Stereo acoustic guitar

Newbie™

Newbie™

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For a song I'm working on, I'm considering recording the rhythm acoustic in stereo. And panning one L and the other R for a more "full" sound. I hope this will help get rid of any phase issues that I've had with overdubbing the part. Note that it sounds fine in stereo but doesn't sound good in mono.

When recording in stereo, I like to place one mic around the 17th fret to get more low-end out of my guitar, and another around the 7th-10th fret for more treble/string noise.

The problem is, since one mic is closer to the soundhole, it's level is much higher than the other. So it sounds like most of the sound is coming out of the right speaker.

If I boost the other's level, it just produces a not-so-good sound and introduces phase issues which I'm trying to avoid.

What should I do? I don't want to move the mic further from the soundhole because that's what produces the sound that I like.
 
One of the better acoustic sounds I've ever gotten, I used 2 sdc's x/y 'ed about 12" in front of the soundhole, and a 58 about 6" away from the nut and pointing towards the body of the guitar, then blended to taste.

Listen to Rust Revisited if you want to hear it.
 
ez_willis said:
One of the better acoustic sounds I've ever gotten, I used 2 sdc's x/y 'ed about 12" in front of the soundhole, and a 58 about 6" away from the nut and pointing towards the body of the guitar, then blended to taste.

Listen to Rust Revisited if you want to hear it.
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Nice sound, ez. Do you have a treated room? I notice that I have to record close-up or I get a not-so-good-sounding reverb on the guitar. I also only have 2 mics.

How did you setup the mics from the sound hole? Right next to each other?
 
Newbie™ said:
Do you have a treated room?
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Yeah, treated like a red-headed stepchild.

As you might be able to see, my studio is real small. I have to record drums for a few songs, then tear 'em down to record everything else.

Here's a pic when they're set up.
 

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IOW, I record in a tiny room that I built in my garage. :D

If you have 3 mics available, try the one pointing down the neck to pick up the sound of the strings, and 2 like this, where "sound source" is the sound hole on your acoustic-
 

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Wow, thanks ez that was really helpful! I guess my next step would be to treat my room. I've read a lot in the studio forum about traps so I might have to order some 703 and make some absorbers.

In that mic position picture you posted, since I only have 2 mics, do you think that would produce a decent sound? I wish I had 3 though so I can try what you suggested.

So far I've been using a spaced pair setup, might have to try some other ones. So long as it still sounds good in mono.

Thanks again. :)
 
Newb, have you considered doubling the tracks instead of recording in stereo? By that I mean recording the guitar part twice.

It can be hard enough getting a good acoustic git sound with one mic, let alone two. Get a good sound micd up and record the part twice, like if you were two guitar players. That'll give you a full sound with less to worry about phase-wise.

But if you insist on the stereo sound, then yeah, I'd agree with willis that a coincident pair like an X/Y will b a lot easier to work with than a spaced pair.

G.
 
Thanks, Glen. I had recorded the same part twice before and I didn't like the "chorus-y" effect I got from it. And plus I don't think my timing is SPOT ON enough to do that. :o So, in mono, the slight timing mistakes are obvious.

I'm gonna try the x/y configuration and maybe a few others.

Thanks again. :)
 
I don't play acoustic very much, but did this last week. 2 MSH mics, about 2 feet from the guitar.

Man
 
What I do (and it sounds AWESOME!!!) is record my acoustic (direct...acoustic electric) and then use my "send" from the recorder into my delay unit. I set is exactly 17 milliseconds. Then return it to another channel. pan one right (original track) and one left (delayed track). I am telling ya it is the best sound I have ever heard! :D

Eric
 
I put one mic where the neck meets the body like 8-12" back, and one on the lower part of the body to the left and below the soundhole like 4" back and pan them hard, then possibly add in a DI very very low in the mix panned center.
 
GLMrScary said:
What I do (and it sounds AWESOME!!!) is record my acoustic (direct...acoustic electric) and then use my "send" from the recorder into my delay unit. I set is exactly 17 milliseconds. Then return it to another channel. pan one right (original track) and one left (delayed track). I am telling ya it is the best sound I have ever heard! :D

Eric
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I sure hope you're kidding. :eek:
 
SouthSIDE Glen said:
Newb, have you considered doubling the tracks instead of recording in stereo? By that I mean recording the guitar part twice.

It can be hard enough getting a good acoustic git sound with one mic, let alone two. Get a good sound micd up and record the part twice, like if you were two guitar players. That'll give you a full sound with less to worry about phase-wise.

But if you insist on the stereo sound, then yeah, I'd agree with willis that a coincident pair like an X/Y will b a lot easier to work with than a spaced pair.

G.
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As an Elliott Smith fan it's always surprising to see discussions like this as if doubling the acoustic isn't the obvious thing to do! ;)
 
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