Guitar recording

  • Thread starter Thread starter HFFritz
  • Start date Start date
Looking at the AMS catalog, the Johnson J-Station caught my eye, because it models bass amps as well as guitar amps. I will be recording both guitar and bass through whatever processor I get, so maybe this is the logical choice. I see that POD has an entirely different unit for bass for another $300+. Also, the J-Station is $50 cheaper than the Line6 POD and it doesn't look as goofy, although appearance is not a major criteria here.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Kelly Holdridge:
*under kelly's breath, "cheesehead."*<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

:) haha. I don't even like football. If I did I'd be at a Packers BBS... right? :)
 
BTW Charles I still think thats a good Article....I Read it ages ago, and it includes pics and links,pretty time consuming effort....and to think some ppl bagged you for it is beyond me

Cheers and how are ya mate

Tony
 
Hey Fritzz..the line out on your amp (if its quarter inch) is most likely not considered a direct signal...this is what a direct box is for-turns a line level output into a mic level . the best way to record a guitar is through an amp...well i shouldnt say best cuz then id p.o. all the POD freakz out there. Pods sound great...a bit to slick for continuous use for me tho...mix it up fellas. try mixing a mic'd signal with the direct...
 
i've got a fender hotrod 2x12 amp. i normally record with an sm57 and then use my alesis quadraverb for fx when i'm mixing. although here lately i've been mixing in digital and using DSP-FX.

rather than micing, i'd rather hook up a direct box to the amp. anyone familiar with the Rapco Pro DB101SL? their ad says that you can connect it to the auxiliary amp connection in the back of the amp (it's got a -20db pad) or connect it to the pre-amp out. very interesting to me.
 
could someone explain the DI setup a little better .. I mean a lot of the time i go DI straight into the mixer then , using aux sends send the signal to my quadraverb and back through another channel.. Whats all this i hear about DI boxes ?? I dont get it , is that to raise the signal ?? Im a little lost with the DI box...
cheers
spider
 
Yeah... you could say it raises the signal...
It just matches the OHM's and Impedence rate a little better giving u a fatter sound

Tony
 
u could say a d.i. fattens up the signal but going from line to mic actually lowers your signal.
 
hey HFFritz you must get rid of the hum - What I often do is to get a piece of wire about 2 - 3 ft and attach one end to the bridge. Then strip the insulation off the other end an gaffa it to your leg or arm. Another way is to get a piece of blank printed circuit board and solder the wire to it - then you can put your foot on it to cut out the hum.
Ok It sounds crazy but it works!!
 
Mr. Sayers, this is the kind of info I was looking for, and I will try it tonight. The hum is my nemisis, as it is ruining the recording. I have tried plugging the amp into a different circuit as well as quite a bit of experimenting with where I sit and which direction I face (which does seem to make a difference). It's an old strat, and people also tell me that they have a characteristic hum because of the single coil pickups.

This wiring method that you suggest. What is the purpose/reason? Is it grounding the guitar differently than normal? Why do you think this works?
 
I'm not sure how it works - Dobro will probably know - but it gets rid of hum caused by the guitar - you know - the type that happens when you lift your fingers off the string! de-earthing the amp also gets ride of hum - we have differnet power here in OZ where the negative is connected directly to the ground earth - i.e. unbalanced - I understand the US power is balanced where the negative and positive float above the ground earth. any comments guys?
 
it gets rid of the hum you get when you take your fingers off the strings which is common on the old strats. Here in OZ we have unbalanced power (i.e. the negative power feed is shorted to the ground earth) I understand that in the US you have balanced power where the +ve and -ve float above ground - Dobro will know - any comments guys?
 
Wow you guy's has anyone ever heard of large diaphragm condenser mics, compression and Marshalls? POD (puny overdriven devices) this is basic stuff. Lose the DSP's until after you record your trks, if you record with effects you have no where to go, you will be locked into that specific sound. Shure SM 57s-58s work pretty good also, not as big as the condensers but they work. Stick a mic in front of your amp turn it up and hit record, that's how it all begins..............
 
I record my guitars thru a Rectifier (4x12 with SM57) AND a POD and combine the signals and it sounds purty good! Usually I double the parts; one take (amp/pod) left and another take (amp/pod) right.
 
I've heard guys get great sounds with PODs and I've heard guys get awful sounds with them too. If you had described the POD to me before I tried one I would have told you to go to hell. The first time I used Line6 was when we made our record (actually it was Amp Farm, basically the same thing) and we had three different amps set up with mics in the studio. The engineer told me to play and listen through the monitors and tell him out of four signals which was the DSP and I was wrong abou half the time. I have to say that for someone making demos who doesn't have a huge collection of amps that it's a pretty good way to get a lot of different guitar sounds.

Usually when I hear bad POD sounds it's when there's too much drive happening and the sound turns to mush. The first time I heard it's AC-15 sound I swear I could picture that little amp sitting there barking away at me the way only it can do.

I say use whatever you think you need to make it sound good...if it's convincing then no one can really argue with your technique.
 
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