Microphone recommendation for acoustic guitar recording

[exoslime]

Hello,

I´m looking for a microphone in semi-pro / pro quality line, mainly to record acoustic guitars.
Music Style: Modern Hard Rock Ballads...

i have 2 microphones on my list to buy:
AKG C 451 B
and the
Royer R121

do you have any other suggestions?
i´m up to pay about 1.5k Euro maximum.

i want to use the Royer R121 also for amp recording, but if its also nice for the acoustic guitar, i will not need the akg c 451 b

a downer is that i have read that the royer doesnt have the brightness, that i probably need for cutting through acoustic guitar sound, but then again, its known for its very natural sound which is, of course good to have

i already have an AKG C414 B-XLII which i can use as second microphone

thanks alot for your help
chris

 

[Pedro Teixeira]

SM81 sounds awesome on acoustic, and you can also keep it for hihats, rides, etc... which rules on all of those, check eBay, I got my made in '87 for 170€. I've heard but not tried myself oktava MK-012, those also sounded sweet, but never had any experience with them.

 

[exoslime]

cool, thank you very much for the advice, the shure is definitely very interesting, and the mk12 could be a great bargain too

 

[Tachy]

oktavas sounds great on acoustic guitars

 

[ahjteam]

We recorded 6 different acoustic guitars at university in our recording classes. I have noticed that acoustic guitar is very similiar to singing voice: There is no mic that always sounds better than the other one, but C414 and pencil condensers (we tried C451 and SM81 plus I have used NT5's myself) all pretty much worked in 90% of the guitars, but for this one guitar that was really screechy sounding, the SM57 beat the U87 and the other more expensive mics.

 

[colonel kurtz]

+1 on the royer probably not being what you're looking for on the acoustic...they're amazing mics, and have one of the most "natural" and pleasing sounds i've ever heard from a mic, but acoustic guitar tracks may have a tough time cutting through a dense mix

i usually use an SM81 along with an audio-technica 4033 for acoustic guitars myself...the 81 is a pretty neutral mic, at least for an SDC, and the 4033 is fairly bright. the 451 you mentioned is also a great mic for acoustic guitars - pretty bright, but not in a nasty way, and like the 81 can also work great on cymbals and a myriad of other sources.

in the end, i supposed it all comes down to how much you want to pay...

 

[exoslime]

thanks alot for your words and sharing your experiences!