recording upright bass

  • Thread starter Thread starter c-j-devine
  • Start date Start date
c-j-devine said:
did you happen to do this one?

http://www.amazon.com/Long-Journey-Home-Kentucky-Colonels/dp/B000000EGO
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No, when I recorded them, there were five people in the group:

Clarence White - guitar, vocals
Roland White - mandolin, vocals
Billy Ray Latham - banjo
LeRoy Mack - Dobro
Roger Bush - bass

They were the house band at the Ash Grove in L.A. for the Sunday jam sessions. I became pretty good friends with Leroy, Billy Ray, Roger, and, of course, Clarence. I often picked up Roger Bush and his bass in El Monte to take him to the Ash Grove in L.A. whenever his car wasn't working.

Later, I renewed my friendship with Clarence when he joined the Byrds. since I was associated with the Byrds at the time (i.e., living off of my song royalties). :D
 
Thurgood said:
I thank you all for the interesting and helpful advice as my GF has taking a desire to play the upright. She plays gtr well and sings pro. Also thanks to Harvey for his participation. BTW Harvey do you know a guy in Austin whose initials are JT? HE was my instructor 20 or so years ago.
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Sorry, I'm not too familiar with the Austin music scene. The only guy I know in Austin is Herbie Steiner - a pedal steel player I knew in L.A.
 
Harvey Gerst said:
No, when I recorded them, there were five people in the group:

Clarence White - guitar, vocals
Roland White - mandolin, vocals
Billy Ray Latham - banjo
LeRoy Mack - Dobro
Roger Bush - bass

They were the house band at the Ash Grove in L.A. for the Sunday jam sessions. I became pretty good friends with Leroy, Billy Ray, Roger, and, of course, Clarence. I often picked up Roger Bush and his bass in El Monte to take him to the Ash Grove in L.A. whenever his car wasn't working.

Later, I renewed my friendship with Clarence when he joined the Byrds. since I was associated with the Byrds at the time (i.e., living off of my song royalties). :D
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Clarence White. Damn, Harvey, can I touch the hem of your garment? What a phenomenal musician.
 
c-j-devine said:
I think the bass is usually still run through a DI to get some added volume out of it.
We dabbled with it, but didn't like our results the first few rounds.
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RE all playing into one mic: Instead of trying to play into one mic, try a stereo pair. Try a method with a little space between the mics - ORTF, A-B, etc. You're probably not digging the mono sound, I'd guess.

I think you'd be happier avoiding any DI on the bass. That would only be a last-resort type thing, and with a Bluegrass band I can't see the ambient volume being so loud that you would need a DI on the bass. I have tried half-a-dozen pickups, none of them sound like a bass. They come close enough for live sound most of the time, but not recording. I don't even use one for live sound. I use a mic, and I get all kinds of compliments on my sound.

I've always said that using a pickup on a bass is like mic'ing a singer by shoving a mic up against her throat.

Try an omni mic close up (really close - like in the bridge). It will bleed a bit, but I believe it will yield a much more natural sound than a cardioid picking up all kinds of off-axis sound and proximity effect.
 
leddy said:
I think you'd be happier avoiding any DI on the bass. That would only be a last-resort type thing, and with a Bluegrass band I can't see the ambient volume being so loud that you would need a DI on the bass. I have tried half-a-dozen pickups, none of them sound like a bass. They come close enough for live sound most of the time, but not recording.
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I couln't agree more. It comes out sounding like an electric bass. What I've heard for recording is like an %80 mic - %20 DI mix to even things out a bit. I tried it, and I don't like it.

leddy said:
I don't even use one for live sound. I use a mic, and I get all kinds of compliments on my sound.
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I've seen a few guys doing that and I've been wanting to try it out. I reall think thats the route i want to go. what kind of mic do you use and how is it mounted? any feedback issues?
 
I got away with using an '80's radio shack electret, aimed at the treble f-hole. but then, I'm not picky.

Next, I'll try my 604 with the omni capsule based on what Harvey said here.
 
c-j-devine said:
I've seen a few guys doing that and I've been wanting to try it out. I reall think thats the route i want to go. what kind of mic do you use and how is it mounted? any feedback issues?
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Well, being into recording affords me the opportunity to have many mics. Here's a list of what I've used for live sound purposes:

Shure SM57, 58, Beta 98HC, Beta 58
Beyer M88, M201, M160, M130, MC930
EV RE20
Oktava 319, MC012
AKG D112
Naiant MSH1

And probably a few more. I favor dynamics over condensers for sure. The sound of the bass will affect which mic works best, but I usually use the Beyer M88. A close second is the RE20 or the SM58. The Beyer ribbons were nice, but too expensive/fragile for gigs. The M201 was interesting - didn't work on my bass, but I can see it working on a darker, wolfy bass. I have a flatback with lots of midrange punch.

Edit: I just mount it on a stand in front. I really work on having a big, loud sound. It's harder to mic a bass successfully if you don't produce a big sound from the instrument.
 
Thanks for the reply. I bump the ORTF. Oh btw Harvey, Terra Nova Mastering. no spam intended.
 
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