Acoustic fingerstyle recording

[idrisguitar]

i have had the matched pair from naiant studio for a while,

and i have just started to record fingerpicking. however im getting really high low end on the Low E and A strings.

is there a way to stop this and get a balanced sound, without having to resort to playing with fingerpicks? (fingerpicks give a sharper sound and therefore there less bass and more trbele, but i dont like playing with them,)

i would rather record without any picks whatsoever bu at the moment the over bassy sound is really bad.

coudl ti be he mics, because from what i hear it sounds fine, but when i playback the recorded passage the low e and a strings distort, and if i lower the level to where they dont, the higher strings on the guitar can barely be heard.

 

[mrface2112]

without knowing what you're hearing from the mics or what it sounds like in the room or seeing where the mics are placed.........the only real suggestion i can give is to work on the mic placement and your playing technique.

obviously you're getting too much of something you don't want in the mics.....the easy solution is to either not present the mics with that something (playing technique) or do something with the mics to change what they're picking up.


cheers,
wade

 

[stetto]

Try different placement with the mics (away from the soundhole), and don't fingerpick over the soundhole; Move back towards the tailpiece. I get much heavier undertones when playing over the soundhole.

The buss you're monitoring on sounds like it isn't giving you the recorded signal. Do you have your monitor buss switched to pre or post processing?

Eric

 

[ofajen]

1) If you haven't already, make sure the mikes are not in the strong low-end modal locations for the radiation of the guitar tone from the top of the guitar. Mike locations above the finderboard rather than the guitar body will help keep you out of those strong bass modes.

2) After you've done what you can with mike placement, if you still feel there's too much low-end, you could apply low-end filtering, if you have that option. The Naiant mikes don't have low-cut filters, IIRC. Do you have low-cut options on your preamp?

Cheers,

Otto

 

[tdukex]

Yes, mic placement and/or the room is most likely your problem. These are omni, right? Proximity effect should not be a problem. Still, if you are close micing, stay away from the soundhole. Also, you should be able to get a very nice sound with the mics 18" to 24" out from the guit. If not, there is definitely a problem with the room..

 

[flamin-gitaur]

Just in case someone hasn't mentioned it yet, try messing with mic' placement. I usually place a SDC mic over the 12th-15th fret area and about 8-10 inches away from the fretboard, but that will depend on how dynamic you play, but for finger picking stuff, I think 8-10" is a good place to start.

 

[XLR]

Two things to try.

Put a single mic 2 ft out from the neck/body joint with the player and mic situated away from walls. If it booms it's the room (well, unless you've got a really boomy gtr)

Test how much ac-gtr-low-end-boom your room really has: Run a really long mic cable to the outdoors, far from any exterior wall. Record yourself there with one mic 2 ft from the neck/body joint. It won't boom I guarantee (well, unless you've got a REALLY boomy gtr, haha).

 

[idrisguitar]

thanks guys i think this will really help, as everything yuo are saying makes sense.

otherwise it could just be a boomy guitar.

thanks a lot

 

[hairylarry]

GoBo

Hi,

If you like the way it sounds when you play try putting the mic over you shoulder above the guitar and close to your ear.

If the room is boomy try some GoBo. I made my own with 1 inch rigid acoustic fiberglass foil backed wrapped in burlap. I just glued the burlap to the foil with quick dry tacky glue. I plan on making a two inch GoBo soon. Two inches may actually be better for bass boom. If you stack two one inch pieces peel the foil off one of the pieces so only the back has foil on it.

Then you can experiment with mic placement and GoBo placement.

Isn't this fun?

Thanks,

Hairy Larry

 

[danny.guitar]

Try using your fingernails...that can help with the boomyness and also give a better overall tone.

I had a lot of problems with "boomyness" for awhile too when I first got my MSH mics.

It was just bad mic placement choices and playing in a bad spot of the room. A small room seems to make things worse.

You could try putting the mics in the closet infront of a lot of clothes and recording into them. That's what I do and the difference is night and day.

 

[Tim Gillett]

Yes, fingernails. That was my first thought too. I'm a guitarist.

There's an enormous difference in tone between finger picking with the flesh of the fingers and using the nails or a pick. No mic or eq will ever compensate for the difference.

If it's a boomy guitar you should be able to hear that boominess as you play it.

Tim