My recordings sound crap

  • Thread starter Thread starter Gdam
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Gdam

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Hi all,

I get the feeling there is something essential wrong with my recordings/ way of recording/ interface.
Last week I recorded the guitar part, attached to this thread. Dry recording, no effects
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-Yamaha a. guitar (around € 500)

Shure PG-27
<<Recording distance 4 inches miced towards the tenth fret.>>

Samson microphone cable 2 m.

Direct into Focusrite Scarlett 2i2.

Connected to my Acer laptop

Recorded in Reaper software with Asio drivers
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I also recorded voices. All was recorded in a small room (around 2x3m) with ten handmade rockwool absorption panels to record it as dry as I could go.

I think the recorded guitar part (and also the voices) sound very thin. muffled in the low end, no nice mids, and harsh mid-highs. I have hours spend trying to EQ but it does not help much. It all seems to sound better until I realize that I made it only brighter or warmer but still harsh and thin, kind of 'far away sounding' With headphones the sound does not seem to be focused.

When I record my voice into my 'laptop build-in-mic' it seems even to sound better(although way more noise), more mids, deeper bass, and less painfull highs.

Is something wrong with my soundcard/built-in preamps/converters?

Do I need better room or miking techniques?

Can I EQ this to sound like a full nice rich guitar sound?


Thanks in advance for help!

Gdam
 

Attachments

Sounds OK to me, sounds like an acoustic guitar. Other than some string buzz, I didn't hear any issues. Maybe this is what your guitar sounds like in that room. You could look for another non-treated room see if you can get a better sound, another idea, put another mic on it and record two tracks from different points.

Try using some EQ to pull out the sound you are wanting. A single mic recording will be limited, you may require two+ mics to have more options like panning and mixing that bigger sound I think you are looking for.
 
Can't listen right now (at work), but DM60 says it sounds ok ... so I assume you have the correct side pointed towards your guitar (4" is a little close, try backing off to about 12") and you have the phantom power on on the Scarlett, and you're using an XLR-XLR cable.
The mic should be picking up exactly what you're hearing from the guitar.
 
mjbphotos said:
... so I assume you have the correct side pointed towards your guitar (4" is a little close, try backing off to about 12") and you have the phantom power on on the Scarlett, and you're using an XLR-XLR cable.
The mic should be picking up exactly what you're hearing from the guitar.
Click to expand...

All of that is correct. Thanks DM60 for your reply. I now am trying to add some ambience by copy paste the guitar track, pan the original one a 20% left and the second one 100% right with some EQ. I must say this makes the guitar come to life, although I need to use it subtle. I also tried to cut a little highs because of the string fuzz. That way the guitar sound kinda dark, but yet better. Overall I got some new inspiration. Thanks for the suggestions.

Gdam
 
You're not far off. The guitar doesn't sound bad. I hear fret buzz and finger noise but whether that is a problem depends on the mix context. If this guitar track is going to be part of a full arrangement, you probably won't even hear it.

I'm no expert on recording acoustic guitar, but here's what I've learned. More so than with an electric guitar, you need to think ahead at the tracking stage about how the acoustic is going to fit in the mix. There are two basic sounds that I aim for: A full bodied sound, and a stringy, percussive sound. If it's going to be a spare arrangement where the acoustic guitar is featured, I want the former. I'll put the mic back farther and pick up more of the body of the guitar and the room. If it's fuller arrangement, I'll want the stringy sound. Mic will be closer, positioned toward the fretboard, and aimed away from the sound hole.

I think those sounds are baked in at the tracking stage. What you've got here is closer to the stringy sound. You're not going to be able to EQ in a warmer tone because you didn't capture much of those frequencies to begin with.

Just my thoughts.
 
What I'm doing when I record guitar track is playing the same track two time and PAN one 80% left and the other 80% right, this is the best sound I get. Alternative that sound cheaper is to copy paste the guitar track and move one track 20m second after the other, just to say that it isn't the same track.
 
It's a little boomy, but otherwise okay. I think of acoustic guitar as having two modes and therefore, two different approaches to recording. The first is how you've got it here, a solo instrument or as an accompanying instrument. Mic position is everything. Start at the 12th fret about 6" away and then experiment. Change location, distance and angle. Don't move around a whole lot, a little can cause a big change in tone. In the mix, you will want to roll off 300hz and below. It's not a chop or truncated EQ, just the usual 3db roll off. Should help with that boominess. I have heard other use a multi-band compressor on acoustics with great results. I've never tried though maybe someday I will.

You can try mid-side recording if you have the mics for it. You'll get a great full sound without double tracking.

The second approach is an acoustic playing in a full band. Again start at the 12th fret, but you have more leeway. Eventually, in the mix, you'll want to roll off a lot of the low end. It's a whole lot less critical.
 
As you're no doubt discovering, when you ask about acoustic guitar recording, you'll get as many different suggestions as there are posters! Anyway, a few thoughts from me...

First, I agree with those saying move the mic farther from the guitar...I suspect some of the "tubbyness" is from the mic position. It's also worth experimenting moving slightly up and down the neck--I tend to prefer nearer the 12th fret (and inches can matter).

I've never used the PG 27 so have nothing to compare it to but, personally prefer to use small diaphragm condensers for acoustic guitar--I prefer the slightly brighter, less bassy sound.

I also like to record in stereo...but not with M-S. Instead I use two SDCs, one on the twelfth fret and one between the sound hole and the bridge. About a foot away for both is usually right.

Finally, as you've deadened your room, don't be afraid to add a bit of reverb to create the ambience you want rather than all sorts of copy and pasting. That's what reverb is for. You can experiment with what 'verb and how much of it you want.
 
Finally got the chance to listen to your clip. I agree with Chili - a little boomy which could probably be helped by moving the mic position. I suspect the sound recorded IS what your guitar really sounds like to others. A player doesn't hear the same thing that listener a few feet away hears.
 
Nah. I recommend he DOES try the copy/paste/move by 20ms trick. Once. To see how bad it sounds.

It's always best to learn by experience!
 
Thanks all guys,

I can get to a conclusion now there is nothing wrong with for example my audio interface. Great to know. I watched the 'get it right at the source' series on youtube. Because I think the best thing I can improve is my dry signal by mic placements, acoustics etc. Got some new inspiration, which is great.

I have tried the 20 ms 'stereo' trick several times but don't like it.

Gdam
 
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