xylaphone recording

[slidey]

I could do a search, but I fancied bugging all you threadsters in my own thread

it seems fairly obvious to me that a stereo pair of condensors (sdc) would be my 1st go to in XY maybe 1 foot above the instrument & maybe a dynamic under neath.

That's my initial thought anyway, I'm posting to see if anyone has any world dominating tips on how to record a xylaphone & if they'd fancy sharing their secrets with me

ciao 4 now

[RAK]

Originally Posted by slidey

I could do a search, but I fancied bugging all you threadsters in my own thread

it seems fairly obvious to me that a stereo pair of condensors (sdc) would be my 1st go to in XY maybe 1 foot above the instrument & maybe a dynamic under neath.

That's my initial thought anyway, I'm posting to see if anyone has any world dominating tips on how to record a xylaphone & if they'd fancy sharing their secrets with me

ciao 4 now

What's the room like you'll be recording in?

[cello_pudding]

is this a big xylophone? or a marimba? or a small glockenspiel?

make sure to use the best sounding mallets. many can sound too harsh.


i would go with the xy pair above. but i'm slightly wondering what xy below would be like.

i don't know what the dynamic would add (are you trying to get the bass?)

that might be a good idea. i could imagine the highs cutting to the mics and the lows not travelling well.

[SouthSIDE Glen]

Hey Slidey, just get Lionel Hampton to play them...nobody will care what the recording sounds like then

G.

[slidey]

Originally Posted by SouthSIDE Glen

Hey Slidey, just get Lionel Hampton to play them...nobody will care what the recording sounds like then

G.

uhm

I'm sure I've got a Lionel Hampton plug in somewhere

[slidey]

Originally Posted by RAK

What's the room like you'll be recording in?

the room is nice, it's not an reverb chamber & it's not completely dead, it's a nice happy medium room. The sound changes whether I have guitars in there or not, I use the room to store many guitars in

the instrument is only about 1 1/2 octaves with no sharps or flats however I only want 3 notes so there's no real problem there

there's a guy that lives up here with us, he's a luthier & instrument repair chap. My mother is the head mistress of a local primary school & needed a xylaphone fixing hence the sudden need for knowledge, albeit I'd already drawn conclusions although there's no harm in asking

the XY will be 2x neumann KMS105 & I don't think I'll bother with the dynamic

should I raise the instrument off the ground I wonder??

maybe I'll do 2 takes

double tracking xylaphone

yeehaw

[Ford Van]

1 foot away is too close. You will pick up way too much of the attack of the mallet.

About 3' should do it with the mics at least 3' apart angled like:

\-------/

------

[slidey]

Originally Posted by Ford Van

1 foot away is too close. You will pick up way too much of the attack of the mallet.

About 3' should do it with the mics at least 3' apart angled like:

\-------/

------

OK that makes sense

Ford Van, I've travelled many miles around britain in Ford & various other vans

Fix
Or
Repair
Daily

soory couldn't resist

[Ford Van]

Well, my work vans are Fords, and they run a hell of a lot better than the Chevy work vans I have rode in in the past!

[RAK]

No sharps/flats? What kind of xylo is this? hehe.

Anyway, you could do XY, or you could treat it like a piano and do one mic on the high end, one mic on the low end, although if it's only 1.5 octaves, you only need 3 notes, why not just do 1 mic anyway (I'm assuming the three notes are near each other, maybe they're not). If you do want two mics, and with the instrument being that small, I would do XY about 3' up. (unless you really wanted lots of room)

Lionel Hampton played Vibes.

[slidey]

Originally Posted by RAK

No sharps/flats? What kind of xylo is this? hehe.

Anyway, you could do XY, or you could treat it like a piano and do one mic on the high end, one mic on the low end, although if it's only 1.5 octaves, you only need 3 notes, why not just do 1 mic anyway (I'm assuming the three notes are near each other, maybe they're not). If you do want two mics, and with the instrument being that small, I would do XY about 3' up. (unless you really wanted lots of room)

Lionel Hampton played Vibes.

I'm going for the room thang

& I know LH played vibes I just didn't wanna make SSG feel stoopid

sorry glen

[Simman]

Originally Posted by SouthSIDE Glen

Hey Slidey, just get Lionel Hampton to play them...nobody will care what the recording sounds like then

G.

You'll also need a shovel, a fan (or two), and some room fresheners......

[SouthSIDE Glen]

Originally Posted by slidey

I'm going for the room thang

& I know LH played vibes I just didn't wanna make SSG feel stoopid

sorry glen

Hamp's known almost entirely for his vibes, of course - and he happens to be one of my very favorite jazz artists - but he has also been known to play a xylophone, marimba, and I think even a glockenspeil when called upon. I saw a film short once - I don't remember the source, but it was one of those old b&w newsreel-type of PR clips - where he wailed on a child's Fisher-Price-style xylophone (or whatever brand they may have been back then .)

G.

[Simman]

Originally Posted by SouthSIDE Glen

Hamp's known almost entirely for his vibes, of course - and he happens to be one of my very favorite jazz artists - but he has also been known to play a xylophone, marimba, and I think even a glockenspeil when called upon. I saw a film short once - I don't remember the source, but it was one of those old b&w newsreel-type of PR clips - where he wailed on a child's Fisher-Price-style xylophone (or whatever brand they may have been back then .)

G.

Absolutely and he wasn't a bad drummer either.

http://www.drummerworld.com/drummers...l_Hampton.html

[RAK]

well sure, and Mick Jagger sometimes plays guitar. I just thought choosing Hampton as an example of a xylo player was a little funny, since that's not what's he's known for. Why not Bob Becker or Ian Finkel?

[SouthSIDE Glen]

Originally Posted by RAK

well sure, and Mick Jagger sometimes plays guitar. I just thought choosing Hampton as an example of a xylo player was a little funny, since that's not what's he's known for. Why not Bob Becker or Ian Finkel?

Honest answer? Because Hamp's my man!

I don't want to stir the tempest in a teapot; I get your point RAK, you're right.

G.

[RAK]

Originally Posted by SouthSIDE Glen

Honest answer? Because Hamp's my man!

I don't want to stir the tempest in a teapot; I get your point RAK, you're right.

G.

I hear ya. He is certainly one the greats, and probably the 1st (if not only) vibe player that people would know (if they even know what vibes are, or jazz for that matter). At least you didn't say Gary Burton, then people would really be confused, haha.

[slidey]

Originally Posted by RAK

I hear ya. He is certainly one the greats, and probably the 1st (if not only) vibe player that people would know (if they even know what vibes are, or jazz for that matter). At least you didn't say Gary Burton, then people would really be confused, haha.

I got a tape of Gary Burton & Wes Montgomery (I think) from an art teacher in high school when I was 14 & man those cats can play

Milt Jackson's pretty damn awesome as well

but Hamp doing Take The A Train with Buddy Rich is off the hook

BTW my xylaphone works well. I tracked up 5 parts the same & it's a total contrast in sound damn it's good

[slidey]

Originally Posted by SouthSIDE Glen

Hamp's known almost entirely for his vibes, of course - and he happens to be one of my very favorite jazz artists - but he has also been known to play a xylophone, marimba, and I think even a glockenspeil when called upon. I saw a film short once - I don't remember the source, but it was one of those old b&w newsreel-type of PR clips - where he wailed on a child's Fisher-Price-style xylophone (or whatever brand they may have been back then .)

G.

ach bugger you

now I feel stoopid

[cello_pudding]

this is for all xylophone and dream theater fans...haha


http://youtube.com/watch?v=iqHrxwRbYRY

[IronFlippy]

Originally Posted by slidey

uhm

I'm sure I've got a Lionel Hampton plug in somewhere

I think I have that plug in too, but the rack mount tube version sounds much better.

[slidey]

Originally Posted by IronFlippy

I think I have that plug in too, but the rack mount tube version sounds much better.

aha I'm currently out of rack space

sorry the behringer stays

[SouthSIDE Glen]

Originally Posted by slidey

ach bugger you

now I feel stoopid

Nah, stop that, Slide. I was stretching it a bit with that joke because I couldn't think of the names of any 1st-string xylo players at the time. I shoulda just kept my trap shut. :P

G.

[slidey]

Originally Posted by SouthSIDE Glen

Nah, stop that, Slide. I was stretching it a bit with that joke because I couldn't think of the names of any 1st-string xylo players at the time. I shoulda just kept my trap shut. :P

G.

I can't think of any xylo players

[RAK]

Originally Posted by slidey

I can't think of any xylo players

I already mentioned two in my earlier post, Ian Finkel and Bob Becker.

If you look up vibraphone on wikipedia, they have a list of players, but I don't think they have the same thing for xylophone. Gee I wonder why....