How can I increase signal from SM57

arcaxis said:
For the wife.....
Click to expand...

:D

Watch it...you'll get accused of forcing him to turn his amp up louder. ;)

Robus said:
Miroslav has been suggesting that you negotiate with the wife a time when you can track at higher volume. Most of us who have families and do just that.
Click to expand...

Yeah man...all I'm trying to suggest is for him to try some alternatives before buying a solution, because IMHO (YMMV...etc)...most amps sound better when recorded at louder volumes.
Granted...it can be a PITA for the loved ones and the neighbors...but it does make a serious difference in the tones you get.
I know a lot of folks will agree with that.
 
I'm reading this thread with amusement.

Any good guitar amp, a 57 and decent preamp into an interface or a mixer will get you a good acceptable guitar sound. The problem, as I see it, in the signal chain, is the "wimp-itis" interface.

The best solution is usually the most obvious one.

Deal with the wife and turn the damn thing up.

OR just cave in and do everything with amp sims.

Here we are on a technical forum dealing with marital bliss and social issues. Lol
:D
 
No one has suggested yet, so ... get a true audio interface - its preamps will be fine for getting enough recording volume from a 57.
 
miroslav said:
:D

Watch it...you'll get accused of forcing him to turn his amp up louder. ;)

.
Click to expand...
look man .... you didn't say it once .... you said it like 4 times getting more and more involved with iso boxes and he specifically told you no at which point you still didn't stop.
It's why virtually everyone on this board makes remarks to you about you never letting go of an issue.

As for what you think of me ..... it's the absolute least important thing in the world to me.
So say what you want or not ...... I'm indifferent.
The only reason I ever jump in when I think you're either giving bad advice or not really responding to an OP which I felt was the case here.
otherwise you might note that I steer clear of you and don't comment on your posts at all which I'm sure we both prefer.
.
But you go ahead and think, and say, what you wish about me.
:laughings:
 
What I do know Bob is...I record...you just talk about it.
Been like that as long as I've been on this forum.

AFA me repeating myself....I don't come close to you, with you telling us over and over and over how much of a "pro" you are...just 'cuz you play out. I mean...you've told us that so many times, it must be some kind of a forum record.

Yeah...I think it's best if you don't comment on my posts.
I certainly pay little attention to or make comments on your posts...unless of course, you come into a thread JUST to stir shit up with me...which is nothing new, you've been doing that for years.

If the OP has a problem with my responses to him (not you)...he certainly hasn't shown it.
If anything, like I said...we were joking around about the wife thing.
Of course...now you've given this thread a negative vibe (not me)...so I'm done here.
 
Sounds like a few people didn't read the original post...pretty clear that the problem is the preamp only being able to give 20dB of gain...not a tone issue as Robus suggested.

I'm plugged into a Boss GT-001 and have the mic preamp on max (+20db) but in Reaper it only registers around -30db on peak meter.
Click to expand...

I would also reccomend the OP get a 'proper' (read: studio focussed) interface to run the output of the BOSS into it as MJB suggested.

An inline preamp might help also, but I don't know what kind of headroom the BOSS has so it might not be the ideal solution, it'll probably cost more than a low-end 2 channel interface (speaking off the top of my head a cloudlifter is £120+ in the UK, a suitable interface will be £50)

If neither of them suit, and you have the opportunity, you can add gain after recording in your DAW after recording.
 
Ahem! Another problem which can arise with a "quiet" guitar amp (not "ours" of course!) can be self noise. That is the hums and to some extent hisses that are there at zero wick.

Best solution to that is a simple resistive speaker level attenuator (aka Power Soak) These can put the amp near its sweet spot power wise* but allow a sound level of nearer domestic bliss.
N.B. Trying to chop a 100watter down to "let's not wake the chavvy" levels will NOT give a good sound but a 6 to 10dB power loss can be useful.

Different PS brands suit different amps. No doubt peeps here have some thoughts?

*Before someone chip in about speakers "need to move air" they don't, no matter how hard you push them and the point of speaker breakup and a broken speaker is but a dB or two. I am reliably informed that some classic amps, the Vox AC30 was one, DID run their speakers at their limit and were known to blow them!

Dave.
 
This is all about the recording chain not having enough gain. If he wants to play quiet, that's fine with me. A 57 and a basic popular preamp will let him do what he wants - better the -30 his software insists is the maximum. Back in the reel-to reel days, I could put a 57 into the mic input on my Ferrograph and record birds tweeting outside. It seems that nowadays they build preamps that cope with people shouting into the mic, and anything quieter than that is not important. As an interim measure covering the guitar amp with duvets, pillows and maybe turning it up would work and keep everyone happy - but still have the fatal flaw that for playback, the wife will still complain?
 
Yes Rob, if you are talking about the valved Ferros' they had a lift transformer, balanced input, and being a valve with probably a 200volt supply, the headroom would have been massive.

Early transistor mic amps had to first challenge the Triode for noise and even when they became as good or better for noise they were still very prone to overload and an overloaded transistor sounds terrible whereas a triode is rather more acceptable, even desired!

Even today is seems AI makers cannot make up their minds about gain staging and headroom levels!

Dave.
 
Hi Phil66,
I think your Boss should give all the volume you need. In this guys demo he shows the "primary USB function ". That display shows the volume knob for the signal going to Reaper and a mix volume knob for a dry/wet feature and a direct monitor volume etc. if you don't already know you have this set up properly then check the video out.

Good Luck, Joseph

Lee Demo's the awesome BOSS GT-001. Much more than simply a Guitar Effects.

BOSS GT-001 Review & Tutorial - YouTube
 
Last edited:
as far as i know most amps come with a headphone jack. move that mic closer to the cab and crank up you're input ( not distorting it).no sound in your house, only hp
 
Or, you know, just turn it up in Reaper...

If you want quick, easy, and cheap, clean and quiet, just give it a shot. If you don't like having the faders way up, then add JSVolume to the track. If you don't like adding a plugin to the track (eyeroll) then adjust the take volume envelope or the item's volume, or the pre-FX volume envelope, or...

Yes, this will bring up all of the noise of the interface, but I'd be willing to bet that the guitar and amp noise along with the room's ambient noise is probably worse anyway. That part is going to get louder no matter what you use to add the gain.

Edit to add- if you really think you need to buy something for this, I'd suggest a more sensitive microphone. 57s are really quiet, which is exactly what makes them so good at handling raging guitar amps and snare drums and other stupid-loud things.
 
Am I missing something, or doesn't the OP just need a basic, standard, digital interface? The Presonus Audiobox USB is only $100 and those XMAX preamps have tons of power. I upgraded to a Presonus Audiobox 44VSL from the USB a few years back. Both have XMAX preamps, and they rock.
 
This may be a stupid question, but since you are using a Boss GT-100, why don't you go directly into the mixer from the output? It may sound better than trying to mic an amp at 85-90 dB.

Just a thought.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top