Midside recording

  • Thread starter Thread starter Jim Lad
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Jim Lad

Jim Lad

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Saw a thread on this the other day and thought it was about time to give it a try.
I'm using the AKG Solid Tube for vocals, a Blue Bluebird for Tenor Guitar and the Golden Age R1 MKII suspended above the vocal mic for the figure eight.
Pardon the song and the singing of it.
 

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Jim,
This songs gets to like Two Little Boys does - bypass the brain & straight to my soft centre.
The mic combo does a fine job on the vocals.
No need for apologies re singing & playing.
 
Mudslide recording?:confused: Why would you want to record a mudslide? Do they really make that much noise, anyway?

Seriously, touching song. Good recording, everything- mics, voice, guitar seems to work together well. Tenor guitar, you say? Cool- I've had a Harmony tenor for several years- freebee dumpster find, but have not spent much time with it. Just bought new strings, tuned 'em up... and popped the .010 when I tuned it to A and then stretched it out a bit... damn! Got another one, but I think I will de-tune it one or two semi-tones, so that .010 is not under so much stress- should be kinder to the neck, too, not to mention my fingers. That .010 is under some SERIOUS tension right now!

Just recently bought, cheap, a Harmony tenor Banjo. My buds and I have been doing the Mumford Brother's "Little Lion Man," and I figured one of 'em, who has a 5-string banjo, would play banjo on it- but he never brings his banjo to jams/rehearsals! So, I'm gonna give learning tenor chords and banjo finger picking a shot.
 
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You could always tune it DGBE but for tuning in fifths, I always drop it down one semitone.
Break a lot less strings that way.
 
Thanks for posting this. It sounds very good to me.

I've been wanting to try a new mic setup. All I need is a figure of eight mic.
 
I like the clarity here... its kind of like the midside technique has given you a crystal clear "natural" reverb, very nice.
 
Pristine - another one tonight.... Those mics are fabulous. I'd compress those vocals myself. There's some real big dynamics that I'd like to hear tamed. Good tune - can't think about it too much though - it makes me cry....I'm a big emo.
 
Sounds great, nice recording and performance, really enjoyed it!
 
I'll tone it down a bit and record it for real.
I just wanted to test the dynamics.
I put minimal reverb on the vocals and guitar then put very wet reverb on the figure eights and cut them back to 40% volume.
I could drop it to 20%, I think and still get that "Large" effect..
Manslick: There are several ribbons for sale in the FS thread. Two top of the line models (AEA & Blue Woodpecker at $650 a piece) a real steal.
You could also use two monos, though.
I just love this Solid Tube and Bluebird combination though.
 
Here's a comparison for you, then.
The first one includes the figure eight. "Leaving Nancy norm" is just the two mics.
Same performance.
An Eric Bogle song, by the way.
He wrote it for his mother when he left Scotland for Australia.
 

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I love it. I will be satisfied if before I die I can record as you do, although I don't have your voice.
When I have recorded singing with my guitar I have trouble with the rythm because I record my guitar first, and then my voice. Your voice and your guitar sound perfect, at a perfect rythm. Do you record first the guitar, and then the vocals? Or both at the same time?
 
Thank you.
Both at the same time.
K.I.S.S.
I've come to the conclusion that I should stick to my favourite recording room and just keep singing the same song until I get one good performance.
I'm happier with the normal recording as opposed to the midside, by the way but I think I'll spend a bit of time working on it. Just in case I need it in the future.
I sincerely hope you don't die on account of anything I've done.
 
Jim Lad said:
You could always tune it DGBE but for tuning in fifths, I always drop it down one semitone.
Break a lot less strings that way.
Click to expand...

That is exactly what I did, just about an hour ago. Oh, wait, I dropped it down two ST's. Thanks for suggesting it, though.
 
Oh, wait, I dropped it down two ST's
Click to expand...
That's the Greek Bouzouki tuning.
Tuning in fifths is great for mandolins and such but I think, when your looking for more of a chord accompaniment then guitar/ukulele tuning offers more interesting sounds.

Just had another listen to "Leaving Nancy" the "Normal" version and decided to just put it on the new album as is.
I can hear all sorts of nice bass runs and rhythms (shakers) for it but I need some really simple stuff.
Funny thing is though, that's not what I went into the room to record but it's what I came out with.
 
Sounds good. Two things: 1. Compress the vocals just a bit.. They're dynamic, and it works for this genre, but it's a bit too much... At times the vocals completely drown out the guitar. 2. There are some lower frequencies of the guitar that are kind of muddying up the recording. (my guesstimate would be around 500-800HZ) If you could EQ those down, it'd help clean it up a bit.

Great recording, man! Keep it up!
 
PoeticIntensity: You're talking about "Leaving Nancy" right?
Just so as I know.
 
Uhh... I listened to the mp3 attached to the first post. "Nobody's Child", if that's what you're asking.
 
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