How to record electric guitars

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Greg_L

Banned
Use a real amp - preferably one with tubes
Turn it up as loud as you, your neighbors, and the law can stand
Mic the speaker(s)
Press record
Play well
Done

Anything less is unacceptable
 
Sorry, is this a question? Shame this only applies to some genres of music.
Is the amp important to the guitarist? I know quite a few who record the output of their guitar and pedals, and NOT the amps contribution.
Miking speakers is fine, if it does a good job, the cab doesn't rattle, and the room adds nothing.
I like to adjust the levels before I press record, but hey - maybe it doesn't matter.
Play well could be a problem if it's turned up to Spinal Tap levels.
Do it again, and again and again, and at some point say it's done - even though you know it isn't, but want to keep your sanity!
 
rob aylestone said:
Shame this only applies to some genres of music.
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Bullshit. Everything you just said is defeatist, settling for mediocre bullshit. Name one genre that it doesn't apply to. Go ahead. Name one genre where recording good guitar tracks doesn't require a good amp working at peak performance while being played well. Name one legendary guitarist or guitar track done without any "amp contribution". If a little bit of volume intimidates you and makes you play poorly, then just stop and do something else. You're not ready to record anything.
 
Yeah, I'm going t stop using an amp because it might rattle. :rolleyes:
 
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rob aylestone said:
Is the amp important to the guitarist?
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In my humble opinion, the amp is very important to the guitarist, as much so as the guitar itself....

And, FWIW, my 4x12 cab recently developed a rattle in one of the handles on the side, so I took a screwdriver & tightened it up...done...took about 2 minutes to fix, if that long....:).
 
I was watching an interview with Eddie Van Halen, he was talking about how he used a transformer with a pot to regulate the voltage (between 70 volts-90) so he could get the sound he wanted, but at a lower volume by regulating how much AC the amp received.

Any of you guys tried that?
 
DM60 said:
I was watching an interview with Eddie Van Halen, he was talking about how he used a transformer with a pot to regulate the voltage (between 70 volts-90) so he could get the sound he wanted, but at a lower volume by regulating how much AC the amp received.

Any of you guys tried that?
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His "lower volume" was still loud enough to break windows and knock down walls. The variac was more about the tone of the amp than just volume control.

But it's a good point nonetheless. Eddie Van Halen uses real amps. Real loud amps.
 
I'll agree with most of what Greg says...except for the "turn it up as loud as you can stand".

That DOES depend on the genre.

Listen to people like George Benson or some Ry Cooder...for them, "clean" is a chosen sound.

None of this means the amp isn't a vital part of an electric guitar sound...just that not everyone is after the same sound.
 
"Loud" doesn't mean face melting distortion either. It means getting the amp cooking and the speakers moving air. Clean can be loud, and it's better that way.
 
Hmmmm...half agree. I'd certainly rather record a small amp turned up to it's "sweet" range than a big amp turned down for the neighbours.

But "as loud as you can stand it" says distortion to me--not necessarily a bad thing, but it depends on what you're after.
 
Bobbsy said:
Hmmmm...half agree. I'd certainly rather record a small amp turned up to it's "sweet" range than a big amp turned down for the neighbours.

But "as loud as you can stand it" says distortion to me--not necessarily a bad thing, but it depends on what you're after.
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Unless you're talking tenths of watts, a "small amp" in it's sweet range is still plenty loud enough to get the cops called. Is it a good loud? Is it a good sound? That's up to you, but the notion that smaller amps are significantly quieter is a misconception. The used market is overflowing with 5, 10, 18 watts amps for sale because their owners have buyer's remorse and ringing ears.
 
Well, Les Paul I guess for one - used Fender Twins live on stage - but in the studio it was clean, perhaps even ultra-clean as his goal. Tubes in the recording kit of course, but he spent a long time trying to get a pure sign.
John MacLaughlin was often seen sans-amp, with a Mac doing the processing, and amongst the very able church guys, it's very popular. Volume might be king for some kinds of music, but it's incredibly genre specific. Pit musicians, jazz, ambient and world music rarely needs volume on stage - volume for the audience is done by the PA. Pod and processor users are one type of player, somebody else is more than happy plugging a guitar into a Marshall with 4x12". One rule does not fit everyone, and saying it does just proves blinkers are being worn. Eddie Van Halen isn't going to play quietly, but plenty of people do.

Shows what happens when you post and don't expect people to disagree, doesn't it?
 
rob aylestone said:
Shows what happens when you post and don't expect people to disagree, doesn't it?
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No, it shows what happens when I post and a moron disagrees. This actually happens all the time. Your points are 100% invalid. Bringing up stage volume? Lol. Nice try, but it's another miss. What you're doing is trying to play devil's advocate because you don't like the way I worded my initial post. Good. I knew one of you clowns would show your ass over it. You're happy to be wrong just to disagree with me.

Tell us again how bad real amps are because cabs rattle and loud noises make you play badly. That shit was funny. :laughings:
 
Bobbsy said:
I'll agree with most of what Greg says...except for the "turn it up as loud as you can stand".

That DOES depend on the genre.

Listen to people like George Benson or some Ry Cooder...for them, "clean" is a chosen sound.

None of this means the amp isn't a vital part of an electric guitar sound...just that not everyone is after the same sound.
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Benson, Grant Green, Melvin Sparks, etc all drove the amps hard to get the warmth in that clean sound. It was and is one of the key requirements of that groove sound.
 
For rock guitar sounds, especially controlled feedback, your amp and guitar need to interact. How are you going to manage that with AxeFX Ultra coming through your headphones?
 
Somebody needs to start a band with the guy that said hitting drums hard makes them "sound like ass". :D
 
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