Mic placement vs. acoustics

[mrhotapples]

Which is more important? Which would be a bigger improvement; learning how to work in a bedroom to your fullest or using a better space without the skill?

Zombie with a 57 in a nice room or Bruce Swedien with a 57 in a bathroom? Which would sound better?

 

[thebigcheese]

I think it depends. I would say that they are generally pretty equally important, but I think mic placement is slightly more important. If you are close miking, then mic placement is going to be more important. For instance, on a guitar cab, even very tiny adjustments make big differences in the sound you get. But if you are recording drums, most people use OHs rather than trying to close mic everything, so the sound of the room is going to be more important. If you are going to use omni mics, the sound of the room is always going to be important.

I would say that if you have an acceptable room, than mic placement will be more important. I can get decent enough recordings out of an untreated basement, but it definitely limits what I can do or what mics I can use.

 

[Massive Master]

With a bad room, you're only allowed to do what the mic allows you to do.

With a good room, you *tell* the mic what to do.

 

[SouthSIDE Glen]

I'll take Bruce Sweiden in a coffin over Joe Tin Ear in The Record Plant any day.

G.

 

[thebigcheese]

With a bad room, you're only allowed to do what the mic allows you to do.

With a good room, you *tell* the mic what to do.

I think that's what I was trying to say, only I said it much less efficiently

 

[omtayslick]

With a bad room, you're only allowed to do what the mic allows you to do.

With a good room, you *tell* the mic what to do.

Well said.

With the addition of some recent room treatments I have been discovering this for myself over the last couple of weeks.

 

[leddy]

Well learning how to get a good recording in a bad room will probably help you make great recordings when you treat your room properly.

I mostly do location recording, so I can't control the room. There's always some problem to work around. In the rare cases when the room is good, it all seems so easy.

 

[Dani Pace]

Which is more important? Which would be a bigger improvement; learning how to work in a bedroom to your fullest or using a better space without the skill?

By all means you will be better off to learn to use whatever gear you have to get the best results in any recording environment. You can't always control the environment (room) where you are expected to record, but you are in total control of the recording process. Learn what your gear can and can not do then apply yourself to making it do the best job it can. A good sounding room (treated, or better acousticly) will make getting the job done a bit easier by eliminating some (all if you're lucky) of the unwanted sounds, reflections and noise. A good sounding room to record in is always nice but knowing how to use your gear in any situation is a skill you can take with you no matter where you are. The same principals apply (mic placement etc...) in a good room as in a not so good room, so learn your gear. If you don't know how to make the best use of whatever gear you have, then the best room in the world will not assure even decent recordings.

 

[MessianicDreams]

I think there's a fairly thin line between the two really. I've found myself close mic'ing instruments less and less and using room or more distant mics a lot more. And in that case, it really is a case of placing the microphone where it sounds best in the room with regards to the source.

I don't think one is more important than the other...