Double micing acoustic guitar with Studio Projects B1

[vitro]

Hello All,

This forum has helped so much in the past so I thought I would try another question.

I currently own a Studio Projects B1 which has worked well for recording vocal and acoustic guitar tracks. Now I am keen to purchase another mic in a similar budget range to double mic my guitar, so I was wondering if anyone had tried using two B1's for this task. Would I be making a big mistake in purchasing another B1 for this purpose or could anyone recommend a matching pair of condensor mics in a similar price range that would be useful for the job?

I have read the stickys on double micing so many thanks in advance if there is any new light anyone can contribute on this topic.

Cheers.

 

[scrubs]

Another B1 would work. It's hard to do a tight coincident pair (like XY) with LDC's just due to the size, but you could definitely do spaced-pair. You can approximately gain match the B1's, I think, by getting another with the same color dot as the one you already have.

For a pair of SDC's in the budget range, I'd be looking at the MXL604 or Studio Projects C4. You could also combine one SDC with your LDC.

 

[Kore]

To be honest, I do not have experience with the mic that I am about to suggest. What I am suggesting is that you consider it.

Apex has a pair of MATCHED pencil condensors, 185's. Each has omni and cardiod capsules, they each have a unique graph of frequency response (so you can "see" that they're matched), and it comes with two shockmounts, and a case for everything (both mics, all capsules, shocks). It's $165 Canadian at my local store ($130 USD maybe?). Not bad for a mtched pair. Plus, with omni and cardioid, they'll be useful for a long time in different apps.

But my overall suggestions would be to RENT BEFOE YOU BUY. It's cheap as hell to rent 4 different mics, provided you can locate them for rental. Compare them yourself, and figure out which one(s) work best with your current mic.

 

[kid klash]

I've got a pair of SP B1's, and I've used them many times on acoustic guitar, with very good results. I've got a pair of SM-81's too, which I also use on acoustic guitars. If I'm recording a song with two acoustic guitars, I'll use the B1's on one, and the 81's on the other, so that they don't have the same acoustic "signature", which helps them sit in "their own space" in the mix.

At only $100 a pop, I'd add another B1 to your collection. Then you can do stereo acoustic guitar tracks, or use them as overheads on drum kits, or use them to do two-mic live stereo recordings, or... you name it.

 

[Han]

Making an XY pair of B1's isn't hard at all, just place them on top of eachother, just the upper mic upside down. But XY doesn't work for me anyway, so use them as an ORTF, DIN or NOS pair and you'll have a better stereo image.

 

[Gilliland]

At only $100 a pop, I'd add another B1 to your collection. Then you can do stereo acoustic guitar tracks, or use them as overheads on drum kits, or use them to do two-mic live stereo recordings, or... you name it.

Better yet, get a B3. Then you can do all of the above, plus M/S stereo, plus many other applications that would benefit from an omni or figure-8 pattern.

 

[smtcharlie]

As some less educated advice, I like to double acoustic parts by playing them twice and panning - in which case, you really only need one mic for "stereo" acoustic.

I can see this sounding cool or really not cool depending on the type of music though....

 

[kid klash]

Better yet, get a B3. Then you can do all of the above, plus M/S stereo, plus many other applications that would benefit from an omni or figure-8 pattern.

Yeah, I love the results I get when I record overheads with a B1 and B3 through my Octane M-S encoder...

 

[tdukex]

Better yet, get a B3. Then you can do all of the above, plus M/S stereo, plus many other applications that would benefit from an omni or figure-8 pattern.

Good advice.

Also, for acou guit I often like ORTF (spaced 6" - 8" apart) better than XY. It produces a wider stereo image.