Newbie question about about condensers and stereo

[alamo]

Hey, I just began recording a month ago so please forgive my ignorance, but I was wondering if it's possible to simultaneously record large and small diaphragm condensers in stereo. I want to try it out, but I'm paranoid that it might somehow destroy one of the mics. Also, if it's doable, does it sound good at all? thanks

 

[gecko zzed]

It is possible to mike up something using an LDC and an SDC.

Whether you destroy a mike depends on how you plan to do it.

If you have the mikes going into separate channels of an interface or a mixer, you'll be fine. If you are doing something weird like connecting them together somehow, then you need to revise your thinking.

 

[Bobbsy]

As Gecko Zzed says, so long as you stick to two separate channels then there's no risk to the mics. However, don't try to "Y" them together in any way as you'll get phantom power flowing in ways it wasn't intended.

Will it sound good? Well, it won't be "traditional" stereo which relies on using identical mics to create the spatial stereo image. However, for certain things, you might get something useful. I often mic acoustic guitar in stereo and spread the image much wider than reality would dictate--with one mic on the frets and one between sound hole and bridge, having one mic brighter than the other might just be pretty pleasing. The same might apply to some other instruments.