Recording Electric Guitars

[JayDeLuca]

i was wondering what techniques people use for recording electric guitars for songs with both clean and distortion.

currently i mic the halfstack or amp, but with this i get unwanted noise and hums. i have a bass preamp that gives the bass a sound like it is coming through a bass amp, i was wondering if there is some sort of guitar preamp that can have the same effect?

Thanks for any help.

[scrubs]

Personally, I think it's hard to beat the sound a miked amp. Getting the amp settings and mic placement correct are the most important parts and can take some time to get right. There are several modeling amps that attempt to simulate the sound of a miked guitar cabinet. POD, V-AMP, and J-Station are all popular. There is a newer one, called the Womanizer that actually sounds quite promising, but it's expensive.

Perhaps you can give us a little more idea of what gear you're using (amps, mics, etc) and, if you have a sound clip, that might be useful. Also, read this for a great tutorial on distorted guitars.

[TMatt142]

Scrubs hit the nail on the head there. It's tough to answer without knowing your gear So I'll give you a totally opposite way of what he says. Plug in direct. Granted, I have a GT-6 which has speaker modeling but really I've recorded a lot of stuff from super clean to death metal raunchy. I know the school of thought here is "you can't possibly get good sound plugging in direct" It's good to try everything though. I just run a chain straight into a BR1180. I know we all strive for perfection with our recordings, I know I do, but I know I'm not gona be touring on the G3 tour next year either. I do this for a hobby so I keep it simple and have fun!

[rayc]

Fun Fa fa fa fa fa FUN.
A great song by the Thought Criminals & the perfect accompaniment to this concept.
What works works. You'll know when you hear it.
JUST don't drown it in digital distortion - allow the guitar to shine through with your talent.
Cheers
rayC