recording electric guitar

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mase0013

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I want to record my electric through my amp (Delta Blues 115). I have a ST55 condenser mic but have read you don't necessarily want to use a condenser mic to record an amp. Or if I should buy Guitar Rig and go DI.

Any direction would be helpful. Thanks.
 
since you have the mic already, why don't you try sticking it in front of the amp and see how you like the results. Try a few different positions close to the speaker cone, closer to the edge of the speaker etc.

There's nothing to say you have to use a dynamic to record an electric guitar. SM57 are good for very loud amps because they can handle very high sound pressure, often more than a more delicate diaphragm in a condenser mic could handle. However if you are recording at sensible volumes (less than that of a jet engine from a inch away say) then a condenser will work fine and usually will give you more detail and top end than a dynamic.

IMO/IME it's usually better to try with what you have before just arbitrarily dumping money into something else. Maybe what you already have will give you great results at no cost to you.
 
although it does depend on the style, it's very hard to beat an SM57 on a guitar amp. Every now and then i use LDC's on guitar amps but usually at about 3 or 4 foot back and nearly always with a dynamic mic close to the grill. I can only think of one session where i've only used an LDC to record a guitar amp and that was a Rode NTK driven quite hard to get this cool gritty blues sound the player wanted. Even then, i'm sure we could've got the same, if not better results with a 57 :rolleyes:

There's a couple of threads on here talking about the difference between recording a real amp and using simulators and the general line seems to be; if you can, use a real amp. if you really can't for whatever reason (you don't want to wake up the kids/neighbourhood, you can only record late at night etc) amps sims are ok.

What interface are you using? i only ask because some have instrument inputs anyway so rather than shell out on a DI box and Guitar Rig, if you can, download the free version of Amplitube, plug your guitar in and have a play to see how you get on with it

For the price, i'd say just pick up an SM57 and play around with it. it's always worth having an SM57 in your mic cupboard, they're just so handy :)
 
What is the rest of your recording chain? i.e. what does the mic plug into? Not a soundcard, I hope.
 
The deeper you go, the higher you fly......

Bristol Posse said:
since you have the mic already, why don't you try sticking it in front of the amp and see how you like the results. Try a few different positions close to the speaker cone, closer to the edge of the speaker etc.

There's nothing to say you have to use a dynamic to record an electric guitar. SM57 are good for very loud amps because they can handle very high sound pressure, often more than a more delicate diaphragm in a condenser mic could handle. However if you are recording at sensible volumes (less than that of a jet engine from a inch away say) then a condenser will work fine and usually will give you more detail and top end than a dynamic.

IMO/IME it's usually better to try with what you have before just arbitrarily dumping money into something else. Maybe what you already have will give you great results at no cost to you.
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105% !
Ever since getting my first condensers {a pair of EM700s}, I've been wary of recording my amps with them because a number of people have said there's a risk of blowing them. But a couple of weeks ago, while experimenting with layering multiple guitars, I recorded the amp sound with one, about 9 inches away and blasted away. It was good. No problems at all. Bristol is right ~ use what you have and see where you get before you go in other directions.

Justsomeguy said:
although it does depend on the style, it's very hard to beat an SM57 on a guitar amp.
For the price, i'd say just pick up an SM57 and play around with it. it's always worth having an SM57 in your mic cupboard, they're just so handy
Click to expand...
I often record the amp with a 58. Both guitar and bass. I've wondered for ages why more people don't, given that the rumour on the wire is that the 57 and 58 are pretty much the same thing.
 
Thanks for the advice. I will play around with my condenser mic placement on the amp. I usually don't "crank" my amp anyway so I doubt I run the risk of blowing my condenser mic. And yes, I agree, a SM57/58 would always come in handy. I'll probably get a 58 for the versatility of recording and using it live. (it's been on the wishlist)

I have an M-Audio MobilePre so DI is a viable option. I have ProTools SE but typically stick to Garageband as my DAW as I am more familiar with it.

And I am going to check out Amplitude. I downloaded the demo version of Guitar Rig but I believe you can only use it for 30 minutes which is rather pointless.
 
I actually just fired up my delorean so I think I'm on the right track..
 
Look at the specs of your condensor, the max spl is 144db!!! :eek: You won't have problems micing your amp with that. And it has a -10db pad to help keep it within limits of your interface. (though 10db isn't much of a pad)

Experiment with it. Go crazy, crank it up!! Have fun. :)
 
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