Violin recording

I work at a shop and I know full well what the prices are on stuff, now I also know it tends to change from one part of the country to another....

Frankly speaking the best value in an instrument is still going to be the setup. I have seen amazing things from an "OK" instrument after it has had a proper setup.

Been there done that, my choice of violin is a $25 closet classic that I had set up to my specs... and to be honest I have never wanted for another instrument since. So it kinda comes full circle.
 
Hah, a bit of irony... I am currently learning violin (but certainly not at a level close to being able to record myself!!) I do use the violin or even my guitar to write string parts for my songs though. I ask mates round to play parts I'm not too hot on. I cant turn round & tell her to go and get a proper violin, shes not being payed!! I doubt I'll mention new strings to her either. I have has some success with some of the positioning. Surprisingly pointing the omni away from the source or putting the violinist betwen the mic & source if you know what I mean has tamed things very well. I'm going to try seriousley again this weekend and hopefully I'll get something ok down. I like the sound of getting a new ribbon mic aswell, I'll just have to see.
 
guitar junkie said:
I work at a shop and I know full well what the prices are on stuff, now I also know it tends to change from one part of the country to another....

Frankly speaking the best value in an instrument is still going to be the setup. I have seen amazing things from an "OK" instrument after it has had a proper setup.
Click to expand...

A setup for me is 500 bucks.
 
Well our guy who is the best I seen did a full setup for my wife on the cello and still only charged us $350 for re plaining the fingerboard, new bridge and post and seams work. And that was on a CELLO

It costs money for sure, but it really is worth it.
 
guitar junkie said:
Been there done that, my choice of violin is a $25 closet classic that I had set up to my specs... and to be honest I have never wanted for another instrument since. So it kinda comes full circle.
Click to expand...

I beat you...I paid 10 bucks at a swap meet for a Skylark full sized student violin...it sounds a bit boxy but it nothing that cant be fixed by eq.

I use a pair of Mxl 603s in an xy pattern pointed at where the neck meets the body.
 
I have spent quite awhile in search of the Holy Grail of recording a violin. After much research and trial and error I have come to these conclusions.

1. Small diaphram Condenser mics work best. The smaller diaphram responds quicker/better to the violins output.

2. Placement of the mic means alot. This will also vary from room to room so experiment freely.

3. I have had success with both the Kel HM-1 and the sure SM 81.

4. Ribbon mics might seem like a simple solution to taming the harshness of a violin. In some situations this might be a quick simple fix but be aware that a ribbon will not capture the harmonics off of a fine classically played instrument. In the case of recording a fiddler the ribbon will work fine but for the reason above I would try to work with the Small Diaphram Condeser when you want to capture the best quality sound from a violin. (I use the terms Fiddle/Violin when refering to the playing style not the instrument.)
 
Kell microphones don't seem to be available in the uk. The SM81 is way out of my price range at £280 I'm looking to spend around £100. I tried recording last week and had very limited success again, it's so frustrating not having decent instruments and recording equipment. If I had good gear then I couldn't turn round and say something sounds bad because i don't have the equipment. I have too many excuses just now. Well, that's my moan over. Now what I need is a nice bulky grant from the goverment to help me on my way. ;)
 
lastingimage said:
I have spent quite awhile in search of the Holy Grail of recording a violin. After much research and trial and error I have come to these conclusions.

1. Small diaphram Condenser mics work best. The smaller diaphram responds quicker/better to the violins output.

2. Placement of the mic means alot. This will also vary from room to room so experiment freely.

3. I have had success with both the Kel HM-1 and the sure SM 81.

4. Ribbon mics might seem like a simple solution to taming the harshness of a violin. In some situations this might be a quick simple fix but be aware that a ribbon will not capture the harmonics off of a fine classically played instrument. In the case of recording a fiddler the ribbon will work fine but for the reason above I would try to work with the Small Diaphram Condeser when you want to capture the best quality sound from a violin. (I use the terms Fiddle/Violin when refering to the playing style not the instrument.)
Click to expand...

I traditionally (after years of experimenting) use an akg EB535 SDC AND a long motor chinese ribbon (apex 205 in my case). the ribbon is a little further away but it also picks up room more anyway being fig 8
I align them in the daw afterwards.

I've used some LDCs with great success too.
but a bright mic is not good unless you have a good room where there can be some distance between violin and mic

best recordings I've done were in a church with sdc (but studio quality recordings).

however not suitable for all styles of music of course - that church verb.

cheers,
Don
 
I'd go with a Nady RSM 5 if I was looking for an affordable ribbon mic.
Comes in around $70 or $80US and is an excellent mic, regardless of the price.
About 12" away from the fiddle is about right for my wife's fiddle, with one of my mics, in my studio.... see where I'm going?
There are probably too many variables to suggest to you how to set up the mic.
A couple of points about the fiddle and bow though.
A bad fiddle is going to sound like a bad fiddle and a good microphone will pick up every scratch from a poor bow.
You can't really disguise it.
 
yea... it should be noted that my violin is estimated at well over $20k and the bow alone is more than $2k

and it's approximately 340 years old (the violin, not the bow obviously, I don't play authentic baroque instruments, my fiddle was updated a couple hundred years ago like most other violins).

and even then, it's honestly mostly the player that controls how much bow noise there is, but tone? yea, it's mostly the skill of the player but of course limited by the instrument and what the player can get out of it.

I've recorded in major studios where they had the mic (a ribbon by the way) just a few inches from my violin. It sounded great, but was very unforgiving of my technique.

But it's all good - just use your ears.

We're all at different levels...

Cheers
 
hey I do'nt get over there since I stopped playing with the Nanaimo Symphony a few years ago... now that I'm married with kids I'm happier in my home studio rather than leaving for days at a time. But sometimes my family and I go over there for a brief vacation, to Victoria typically in that case. If we do that this summer, or if we get to my Sister's place on one of the smaller gulf islands, I'll let you know in advance.

Cheers Jim :-)

Don
 
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