Can an acoustic/electric record as well as using a condensor?

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KaveKong

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I have a nice acoustic guitar that I love playing, and it sounds great, but was thinking of adding an acoustic/electric to my equipment for recording. Right now I use the condensor, and it sounds okay, but I really want to go direct for those moments that I don't want to have to set things up. I get an idea and I want to record it right away.

What do you think? Can I get good recorded results using an acoustic/electric and going straight into the board? I've actually never done it (or even owned or played one).

Thanks
 
It'll sound like something, it will not sound like a mic'ed acoustic guitar. A lot will depend on the pickup.

Try it, check the sound, listen to it objectively, and add it to your collection. I've found almost every sound has a use somewhere.

As a quick way to capture an idea, it's great. If you use the idea, then worry about how it sounds.
 
boingoman said:
It'll sound like something, it will not sound like a mic'ed acoustic guitar. A lot will depend on the pickup.

Try it, check the sound, listen to it objectively, and add it to your collection. I've found almost every sound has a use somewhere.

As a quick way to capture an idea, it's great. If you use the idea, then worry about how it sounds.
Click to expand...

+1 What he said.

I personally think that those 'clip on' pickups like Dean Markley etc sound more acoustic than the built-in piezos on most a/e guitars, but that's just me.

i've heard that if you run an a/e through one of those acoustic simulator pedals (made to make an electric sound like an acoustic) that it'll help somewhat, but I don't know that for a fact. Hey, maybe I should get one and try it. I've got a super-cheap a/e. Time for a new thread.
 
Yup to both, sometimes it sounds better than others, like in a dense mix. Solo, not so good.
 
KaveKong said:
I have a nice acoustic guitar that I love playing, and it sounds great, but was thinking of adding an acoustic/electric to my equipment for recording. Right now I use the condensor, and it sounds okay, but I really want to go direct for those moments that I don't want to have to set things up. I get an idea and I want to record it right away.

What do you think? Can I get good recorded results using an acoustic/electric and going straight into the board? I've actually never done it (or even owned or played one).

Thanks
Click to expand...

It depends on the guitar, the mic, the pickup, and the electronics that the pickup runs through. The 12 string guitarist in my band has a pickup/preamp that sounds very close to the sound I get recording him through a decent LDC mic. I get a really good sound from him, though, by recording both at once and then panning the tracks <=> in the mix.
 
I would say as a rule of thumb going direct into the board from an a/e is going to sound awful, although I have used it in mixes before. Some high-end model guitars sound pretty good direct, but a good condenser will always sound better (when used correctly).

As far as just getting ideas down, however, it'll be fine.
 
I find that mixing the two can be effective. You can get nice overtones and sparkle from the mic, and augment those with the sustain of the pickup signal. Of course, that doesn't fix your setup time problem...it doubles it!
 
a ldc is probably gonna sound better but for a quick recording where sound doesnt matter then a pickup is pretty convienent also is very convienent for live although if you use it for live i would probably splurge on a nice pickup from experience the fishmans have made some pretty good acoustic pickups (still not a mic though) but also keep in mind one of the big things with any acoustic instrument is its interaction with the room which you dont really get with a pickup
 
I would spend my money on mics and mic preamps.

A/E is for playing live not for recording IMO.
 
Solo = Good condenser mic with good preamp

Live = A/E

Just my humble opinion
 
I do a LOT of recording direct via an I-Beam Active. As good as it sounds live, I wish I had enough peace and quiet to record with a pair of SD condensers. The difference is remarkable recording solo, and in a mix the mic'd route gives you more leeway (it's just cleaner and crisper), though you could get by with an onboard I-Beam or Fishman in a mix...

2 cents spent.

Eric
 
As far as pickups go, I would recommend the K&K Sound - "Pure" series. These things are head and shoulders above anything else out there. They use multiple transducers that attach inside the body, under the bridge. It's a great full acoustic sound that's super easy to plug and play when you're ready to record.
 
Yup... mic'd for recording, pickup plugged in for live use. However, when I record, I record both the DI as well as the open mic, to blend in some of the DI (since it captures more of the high-end of the guitar than my tube LDC does)... for scratch recording, I'd say going in DI is perfectly fine, but you most likely won't be happy with the sound in the end if you are aiming to use it as a finished track (especially if it is solo guitar work, not sitting behind other stuff in a mix).

It also depends on the guitar to an extent - a friend has a mid-range Taylor he bought about 6 years ago, with whatever electronics (Fishman, I think), they used before they switched to their own, and I've heard recordings of his that I could have sworn were mic'd, that turned out to be DI only, with a little acoustic sim worked on em in ProTools. So, I'd say try a few out, and see if you can somehow test-record in the store (not sure how you would, but there might be a way with only minimal hastle).
 
I DI the acoustic guitar and use 2 dinamic mics (one at bridge, one at 12th fret) then pan the mics hard left and right respecitvely and center DI (with lower volume than mics). Seems to work pretty good.


Mike
 
We taped a half-hour TV show a week ago, and they were using the pre in a Mackie 1604 VLZ (II?)...I brought along a Sennheiser 421 and asked to use that as a secondary guitar signal, but they didn't want to mess with the added "hassle"...So I used the 421 for vocals instead...And had it positioned a bit high and aimed down...Picked up the guitar quite nicely...Heh heh heh...

What got my attention was when I put the headphones on and listened to the soundguy's guitar channel--Hokey smokes Bullwinkle, was that nice! The bleed from the 421 produced a great blend...

Eric
 
Ibanez GA6CE

Depends on the instrument and the musical context. I have an Ibanez GA6CE that sounds pretty lame by itself but when recorded direct sounds (can be made to sound) very fine. Sometimes it must be EQ'd some and a bit-o-verb can be helpful too , again depending on the context.


chazba
 
Fishman and Shadow do saddle piezo pickup/mini condesor mic blender type system (cant remember model numbers). The little condensor is on a goosneck inside your sound hole. Plug in and push the blender to mic for a 'true' sound. There will be surgery required to fit the Shadow control panel into your guitar body, but the Fishman clips along the edge of the soundhole ~ nice and discrete. You can get some interesting tones by blending the piezo with the mini mic but the best sound for recording will always be a studio condensor.
 
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