Simultaneous vocals and acoustic guitar (pair of figure 8 mics), recommendation?

[oldboy]

Hi All,
I want to record acoustic guitar and male vocals simultaneously (singer-songwriter style), since the rubato of this particular song makes it difficult to record both separately. I’ve read that using two figure 8 microphones gives the best degree of isolation between the voice from the guitar, and hence flexibility for mixing later on.

I heard that the Nady RSM2 is supposed to be pretty good (and good value) so I’m thinking of picking one up for either vocal or guitar. Do I need to be careful in selecting the pair of figure 8 mics (i.e. phase interaction between the two, etc.) or can I just pick one that is good for acoustic guitar and one that is good for male vocals (both warm, smooth)? Any recommendations for the pair? I would like to keep my budget for both in the ~$500 range. Thanks a lot for your help!

Thanks,
oldboy

 

[Rocket Boy]

Although I haven't used them I've seen the Studio Projects C3 and B3 both recommended before and they're both well within your price range. They'd probably be recommended over the Nady. Although I can't testify to the sound of those specific mic's I've so far had good luck with Studio Projects customer support regarding another product of theirs.

 

[oldboy]

Thanks for the feedback, Rocket Boy. I read some good things about the Studio Projects C3, but I also heard that it was on the bright side and I'm looking for a warmer mic. Likewise with the C1, which has great feedback.

I heard that the Nady RSM2 was really warm/smooth, which is what perked my ears. I'm thinking about using the Nady RSM2 for warm vocals, since the vocals are a bit silkier, with rubato sections that linger on vibrato, etc. I'd like to hear any input regarding this application of the mic, from anyone with experience with it.

Since I don't have a multi pattern mic in my cabinet, I'm considering picking up a ~$300 multi pattern mic to use as figure 8 for the acoustic guitar, which I'd like also to be on the warm side to match the Nady RSM2 (it would seem to make sense for the mix). Also, I already have a pair of MXL 603s for acoustic guitar, so I'd like a warmer mic for micing acoustic guitar. But I haven't come across any budget multi pattern mics that are characterized as warm.

- oldboy

 

[Harvey Gerst]

Unless you have a specific reason for separating the vocal from the guitar, you might want to consider recording the track in mono, using one well-placed mic. There's nothing wrong with monophonic recording (when it's appropriate to the music). Just a thought.

 

[dgatwood]

I heard that the Nady RSM2 was really warm/smooth, which is what perked my ears. I'm thinking about using the Nady RSM2 for warm vocals, since the vocals are a bit silkier, with rubato sections that linger on vibrato, etc. I'd like to hear any input regarding this application of the mic, from anyone with experience with it.

I've never done any tricks with the null of the mic, but I love the RSM-2 on voice. I do wish it were a hair brighter, though, and after listening to the samples of various transformers on Shinybox's web site, I've ordered a pair of Lundahl transformers to upgrade mine (I just bought a second RSM-2 to match the first; got it this afternoon). The only question is whether I'll throw in a switch to choose which transformer to use on the fly....

Since I don't have a multi pattern mic in my cabinet, I'm considering picking up a ~$300 multi pattern mic to use as figure 8 for the acoustic guitar, which I'd like also to be on the warm side to match the Nady RSM2 (it would seem to make sense for the mix). Also, I already have a pair of MXL 603s for acoustic guitar, so I'd like a warmer mic for micing acoustic guitar. But I haven't come across any budget multi pattern mics that are characterized as warm.

Studio Projects B3 if you swallow it.

You'd probably like the B3 or C3 on guitar. I've used the former, and it's a hair overly bright for my voice, but I do like it for various other things, including acoustic. The mics don't have to be exact matches. In fact, what works for your voice probably won't be best for guitar and vice-versa.

I actually like using a combination of a B3 and the RSM-2 for acoustic, with the ribbon near the sound hole and the B3 farther up the neck to capture fret noise and a bit of the picking/strumming.

 

[oldboy]

My Nady RSM2 arrived today. It sounds quite nice on vocals, though dgatwood, I see what you mean by wishing it were a hair brighter. My only complaint would be that the signal is so low. I am running it through an FMR RNP, and I need to crank the preamp dB level. If I turn it up to 60 dB there is way to much hiss, so I end up turning it up to 48 dB, where the hiss is tolerable and the vocal signal reasonably strong, but I still wish it were hotter.

I understand that the FMR RNP is considered to have a fair amount of gain - is there any way that I can get more gain for the Nady RSM2 so that my tracks don't end up with a lot of hiss in them? Is there some other device I can add to the chain to boost the signal, or some other trick, or do I have to get another preamp (I really hope the latter isn't necessary)? I already tried singing really close to the mic, but the proximity effect in conjunction with the darkness of this mic makes the vocal sound too muddy.

I'm considering getting the Studio Projects C3 for the acoustic guitar. And, if I'm unable to resolve the Nady RSM2 low signal level issue, I may get the Studio Projects T3 tube mic for vocals. Any thoughts? Geez, it's getting to be an expensive month (for me at least)...