first time recording guitar

[mojobone]

Your workhorse stompbox compressors are Red, (MXR) Blue (Boss CS-1) and White (Ross) Available from Dunlop and Roland, respectively. I don't know if the white one's still available new, and vintage ones are pricey. (Keeley Electronics makes a great repro, though; it's the one with two knobs) The blue one has a characteristic 'pop' on the front end of a note that's very popular in country circles, cuz it sounds killer on single coils and Gretsch Filter'Trons. The red one has medium sustain and a gritty quality many players admire. (Lowell George used to use two in series, direct into a Fender Super Reverb, no fuzz pedal) The white one sustains a note for about as long as you'd ever want to and doesn't alter your tone at all.

I agree that amp sims tend to want a lot of level to shine their best; that's fine for most guitars and guitarists, cuz modern pickups are generally much hotter than the vintage variety. if you're a vintage guy like me, a good clean boost pedal can be very handy both for amp sims and for goosing the front end of a tube amp, which is also a cool way to compress, cuz overdriving just the first preamp stage is often a cleaner sound than overdriving the whole amp, front to back.

[ochaim]

thanks for the recommendations, mojo!

This is going to make that WHOLE other section at the music store (the one I usually stroll past to get to the recording or dj sections) more interesting, haha!

Well, I got the morning and part of the afternoon to fiddle around and see what I can come up with again, now that I have a better idea of what's what!

[ochaim]

ok, gave it another go, with an acoustic and electric guitar.

I tried to use as much info from this thread but I'm sure I overlooked a lot.

I was going for a country/rap vibe, something you might hear Nelly on.

http://soundcloud.com/owenchaim/owen-ch ... of-the-sun

Other than my TLM103, I have this cheapo mic I don't even remember where I got it, but I thought since I'm mic'ing the amp, I thought it would be better to use a dynamic rather than a condenser (?). I completely forgot to change to the TLM when I tracked the acoustic guitar though, so I'm sure there's a lot lacking in that signal.

anything sticking out like a sore thumb to you guys?

thanks

[andygabrys]

I thought it would be better to use a dynamic rather than a condenser (?). I completely forgot to change to the TLM when I tracked the acoustic guitar though, so I'm sure there's a lot lacking in that signal.

you would be surprised at how useful acoustic guitar recordings can be if you just use an SM57 dynamic or similar - especially for something that is loud and rock'n roll. AB some recordings of your acoustic vs. with a pencil condensor and vs. the TLM.

I think you mix sounds decent. the acoustic is fine. although a little phasey, the image seemed to waver a little for me L & R. Its a little flat dynamically right now.

the electrics sound fine (what i can hear of them), but I would reconsider the mix when the electrics come in and out. To me they are quiet to the point of just being wallpaper.

good on you for digging into new territory!

[ochaim]

thanks for taking the time to listen, andy.

the electric was just sounding way too harsh and I kept on pushing it back till... well, it's barely audible. I was micing the amp I have, despite not turning on the overdrive it still gives a rather harsh tone. I may try it again sending the electric right into the 6176's hi-z input.

it was really cool to try something new like this, the whole recording process, so much to take into consideration.

I can't help to feel like it might not be the best use of my time though. There are a number of listings I need to work on in the next couple of weeks that are in my usual genres.

I'll keep working on it as a little side project.

Thanks again to everyone who shared their expertise.

[andygabrys]

Harsh sounding electric can often be remedied by adjusting the mic position on the speaker cone, as well as the kind of mic. Move the mic towards the edge of the cone, it will tame some of the sizzle.

[ochaim]

ok, the mic I used is definitely suspect. I'm going to see if my bro in law still has this akg pencil mic I lent him a while back...

I also read somewhere micing the back and side of the amp is helpful too?

[andygabrys]

hey man,

if it were me, I would be trying a large diaphragm condenser or a dynamic like a shure 57. If you do get the pencil, try a/B'ing against the Tlm 103.

anyways, like you say. keep on moving.

[Kolstad]

Try recording with both a 57 pointed slightly off axis at the middle of the amp's cone and the tlm about 12 inches back directed at the side of the cone. Neither probably won't satisfy you by themselves, but you can blend them using the 57 for the direct cut through tone and the tlm for room tone.

When the 57 then sounds too edgy, you blend more of the tlm in and vice versa.. together that'll give you a pretty standard tone for electric guitar. Mic placement depends on a lot of factors (guitar, room, amp), so experiment, but basically you get highs from the center of the cone and more mids/lows towards the edge of the cone. You don't want to mic the side of the amp, but from the back you can get a third position to blend in, which can give you a fuller sound if it's a nice sounding open back amp.

Bear in mind that you need to record at high volume to capture a great tone by mic-up recording. This is partly why recording with pedals and ampsims has become popular, as a pedal allows you the conveniance to turn down the amp to bedroom levels, and/or direct record.

[andygabrys]

Bear in mind that you need to record at high volume to capture a great tone by mic-up recording. This is partly why recording with pedals and ampsims has become popular, as a pedal allows you the conveniance to turn down the amp to bedroom levels, and/or direct record.

that I mostly agree with. if its a tube amp and you want to hear the amp working a little, and especially get some of the soft power amp sag.

but on the other hand, I record a solid state amp / hollowbody jazz guitar setup at modest volume just to have the smoothness of the guitar going through an actual amp / speaker - something that amp sims don't deal with adequately to my ear. and with a sm57 too. a little off axis. clear and warm. Senn E609 also good on the same setup.