Greetings all! I have a session tonight in which the 2 artists both play acoustic guitar. They are pretty insistant that we track their guitar part at the same time in the same room. It's nearly a unison part (with one part being slightly more intricate). Is this a horrible idea? Any suggestions on tracking 2 acoustics at the same time? I've has decent luck recording single guitars, I just don't know if this "2 guitar" approach is going to go over very well. Thoughts? Any input is MOST appreciated!
Recording Acoustic Guitar(s)
- Thread starter Mixxit12
- Start date
If they insist - then try to meet their needs - The customer is always right.
I would try to get as much seperation between them as your space will allow. Have them sit facing each other (that way the mics will be directed away from each other (to limit bleed). Obviously try to use mics with a cardiod paterrn (vs an 8 pattern). While I think a condensor mic is always better than a dynamic - a dynamic could help limit bleed,
I would think you should be able to make it work - at very least the playback on the 1st take or two will either indicate it's working or should provide proof to your clients that tracking the two guitars at the same time is a problem.
I would try to get as much seperation between them as your space will allow. Have them sit facing each other (that way the mics will be directed away from each other (to limit bleed). Obviously try to use mics with a cardiod paterrn (vs an 8 pattern). While I think a condensor mic is always better than a dynamic - a dynamic could help limit bleed,
I would think you should be able to make it work - at very least the playback on the 1st take or two will either indicate it's working or should provide proof to your clients that tracking the two guitars at the same time is a problem.
brendandwyer
New member
i don't think a little bleed is a bad thing, but who am I? We sometimes use like a half wall diffuser between us when we track guitars together. might help, but i think the cardiod pattern would be more helpful than the wall
I have a pretty sizeable live room so I can get reasonable distance between them. Obviously the cardioid thing will help. I like the idea of a dynamic though. Even though they're not my favorite for acoustic gee-tars, it might help in this situation. Maybe I'll just do a couple of takes with 57s and see how it comes out. Thanks for all the input so far! Anyone else have any suggestions?
brendandwyer
New member
may i ask: will there be a lot of production on top of the acoustics, or will it be a light track with acoustics and vocals. Because if there will be a sizable production, bleed won't really be a problem at all, and it might be desirable to get the biggest, detailed acoustic sound possible.
Actually the only other instrument that will be on the tune is piano, so no, it's a pretty thin piece. I'm sort of holding out for the same idea. I'll have a lot of "space" in the track to work with so hopefully the oddities will sort of give it a bigger, more lively feel.
soundchaser59
Reluctant Commander
So how does a guy minimize the mics picking up finger squeak in a situation like that??
First, I would stop looking at this as a problem that they insist on carrying through with, and embrace the concept that they have a synergy that occures when they play together and off of each other. Remember that THE most important aspect of any recording is the performance.
Second, don't worry so much about seperation that you compromise fidelity. Use dynamics if that suits the sound, but not because you might get some bleed with condensors. These guys want you to capture the sound and the energy of their guitars and their collective muse as it interacts in an acoustic space. Work with that concept and try to shrug off your seperation recordist mindset. You don't have to go to the one mic in the middle bluegrass approach, but think about mic techniques that provide for both acoustic interaction and good spatial information. You want them to spread across the soundfield naturally, not because that's where you panned them.
Just something to think about.
Second, don't worry so much about seperation that you compromise fidelity. Use dynamics if that suits the sound, but not because you might get some bleed with condensors. These guys want you to capture the sound and the energy of their guitars and their collective muse as it interacts in an acoustic space. Work with that concept and try to shrug off your seperation recordist mindset. You don't have to go to the one mic in the middle bluegrass approach, but think about mic techniques that provide for both acoustic interaction and good spatial information. You want them to spread across the soundfield naturally, not because that's where you panned them.
Just something to think about.
fraserhutch
Flypaper for freaks
Robert D said:
Agreed %100
and furthermore, I think you might find that a little bleed willactually add to the track in this case.
brendandwyer
New member
i completely agree with robert. why worry? capture the feeling of the session, if you were to set up the two guys in a room and capture the sound of them playing, you'd hear some finger squeak and all that. It's natural, natural feels good ona track.
Thanks for everyone's replies. Just as an update, the session was last night. It went pretty well. The guitars did indeed come out sounding pretty good. Nice rich, full bodied sound. I ended up using 2 AKG 414s about 8 inches from the guitars at the end of the body and pointed at about the 4th fret with 75hz rolled off. They also wanted to track the vocals in the same room at the same time. We gave it a couple of runs but they were having some timing issues so we recorded one VOX track and obviously overdubbed the second.
Again, thanks to everyone for their replies!
Again, thanks to everyone for their replies!