On the verge of giving up

tjohnston

tjohnston

New member
Please listen to the following clip and tell me what the hell is happening. Can you hear the booming bass notes? Whenever this boom happens the mixer clips even at low levels. I’m using a hi quality Taylor guitar and the NTK. The boom is present to some degree no matter where I place the mic. Here the mic is at the 12th fret angled toward the bridge. It doesn’t really matter though the boom is present even if the mic is pointing toward the tuners. This is quite aggravating. Help is greatly appreciated. Thank you

www.nowhereradio.com/timjohnston/singles
 
Several ways to approach this here are a few.

Roll off below 125Hz with a high pass prior to recording.

I would personally keep moving the mic, even if you have to record it from the side.

The other reccomendation is to use a different mic. 2 for the price of one on the Oktava at GC this week.

Anything else would entail compression or EQ after the fact which is the least desirable in my book, unless you want that sound.
 
thanks for the reply. The only EQ I have is the three knobs on the mackie. Id like to eliminate the problem during tracking. The boom is there with other mics too(SM81). Even if the mic is parallel with the fret board its still boomy.
 
You will get some boominess if you angle the mic as you describe. To fix what you have, just roll off the lows in the 80-150Hz range. The NTK is probably adding some proximity effect if you have the mic within 10" of your instrument. Either back the mic off a bit or try one of the following mic placements:

1. Height: Chin level
Location: Pointed at the upper bout above the neck/body joint
Distance: 10"-14" from the front of the instrument

2. Height: Instrument neck
Location: Pointed at the neck/body joint
Distance: 14"-24"

These two placements can also be used simultaneously for a good stereo guitar sound.
 
Sounds more like a playing technique problem to me. It doesn't sound like you strum very hard at all. I mix a LOT of acoustic guitar players live who do the same thing, and it is mostly impossible to get the low end out of the sound and some "cut" in the upper strings with eq/compression without it sounding phoney as hell.

Inversely, I mix a few that really know how to draw the sound out of the acoustic guitar, and I find that I seldom have to do much at all in terms of eq and/or compression.

You can also try strumming a little closer to the bridge. You are probably strumming right over the sound hole, and this creates the bassiest tone possible on an acoustic guitar.

Ed
 
I would try putting the mic about 6-8" above the direction of the sound projection. Then aim it at the fretboard right before the soundhole. You will get the high end and some lowend without really taking a beating from the sound coming directly at it.
 
tjohnston said:
Please listen to the following clip and tell me what the hell is happening. Can you hear the booming bass notes? Whenever this boom happens the mixer clips even at low levels. I’m using a hi quality Taylor guitar and the NTK. The boom is present to some degree no matter where I place the mic. Here the mic is at the 12th fret angled toward the bridge. It doesn’t really matter though the boom is present even if the mic is pointing toward the tuners. This is quite aggravating. Help is greatly appreciated. Thank you

www.nowhereradio.com/timjohnston/singles
Click to expand...

The very fact that you moved the mic and still have the boom, AND you tried different mics tells me that it is your room that is the problem. Try recording it in a different room, or isolate the amp in a very small space and close mic it.
 
He doesn't have an amp. It is an acoustic guitar. The problem he is having here has nothing to do with the room.

Ed
 
I agree with Sonus...however, I have dealt with this problem in a variety of ways. Once, while stuck on location I experimented with "killing" different areas of the soundboard. I placed my thumb on various areas until I found a spot that seemed to quash the resonance in a particular frequency that was bothering me.
Yeah, I could have taken care of this a number of different ways, but I had learned this technique several years earlier and never had a good opportunity to use it. It was very effective and made that ratty Yamaha nylon sound pretty damn good.:)
 
Try lighter strings on the bottom.

Your guitar may just have its resonance frequencies in the lower range. Lighter strings will give you less of an impact.
 
I haven't heard the sample, but I've learnt sooooo much about improving technique from banging my head against walls similar to this one.

My two general tips, which have been mentioned already - back the mic away a bit and don't point at the body of the guitar AND examine the actual sound you're generating - a great sounding guitar in a room may not necessarily be a great recording guitar, particularly if it tends towards a big, full sound.

Good luck! Don't give up just yet...
 
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