strereo vs non stereo...

[thehook]

what kind of plugs would I need to plug the preamp into the compressor....into the sound card? how do compressors and preamps get power? is it lust ac adapters ya know plugs that plug into the wall or what>?

 

[thehook]

Sounds like the Audiophile card would be OK. 4 inputs, right? Give you more flexibility later. You just need two inputs to do what you're describing. After you determine what basic type of setup you want, just make sure all the hardware and software is compatible. You might want to get a package deal from a retailer you trust.

No, wait... the Audiophile just has two audio channels of input, not 4. But that's enough for what you want to do. Haven't used or heard one, so don't know how it compares in quality of sound with others in that price range.

Tim

what are others in the same price range you are familiar with? Also what kind of plugs would I need to set up everything?

 

[NYMorningstar]

If you're mic'ing vox and gtr as two different sources generally you want to have each mic avoid picking up the other's part as much as possible to avoid phase cancellation problems. You can only do that by getting to know your mic's and listening to exactly what they're hearing. If you keep the mic's a lot closer to your mouth and guitar than they are to each other, you'll be OK. If they're back a ways but not in a stereo configuration (close capsules pointing different directions) the phase problems will likely make the parts sound thin and weird when you pan them at all together in the mix.

Tim

This is a good situation where the 3:1 rule would be of value and help in finding the sweet spot.

 

[XLR]

This is a good situation where the 3:1 rule would be of value and help in finding the sweet spot.

Uh-oh... here it comes again!

I was staying away from the words "3 to 1" as it's been argued in such a confused way in recent threads.

Tim

 

[thehook]

anyone had experience with two channel compressors that will help me out....if I did get one after I set the mics through the pres into the compressor would I only need one output line going into the comp?

 

[NYMorningstar]

A two channel compressor normally will have two outputs which can be routed through a y adaptor to a trs stereo jack for your soundcard although you'd be better off not using the compressor while recording. You are only doing acoustical sound and should be able to tame that without a compressor.

 

[PHILANDDON]

I do the same type of recording too--just me and my guitar; rootsy music, mostly my own songs writtern in that style.

some observations. keep in mind i'm new to the recording thing. all of the greats roots stuff (we're talking pre-beatles here) was recorded in mono, with one mic. because my guitar playing is kinda soft, i miked my guitar and vocal and summed them to mono. what's good about this is you can get more guitar definition. what's bad, is your vocal is diluted with the guitar mic (even if the guitar mic is perfectly placed vis a vis the vocal mic and there's no phasing problem). I tried the alternative stereo field guitar vocal in the middle thing, but to me it just didn't sound all that rootsy, but maybe i did it wrong. one other idea is to record the vocal with a little of a direct (i.e. non-mic'd) signal from the guitar and sum the two to mono. of course, the downside is you lose a little of that wooden acoustic guitar thing.

i dunno. i'm beginning to think that to get that great rootsy sound you gotta sing and play with extraordinary presence to one mic (some sorta ribbon or tube mic) placed around chest level and record the thing to at least 1/4 inch tape. what do others think?

 

[XLR]

i'm beginning to think that to get that great rootsy sound you gotta sing and play with extraordinary presence to one mic

Yeah. Said the same thing near the beginning of the thread. Several advantages to doing it that way. Think a good room is more important than tubes or tape though.

Tim

 

[mrelwood]

One guitar in stereo will sound like one guitar and, depending on mic placement and panning, can have a narrow or wide sound. Two guitars sound different, like two guitars...

What I end up using quite often is to copy the first verse to another track at the second verse, and vice versa. This yelds exactly the same results than recording two takes and sounds like this:

http://www2.stadia.fi/~0301895/aki/

Both tracks are just funkying around with audio on midi, and use the same copied rhythm guitar track technique. To do this, however, the song has to be in a fixed tempo, or else You have to build the second take from very small pieces, usually one bar or so. And ofcourse, the parts have to be played twice in the original song. Or, then You can just use the last take that You thought You wouldn't keep...


-Aki.