very low. I prefer to do this way than using delays and verbs especially to create this kind of effect if that makes sense...

 

[abt]

Thanks for posting. So how often do you find yourself just using one guitar? I'm finding that if you double track it sometimes sounds a bit "chorusy" when you don't want it to or if you track it tighter it sounds mono then you end up having to downsize the bottom end so much it sounds like one guitar anyway.

 

[Plendakor]

Can't try right now but I'm guessing clean with 2 differant impulses and panned could do the trick with a single take, like acoustic with 2 mics.

 

[amarshism]

i double track nearly everything and decide in mix, nothing wrong with one clean guitar firing down the centre

 

[The StabbinCabin]

L, C, R with the left and right usually really low playing a step higher/lower- If I'm going for texture or whatever and didn't do midi I just automate volume and verb and mess with the panning to whatever.

 

[RiF]

Thanks for posting. So how often do you find yourself just using one guitar? I'm finding that if you double track it sometimes sounds a bit "chorusy" when you don't want it to or if you track it tighter it sounds mono then you end up having to downsize the bottom end so much it sounds like one guitar anyway.

If both left and right tracks are too similar in tone, they end up falling into the center and sounding chorusy and mono'ish. This effect is even more dramatic when using amp sim software, because they are more deterministic in the sound they produce than real amps.
To spread out the left and right guitars, you need to change something between them. What I am doing very often is changing the mic position from straight to angled (off axis). This can be done in the analog world as well as with cab sims by using slightly different cabinet IRs.
Using a different amp and/or guitar on one side helps even further.

 

[Jordon]

L, C, R with the left and right usually really low playing a step higher/lower- If I'm going for texture or whatever and didn't do midi I just automate volume and verb and mess with the panning to whatever.

A step higher or lower?

 

[The StabbinCabin]

Yeah man. Try it underneath some stuff, like pretty quietly. idk I think in certain songs/tempos/vibe it fills stuff out. Like a verb 100% wet an octave lower with a long tail. I EQ and automate accordingly but that's like the craziest thing I do for cleans sometimes.

 

[Studdy]

You must mean an octave, but thats weird too unless going for an effect. A step lower would be a couple fret lower on a guitar, that would sound like complete shit.

 

[The StabbinCabin]

Hahaha yes I meant an octave. My brain has been fried this past week with this fucking studio. My bad