accoustic micing?

[stridesbrown]

what single, affordable (less than $200) mic would you recommend for recording a gibson accoustic guitar (muted sound) that will allow for a good mid range response ?

[riley357]

Even though it is higher then your price range, the Audio Technica 4033 is an outstanding mic for acoustic guitar. They used to sell for over $700 not that long ago, and they are half that price now new! So is a great buy for a beginning mic.

[Kelly Holdridge]

Yeah, it's gonna have to be a condensor of sorts. $200 will get you a Rode, Octava, or Marshall condensor mics, among others, I'd recommend one of the first two brands, based on what I've heard here.

I'm in the same boat. Thinking of trying the NT-1, but gonna make the pre-amp jump first...

[Dolemite]

Once again, I'm going to recommend either a Marshall MXL-603S or an Electro Voice 635A. The EV is a dynamic mic with an omni pattern, so you basically need to stick it right in the soundhole (always loved that word). The EV should give you more of a smooth but accurate sound with little low-end while the Marshall would be more detailed and accurate with a full range of sound. Both of these mics are around $60.

[blinddogblues]

I wholeheartedly recommend the Octava MC-012. I have an AT-4033 and it is not nearly as good on acoustic guitar as the Octava, especially for that muted sound you describe. I also have two C-1000's but the Octava's are much better. I have two of them, and record my acoustic is stereo with one pointed about the 10-12th fret and the other pointed around the bridge. I then pan full left and right. It sounds great, right in your face. You can buy them for $150 each at Guitar Center or as alot of people on this forum recommend, go to the Sound Room.

[chesterfield]

I received the Marshall MXL 603S last week and used it (and my AT 4033) to record my Martin D35.......... very nice. I used the Marshall on the bridge, angled toward where the pick hits the strings - I'm very pleased, especially at $80.00. The AT is a wonderful mic as well, but is somewhat over your price range. I had the Rode (NT1?) that sells for $179.00 and returned it - much happier with the mics I have. Hope this helps.

[Tekker]

In my Gutiar Center mag it has a MK012, so was this just a type-o or is this another version of the MC012?

[Krystof01]

NT-1, I have one, no complaints, adequate mic, the best in my opinion for the price.

[Dolemite]

Just as an FYI, Harvey Gerst and others who own both the Oktava MC-012 and the Marshall MXL-603 have said that they are similar enough to be used as a stereo pair. So if you want an MC-012 but don't need the multiple patterns and want to save some $$$, the Marshalls seem to be equal in sound and quality for about half the price.

I don't mean sound negative, but much more information is out there for the taking from other sources. When you ask a question here about the best mic for whatever purpose around here, you'll probably get 10 different suggestions and inevitably people will recommend a mic that they personally own. This can be a good thing, if you have the experience to back up the recommendation, but if you're recommending a particular mic simply because its one of the few mics you can afford and you want it to be something good, then this is a bad thing.

Take 5 minutes and do this, you might all be amazed:

1. Go to http://groups.google.com/advanced_group_search

2. For newsgroup, enter "rec.audio.pro" (no quotes)

3. Under subject contains, enter "acoustic guitar" (no quotes)

4. Hit search

You now have almost 300 threads, most of which are quite relevent to this topic. Many responses are from highly respected pro engineers and producers. This is not to say that there aren't high caliber pro's around here, but there are many more on the newsgroup. Most of the guys on rec.audio.pro do for a living what most of us consider a hobby. They have tried out lots of mics and will even suggest something that doesn't cost a billion dollars if you ask them to.

I'm probably more inexperienced than most around here but I know enough to know that I'd rather get recommendations from pros rather than amateurs. Seriously. I wouldn't take my own advice. It just sucks in comparison to what's out there. I really like generating discussion around here, and I'm much more likely to respond and ask questions and give advice here because I don't feel as outclassed as I do posting anything to rec.audio.pro. This BBS is great, but sometimes the best information is found elsewhere. I just want everybody to be aware of the tremendous resources we have access to through the internet.

[Harvey Gerst]

Originally posted by Dolemite
Just as an FYI, Harvey Gerst and others who own both the Oktava MC-012 and the Marshall MXL-603 have said that they are similar enough to be used as a stereo pair. So if you want an MC-012 but don't need the multiple patterns and want to save some $$$, the Marshalls seem to be equal in sound and quality for about half the price.

Take 5 minutes and do this, you might all be amazed:

1. Go to http://groups.google.com/advanced_group_search

2. For newsgroup, enter "rec.audio.pro" (no quotes)

3. Under subject contains, enter "acoustic guitar" (no quotes)

4. Hit search

You now have almost 300 threads, most of which are quite relevent to this topic. Many responses are from highly respected pro engineers and producers. This is not to say that there aren't high caliber pro's around here, but there are many more on the newsgroup. Most of the guys on rec.audio.pro do for a living what most of us consider a hobby. They have tried out lots of mics and will even suggest something that doesn't cost a billion dollars if you ask them to.

Wow, what a great trip down memory lane. Thank you for sharing that with us. I remember all those threads as they got started and joined in on a number of them myself, it seems. Lotsa good stuff there, as you say, "from highly respected pro engineers and producers".

[Dolemite]

Thank you for sharing that with us.

Heh, no Harvey, thank you. Those are your posts that come up in that search, not mine. Seriously though, having all those threads in a searchable archive is really just a wealth of information. I could spend hours and hours just reading old posts, I know this because I've done it several times. For something else that's pretty amazing, search rec.audio.pro for all posts authored by Harvey Gerst. It turns up about 4,300 posts - and that's just from what's archived. Pretty impressive if you ask me, but more impressive than the quantity is the quality of those posts.