How to mic up acoustics? What would Opeth do?

[thefyn]

I have a six string acoustic and a 12 string I'll be recording with soon.

I have 3 mics:

Nady SCM 1000 condenser
SM58
SM57

I'll be putting fresh strings on them, and I have a new vocal booth so ambient noise should not be an issue.

Any pre recording advice would be appreciated. I do have a room with high ceilings I can record in too.

I want to avoid pick noise so I'm after mic placement, type of mic etc.

Also what brand of strings are good for recording on the 12 string? It is standard E.

 

[timislegend]

in my experience;

two small-cap (cardioid) condensers in an xy stereo micing technique. (neumann km184 or lauten st-221 are very good choices).

x = pointing in the direction of the acoustic guitar's bridge.

y = pointing in the direction of the fret-board.


*use your ears... put your head by the sound source.


this method has proven to be incredibly useful.

if you don't have access to these mics... you can remove the windscreen from the sm58 and create an xy with the 57 & 58.

you could also use the scm1000 for room (distance)... but that may be a little much.

 

[DanLights]

with what you've got I would definitely try tim's suggestion, the 57 and 58 in xy, and even try the other one for room (beware of phasing issues though) then you can blend to taste in the mix, and even not use any of the mics if they're not working well to your taste

 

[thefyn]

Oops. Forgot to mention I can only record one mic at a time...

 

[BLUElightCory]

If you can't do XY, you can start with a single mic in about the same position mentioned above - point it somewhere around the 12th fret or the point where the neck and body of the guitar meet, and then experiment with positioning from there.

Martin Marquis and SP series strings sound great for recording; though the "best" string depends on the guitar and the sound you're looking for.

 

[timislegend]

Oops. Forgot to mention I can only record one mic at a time...

if you are only single tracking... you can do as many takes as you want.

which means you can record every facet of the acoustic guitar.

example:

mic the neck, record a take... mic the sound-hole, do a take... etc.

the only thing you must concentrate on is to avoid comb filtering.

the purpose of a stereo micing technique is to achieve a proper stereo image.

but in your case it shouldn't be a problem.



*if you want to avoid pick noise... use a rubber pick. (wedgie)

 

[kev]

Always wondered if you can get bad phase issues dual micing acoustics. ala the fredman guitar technique?

 

[TheWinterSnow]

I never dual mic an acoustic guitar unless I won't be dual tracking, but I always dual track acoustic guitars, and a single mic near the soundhole is always the best place to start. I find the spot in between the fretboard and the soundhole to be the best spot because it has about the same amount of bass as the sound hole but with less pick noise.

Stereo micing is great if you are going to be doing one acoustic take like a lead, not double tracking, because double tracking with dual mics comes with the frustration of phase issues, since you won't be using both mics for a stereo image as both mics will be panned the same, it makes no sense to stereo mic. IME or from pictures that I have seen most mic setups are usually a condenser mic about 6-12 inches back from the soundhole and then a ribbon mic elevated slightly pointing towards the guitar about 3-5ft back as an ambient mic.

 

[timislegend]

Always wondered if you can get bad phase issues dual micing acoustics. ala the fredman guitar technique?

usually comb filtering can be remedied with the polarity switch on the preamp.

dual micing isn't exactly experimental...

anecdotal:

everyone that works here at this studio (12 people) use 1 ribbon mic/ 1dynamic mic/ 1 fet condenser mic while recording electric guitar (almost always).


me: di / royer121 / u47-fet / e609.

every time i record electric guitar...