Processing when you have multiple mics on same source

C

chamelious

www.thesunexplodes.com
Wondered what you guys generally do, say you have 2 mics on one speaker, you're combining them to get the tone you're after. Stuff like EQ and compression, do you apply to each track individually then blend, or send them both to a group track and do it there?

Chars.
 
Normally I eq the separate tracks then assign them to a bus with eq and compression. I don't like to alter the dynamics until they are submixed.
 
I do both : a bit of treatment on each track, then major part of the treatement is done on the bus itself. I'd say whatever sounds the best :)
 
If the eq and dynamic settings are almost identical anyway, then there's not really much point doing it twice, you might as well send them to one group and save yourself the DSP.
If you treat them differently, like you put in compression on one but not the other, watch out for your delay compensation. If it's not built into your DAW then the two channels can sound kinda phasey when mixed together so make sure you compensate for the delay yourself.
 
chamelious said:
Wondered what you guys generally do, say you have 2 mics on one speaker, you're combining them to get the tone you're after. Stuff like EQ and compression, do you apply to each track individually then blend, or send them both to a group track and do it there?

Chars.
Click to expand...
You mean use two on one speaker -but didn't get the tone you're after?
:p:D
Makes you wonder what a 2nd mic is bringing to the solution.
 
mixsit said:
Makes you wonder what a 2nd mic is bringing to the solution.
Click to expand...
:)

Every time I tried two mics, and then couldn't find a combination tone that I liked...I ended up getting rid of one mic and I usually got the tone I wanted. ;)

I wonder how often people will just put up 2-3 mics, record the tracks, and then try and blend/sort everything out...
...rather than just putting up one mic and seeing what they can do with that, maybe even swapping a few mics to find the one that works best...
...and then if nothing works, going to the next level and trying multiple mics on the same source.

I think it's more complicated to get a good tone with multiple mics than it is with one mic.
 
I am kinda with Miro on this one, however I do use two mikes often where one is the "direct" sound and the other "room" sound. It is just so easy to run into phase cancellation/comb filtering when using multiple mics be they close or near or far. I do place multiple mics up for the same source to compare between them by substitution or placement. More to your post you can really screw up a recording by using multiple instances of FX. This is not so bad if you are ITB and non-destructive, in that case you can experiment. Be careful if you are tracking in the manner you describe and processing on the way in. YOu may get stuck with something that no matter how you try to "fix" it it jsut may be a major pain or at worst fruitless.
 
EQ varies by source. Sometimes I'll EQ them separately like when I close and distance mic a guitar cab. They need different things. Other times I'll EQ them together like with stereo acoustics, drum overheads. But I almost never compress separately. Compressing on the send/bus helps the two tracks stick together and gives them a uniform sort of sound so they sound like one source rather than two separate sources. But there are a million different ways to do this, and even I don't always do it the way I described.
 
miroslav said:
:)

Every time I tried two mics, and then couldn't find a combination tone that I liked...I ended up getting rid of one mic and I usually got the tone I wanted. ;)

I wonder how often people will just put up 2-3 mics, record the tracks, and then try and blend/sort everything out...
...rather than just putting up one mic and seeing what they can do with that, maybe even swapping a few mics to find the one that works best...
...and then if nothing works, going to the next level and trying multiple mics on the same source.

I think it's more complicated to get a good tone with multiple mics than it is with one mic.
Click to expand...

Why would you assume that this isn't whats been done?

Thanks for the responses.
 
Why would I assume that it has been done? :)

I'm just stating what I have found to be the case about multi mics VS a single mic based on my own experiences.
You didn't really state anything about what you were actual doing or what you've done...you posed a "what if" question.

I also didn't say "you" specifically...but I do see a lot of multi-mic/cab questions on the forums, so it's no assumption that a lot of folks seem to take the more mics = better recordings approach.
 
Thurgood said:
I am kinda with Miro on this one, however I do use two mikes often where one is the "direct" sound and the other "room" sound.
Click to expand...

Yes, I've done that on guitar cabs...put one mic way back, but lately I just go with one mic in the 12" to 24" distance. I rarely *close mic* up against the cone. I found I could get a more defined/articulate sound with a single mic, and then just add ambiance later on, artificially, to taste.
I like the mic back at least several inches, so it can pick up more of the whole speaker instead of one spot on the cone, and I like a bit of "air" between the speaker and mic.

I still use a mix of close and distant mics for my drums...though they are not really the typical "room mics", way off. Rather I have a stereo OH pair that captures the whole kit...and only spot mics on the Snare and Kick. I tend to keep them separate until the actual mixdown, and then the Snare and Kick are on their own tracks/channels and the stereo pair track(s) on their own two channels. I will EQ each accordingly, and I only compress the stereo pair with an outboard comp (I mixdown ITB)...but no compression on the Snare or Kick. If needed, I'll adjust the Snare and Kick in the DAW by manually "compressing" any random peaks.
 
The guitars aren't bad...though a little dull/muted.

I think the drums need more attention than the guitars...the playing is fine, but they sound boxy/flat/thunky, and like they are not in the same space as the other insturments.
 
There are a few guys here that get good drum sounds most of the time (like RAMI). I'm sure they can give you some great advice...but IMO, it may be a combination of the room you tracked them in and how you miked them.

What was your tracking process for the drums?
 
Drums were tracked in a local studio. Theres a lot of close mic on the track though not that much room sound.
 
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