Problems recording guitar..

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linoleum6

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I know..this is the easiest part of recording...but I am recording a shure sm57 mic.

WHY DOES IT SOUNDS SO BAD?

i have used some cad condensers, a mxl90 condenser my cheap ass radio shack mic..and everything sounds really bassy on the recording. Im not getting the highs i want..

i tried different guitars, different amps...

oh and i have positioned the mic 50 different ways, tried 2 mics at once...still sounding different on the recording than what im hearing.

any advice?
 
Could be one (or a combination of) a thousand different reasons, but the few which come to mind are...

Assuming you are close-micing, what is the gain / tone set like on the amp?

Remember that you are hearing what the amp sounds like in the room, with all the complex reflections and reverberations that come with it. This tone can be quite different to the tone that you hear right up next to the speaker, i.e. where you are placing the mic. Also, is the amp in a corner or is there any nasty bass buildup in the room that could be messing things up?

So, what shoud you do? If you think the acoustics of your room contribute to the tone then you could mic from further away or blend the close mic with room mics. You could also try knocking the gain back on the amp and changing the tone to suit the sound you want from close mic'ing - quite often 'live tones' that you are used to practising or playing live with are not so suited to recording with.


Also, how are you monitoring the playback of your recorded tracks? This is important for a number of reasons.

Firstly, the level of your monitors is (hopefully) quieter than that of the guitar amp, and this changes how you percieve different frequencies at different volumes. You may just also be just be relating (as a result of this) that louder=better, quieter=worse. This is common (even those with highly trained ears often force themselves to change their monitor levels often during a session) and you just get used to it over time. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal-loudness_contour

Secondly, your monitors may just be bottom-heavy (or more likely boomy in the low mids), placed badly, or your room is doing some nasty things in the low end (quite likely if untreated), which is affecting how you are hearing the recording.


Lastly there are the obvious ones like:

High quality amp? Suited to the tone you want?
High quality guitar? When was it last restrung?
 
Yeah, what matt said, basically. Answer the following questions, and we can dive in.

  • What genre of music are you recording?
  • What guitar are you playing?
  • What pickup are you using, make and position?
  • Are you using any FX between your guitar and your amp?
  • What IS your amp?
  • What are your EQ and gain settings?
  • Does the guitar/pickup/amp combo sound "right" in the room?
  • Where are you positioning your mic? A picture might help, if possible.
  • What preamps/interfaces are you using to get sound from your mic into your computer?
  • Once on disc, how are you processing the guitar? Any FX or EQs?
  • What else is in the mix? I.e - is there just one track of guitar, or are you multitracking your parts? Are there bass and drums? Acoustic guitar? Keyboards? Vocals? Etc.
  • Have you checked to see how your recordings sound on something other than your monitors? Ex - car stereo, regular stereo, ipod, etc.
  • What ARE your monitors?
 
Well, when i am recording other bands they are normally happy with their tone (not something i would be proud of) And they are using gear way below mine.

the problem is when im recording my own band.


I have tried these three different set ups with the same results..

to start these 3 guitars have been used on all amp set ups...
Gibson les paul with Dimarzzio mega tones
Fender Strat with EMGS 81 85 (does get a little close to what i want)
and a Hamer with duncan design pickups

all guitar picks ups are set to the bridge

JMC2000 threw a 1 12 marshall cab, also the same head with a hughes and kettner 4 12 cab.


A peavey Valveking 100watt tube, through the same 2 different cabs

and a hughes and kettner Vortex head through the same cabs

the music is kind of a punk metal thing,,


As far as my monitors go, i have listened through my sony monitor head phones, got frustrated and hooked up some old gateway speakers i have, and jbls. .....and i need to get new monitor speakers cause one of the speakers in mine blew (cheap pos.)



oh and i may not of described the sound well enough.

its bassy, but more than anything fuzzy, im not getting that sweet marshall tone i want
 
Oh, and to make sure im right on this... I want to position the mic as close to the center of the speaker without being over the cone correct?
 
linoleum6 said:
its bassy, but more than anything fuzzy, im not getting that sweet marshall tone i want
Click to expand...
sounds like you're unable to manage proximity, mic positioning and dialing the amp for the tone you want whilst monitoring.

linoleum6 said:
Oh, and to make sure im right on this... I want to position the mic as close to the center of the speaker without being over the cone correct?
Click to expand...
no. there's no one position that automatically works. after doing this for a while, you'll learn what to expect with various the mic positions.

I would suggest you go through some exercises where you hold things constant and vary one thing.

Dial the amp for a tone you like and spend days doing nothing but moving the mic and record. listen and learn

You'll come away with ideas about what a position will give you. You will have determined some mic positions are better than others. Use one of the better positions and...

spend days doing nothing but redialing your amp with your newly found better mic position.

try other speakers in the cab. you'll find one will generally sound better than the others.
 
linoleum6 said:
Oh, and to make sure im right on this... I want to position the mic as close to the center of the speaker without being over the cone correct?
Click to expand...

Not really. It's all personal taste and balancing how bright/dark the amp sound is vs how bright/dark the mic is in its given position, but I generally mic up pretty close to the edge of the cone. Then again, I go for a fairly dark tone...
 
where would you recommend i put the mic if i was going for the brighter tone?
 
Sonixx said:
sorry, but this now sounds like a troll... the answer to this is just too evident
Click to expand...

Maybe, but just for the hell of it...


Start sweeping the mic back and forth in front of the speaker, listening to the playback through headphones while you do so. Let me know what you hear, and what you think the correct answer is.

EDIT - though, it REALLY worries me that you're asking something like this, yet you "record other bands."
 
DrewPeterson7 said:
Maybe, but just for the hell of it...


Start sweeping the mic back and forth in front of the speaker, listening to the playback through headphones while you do so. Let me know what you hear, and what you think the correct answer is.

EDIT - though, it REALLY worries me that you're asking something like this, yet you "record other bands."
Click to expand...

ah dont be worried, i do them for next to nothing, and they love their tone on guitar...... its only when i record myself im never happy...haha maybe thats the answer right there
 
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