Trying to record distortion guitars is driving me crazy...

[giraffe]

yea, no-matter how many speakers you come in with, i'll probably mic 2 max.

 

[LIMiT]

There is NO DOUBT that if your source and room sounds good .. you're halfway there.

Where are you monitoring your recorded signal? In a treated control room?

If so... why not have someone in the room with the amp (and headphones for talkback)...have him play the guitar and tell him what to adjust on the amp as you listen through your monitors. (ie ..less gain..more mid)

It's the recorded tone you want...what it sounds like in the room is important,..but more important is whats being put to tape.

Hope this helps,

-LIMiT

 

[KingDiamond]

Alright I brought in my half stack into my bedroom for recording, it was a pain moving everything, especially up two flights of stairs, but as soon as I hit the record button, the half stack sounds so much better than the small combo amp. I'm going to post a clip as soon as I am finished mixing it.

BTW my half stack is a Crate Blue Voodoo BV-120HB with custom tubes, a Mesa Boogie 4x12 oversize slant cab with celestions, and a Boss NS-2 noise suppressor.

 

[flamin-gitaur]

First, here's my setup:

Behringer Eurorack UB802 Mixer
E-MU 0404 Soundcard
Steinberg Cubase SX2
Behringer B2031A monitors
Audix i5 microphone

I'm trying to record my 1x12 Crate Palomino 30W Tube combo amp with a modified Boss Metal Zone MT-2 pedal and Jackson SL2H guitar with Seymour Duncan pickups (JB/Jazz). I mic the amp by placing the mic against the grille right at the center of the amp. I run the mic -> mixer -> 0404 -> Cubase. I recorded acoustic guitar and it sounds great. But when I try to record distortion guitar it just sounds like it has no balls. It sounds nasally and crappy. I use the old trick of recording two guitar tracks and panning them left 75% and right 75% and it helps but it still lacks that in your face tone. I've tried moving the mic around the center position seems to capture the most fidelity.

Any pointers?

My 2 cents-
If your room isn't up to par acoustically, you might want to consider using an iso' box to record you cab, it will help to eliminate any unwanted "room" noise and/or reflected overtones.

 

[Dumby]

Direct set up

Recording direct in a home studio with untreated room will probably get you far better results. Mic quality, room acoustics and sometimes not knowing how to get there is a massive problem with amateurs. I have a test tune in the link below(check it out and let me know what you think of the guitar sound and tone), I made up my own distortions with a GT-8 simulating a marshall stack, simulated mic placement at 3cm from the speaker etc. etc.
There's many pedals like it and it will save you lots of time and headaches.

 

[nevome]

Try backing the mic up. I'll bet if you stuck your ear right on the grill center of the cone you'll find out [along with that you shouldn't have done that] that your mic isnt lying to you, thats what it hears. Backing the mic up from the grill makes the differences from center/edge of the cone less noticable/prominent and also helps to add some air to the sound, makes it less sterile.

My audio tech instructor used to cringe when he saw students in the studio recording groups with a 57 right up on the grill.

 

[SecondHeartbeat]

No takers?

First of all, everyone is going to tell you to do a search.

Secondly, they'll tell you to experiment a little more.

Thirdly, you're using some pretty indecent gear. Those pedals put out WAY too much gain to be musical, crate amps are generally great *practice* amps, behringer stuff leaves more to be desired, etc. On the flip side, the I5 is a great starting place for a microphone. Try moving it around not just left/right and up/down, but on its axis as well.

Use less gain than you normally would.

How does it sound in the room? If it sounds bad to start with you need to go back to square one. If its ok, then put your head where the mic is, how does that sound?

Thats all I can think of right now. I'm off to bed.

Rory

what are some other pedals your using?
do you have any compression or anything?

 

[jonnyc]

Try backing the mic up. I'll bet if you stuck your ear right on the grill center of the cone you'll find out [along with that you shouldn't have done that] that your mic isnt lying to you, thats what it hears. Backing the mic up from the grill makes the differences from center/edge of the cone less noticable/prominent and also helps to add some air to the sound, makes it less sterile.

My audio tech instructor used to cringe when he saw students in the studio recording groups with a 57 right up on the grill.

There is nothing wrong with burying a 57 into the grill. It's where it's placed, in relation to the speaker that matters. I hear of a lot of people trying to center the mic right on the cone which in my experience has always been less than desireable. I pretty much mic on the grill about 3-4" off center and I've never had problems with my guitar tones.

 

[amra]

yea if you back your mic off too much from the grill, you will get alot more room, which is not a good thing if you have a crappy sounding room....

If you are getting too much "woof" or low end you can back it off a couple of inches and still not get TOO much room sound.

 

[DrJones]

First, here's my setup:

Behringer Eurorack UB802 Mixer
E-MU 0404 Soundcard
Steinberg Cubase SX2
Behringer B2031A monitors
Audix i5 microphone

I'm trying to record my 1x12 Crate Palomino 30W Tube combo amp with a modified Boss Metal Zone MT-2 pedal and Jackson SL2H guitar with Seymour Duncan pickups (JB/Jazz). I mic the amp by placing the mic against the grille right at the center of the amp. I run the mic -> mixer -> 0404 -> Cubase. I recorded acoustic guitar and it sounds great. But when I try to record distortion guitar it just sounds like it has no balls. It sounds nasally and crappy. I use the old trick of recording two guitar tracks and panning them left 75% and right 75% and it helps but it still lacks that in your face tone. I've tried moving the mic around the center position seems to capture the most fidelity.

Any pointers?

I didnt read all the way through this thread but I just recorded a band which used a METAL ZONE pedal! UGGGGGGGHHHHHH! Nothing against anyone who uses it but if you notice just in normal use it makes a LOT!!!! of unwanted noise and there is no way to EQ it out! I made the guitarist rerecord W/ a Mesa dual rectifer and 4-10 cab using those distortion channels. My personal opinion is it is mostly the pedal. Try using the crate distortion for shits and giggles and see if the quality is better. If that is the case and you dont like the sound then try adifferent pedal. Hope ths helps.