band practice which mic?

[Mohawkharry]

I'm a noob here and have a question to ask of you all. I want to drop a mic or two in the room at band practice and need a mic that will pickup a fair amount of everything.
I'm using a M-audio usb duo into my laptop loaded with Sonar producer 4. Will a large diaphragm mic in the middle of the room work as well as two, one at both ends of the room?

 

[Cosmic]

If nothing else, larger dia condenser mics are more sensitive than dynamics, so if you are doing it 'guerrilla style' with one or two, they come out on top in terms of you getting more level.

In the 'good old days' when a band played around a mic, it was either a ribbon or a large-diaphragm condenser.

So, you should go with large-diaphragm condensers, and you should use two (cheap Chinese ones are ok for this) simply because two will give you 50% more coverage and sensitivity. If all else fails, and you have to use one, use an omni (I would guess) to 'get' everyone as much as possible.

It's one of those 'compromise' situations where you really become aware of the acoustic quality of your room. You may, or may not, get a 50es/60es kind of sound simply by scaling it down to this.

Good luck with it; it can lead to an interesting recording.

Best,
C.