Recording and Mic Suggestions for harder music

[overrated]

I'm new to this board but i've been recording for a few years now, right now I have a Mackie Onxy 1220 board, M-Audio Delta 1010, and several Shure mics including SM57s, 58s, 81s, and a Drum micing kit ( 3 PG56s & SM52beta). I'm trying to get a really full rock guitar sound, a nice bass sound (Fender Jazz gainy tone), and a crisp clean drum sound. I'm open to ideas and mics, and if anyone has any ideas could they please help??? I could also use a good vocal mic suggestion.
thanks

[Cult_Status02]

Sm 57 on vocals is a pretty smooth sound, I find. Actually, I think the 57 sounds much better than the 58. For guitar I'd say 57 as well, and then for bass use the Hi-z inputs on your mackie (that model has them on channels one and two, right?). I mic my whole drum kit with a beta 52 on kick and then 3 sm 57s, one on snare, one in between the rack toms and one for floor tom. For OH mics I use Nady cm-88s, but I wouldn't recommend them.

I'm a big sm57 whore, so I may have a useless oppinion.

[flamin-gitaur]

Another popular mic for recording distorted guitars is Sennheiser MD421. not as much mids as the 57 with smoother low end.

[PhiloBeddoe]

Sounds like you have a reasonable set of mics to me. SM57 alone can get a pretty good sound on a guitar. Guitar and amp are, of course, very very important to the overall sound and will probably have a greater impact then any additional mic. Fun to play with other mics though.

For a good bass sound, you might just try getting a good DI box. Sansamp is pretty good. Add some compression and overdrive/distortion and you might just be pretty happy. I've been happy using a Sansamp combined with a D112 mic, but I could probably get by with the direct.

Drums depend a lot on the room they are in. If you're recording in an untreated small room, it will be difficult to get a crisp sound. Also, lousy drum tuning makes for lousy recordings. The mics you have are probably fine for drums, although I've never used the PGs. I assume you just have them on toms and the kick, snare, and overheads will have a much greater effect on your sound than tom mics. Overhead placement is key.

The only thing I see missing from your list is a large diaphragm condenser. These can be used as vocal mics and distance mics for guitars. One idea is an Audio Technica 4033 or 4040. I have a 4033 that is very versatile. Using a SM57 for vocals is ok, but it very much depends on the singer and the style. Condensers are much brighter and can really bring out detail in a good singer. Probably not quite as useful on a screamer.

[overrated]

Originally Posted by PhiloBeddoe

Sounds like you have a reasonable set of mics to me. SM57 alone can get a pretty good sound on a guitar. Guitar and amp are, of course, very very important to the overall sound and will probably have a greater impact then any additional mic. Fun to play with other mics though.

For a good bass sound, you might just try getting a good DI box. Sansamp is pretty good. Add some compression and overdrive/distortion and you might just be pretty happy. I've been happy using a Sansamp combined with a D112 mic, but I could probably get by with the direct.

Drums depend a lot on the room they are in. If you're recording in an untreated small room, it will be difficult to get a crisp sound. Also, lousy drum tuning makes for lousy recordings. The mics you have are probably fine for drums, although I've never used the PGs. I assume you just have them on toms and the kick, snare, and overheads will have a much greater effect on your sound than tom mics. Overhead placement is key.

The only thing I see missing from your list is a large diaphragm condenser. These can be used as vocal mics and distance mics for guitars. One idea is an Audio Technica 4033 or 4040. I have a 4033 that is very versatile. Using a SM57 for vocals is ok, but it very much depends on the singer and the style. Condensers are much brighter and can really bring out detail in a good singer. Probably not quite as useful on a screamer.

Thanks for the suggestion. I was actually looking at getting a Blue Baby Bottle, Bluebird, or Dragonfly. Do you know how those compare to say an AKG 414 or a Neuman?