fucken guitars

[Genius Gone Insane]

alright people you are awesome and have provided me with lots of help. and i've put a lot of it to use but fucken for the life of me I can't get a solid guitar sound. i know some of the problem is mic placement but shit maybe it's my playing, i don't even know.

what 5150 settings do you use? today i got a pretty good guitar sound, but not exactly what i want, not enough clarity. let me tell you what i've done. i'm trying to get something in between Nevermore DHIADW and the last two Arch Enemy albums and i have the following settings on a 5150II coming out of a 5150 cab -- sm57 mic and emg 81 pickups:

5150:
PRE: 10
LOW: 5
MID: 1
HIGH: ~4
POST: 3 (is this loud enough?)
RESONANCE: 0
PRESENCE: 5

tube screamer:
DRIVE: 0
TONE: 3
LEVEL: 7

for the record, I have the resonance at 0 to get some mud out. do you guys do that?

mic is placed maybe 3 inches away from top right speaker, facing "northeast" if you're looking at the front of the amp, diagonal...is this a good starting point? SOMEONE HELP!!!!!!

 

[Andy Sneap]

oh oh, right try this. I don't have either at mark 2 5150 or a 5150 cab but...
I also don't have a 5150 in front of me so all settings are in "o'clock" ok, very technical haha

Lead channel
Pre 11 oclock
Low 1 oclock ish
Mid 9 oclock ish
High 11.30ish
Post 9.30, 10 oclock
Res 2 oclock
Pres 3 o clock

Tube screamer
Drive 9 oclock
Tone 11 oclock
Level 12 o clock

This isn't gospel either, if you think it needs a bit more this and that, try it, just a good starting place.

Right to the cab.

Those sheffield speakers arent great, it will make a fundemental difference to your tone using celestions, but hey, we have to work with it I guess.

Why is the mic facing north east??? something I don't know about happening over there??
Those speakers are actually a rip off (according to Peavey) of the Celestion Green back, so the centre of the cone is pretty small, which is good. Get a mag light, and point the 57 directly at the centre of the cone, straight on, about an inch back from the grill cloth. I usually move it about half to 3/4" off centre so the edge of the 57 is aiming at the edge of the centre of the cone. Again, trust your ears a bit, if you think the mid range is more to your liking a bit (and I mean a fraction) more off centre then go with it. Listen to the fizz in the highs, and also the cloudiness in the lows, but to me the mids are where a good tone is.
Good luck, hope you have a better day, I know exactly what you're going through!

 

[LynchpiN]

That was technical )
It's a pretty dull question but have you rough mixed that guitar sound with all the rest?
I mean, many times when you listen to just a single guitar the sound is not oh so killer, but with a nice mix you can find that low end on the bass, add some tightness when you double, or some bite recording the other guitar with a little more high end. It's kind of hard to build a wall with just one guitar track.
It's all about trying everything out.

 

[Genius Gone Insane]

Lynchpin--your "dull" question is a good one and my answer is yes, the guitars usually sound a lot better when they are doubled and everything is mixed well. But the main problem is that I'm not getting a clear signal. It's too "cheese-grater" sounding, as my other guitarist calls it.

Andy-THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for that post, I can't wait to try those settings Sunday. You'll definitely get a round of drinks for you and your buddies next time you're in the Bay Area for that!...

As for my northeast mic placement, it actually turned out alright. But check THIS out! I never even bothered to try placing the mic dead center on the cone, especially that close. I have heard from so many people so many times that you never place the mic straight on, always at an angle, usually 3-6 inches away. I didn't even try it. I definitely will next time....Also, I recently viewed The Haunted's DVD and there's a very quick view of their mic placement and it appears to be off center and north east.

Anyway, thank you guys SO much for the responses. By the way, I just saw the Opeth DVD for the first time and it sounds phenominal, great job Andy!

 

[Genius Gone Insane]

HOLY SHIT THANK YOU!!! damn this sounds good, cant wait to post it for feedback! thanks!!!! Still mixing!

 

[Genius Gone Insane]

Sounds great, but I want more so I got a friend's Boogie for the Celestions, will try that out soon...curious to see what Andy means by "fundemental" difference b/w the them and the sheffields.

 

[LynchpiN]

Boogies... yeah, it is fundamental...
Good luck with your recording, the guitar that way will surely sound killer.
Post it here later (if possible) for us to check it out!

 

[Genius Gone Insane]

I tried out the Boogie tonight and man what a difference. I was short on time so I couldn't play with the 5150 or Tube screamer controls, but the signal was so much more clear! I will post it but not for a while till i get some time to record it right...

For the record, the 5150 I sounds better than the 5150 II, but that difference is almost insignificant compared to the difference between the Boogie and the 5150 Cab. Those Celestions kick ass, man I cant wait to work on it more.

 

[Andy Sneap]

Told you!!!!!

 

[Genius Gone Insane]

ya thanks Andy, I just hope i can play the music tight enough now haha