which of my mics for acoustic guitar?

[Steenamaroo]

hopefully a fairly simple one here folks,,

i have achieved good results from various combinations, but i want to know what you'd do.

i'm mixing a cd with drums, clean electric bass, acoustic guitar x1 and vocals.

Often there are strings and/or piano also.



Everything has been recorded bar guitar and vocals,,and the vocals are going down through an sm7,,,but......which mic(s) and what setup for acoustic guitar.


the guitar is a 6 string taylor...not 100% sure on model, but it has a nice full bodied clear sound..

mics available are
rode nt1a
shure sm81
shure sm81
shure sm58
shure sm7
akg d112
marshall mxl 990
samson co2
samson co2
samson (misc kit drums)


thanks in advance folks!

 

[mshilarious]

The D112, aimed at the headstock.










OK seriously, the pair of SM81s. A standard setup for acoustic guitar for like 30 years.

 

[Steenamaroo]

thanks for the reply,,,

that's what i would have done in the past,

the reason i ask is,,,,

i did scratch vocals and guitar,,,,just to get an idea...and used a mic that i wouldn't ordinarily use...

now that i've lifted the 81s to do guitar properly,,,i'm having trouble matching the sound......


it's at

can you guess what mic is on guitar here??

 

[Kevin Deschwazi]

If there's a lot of other stuff going on I'd try recording the acoustic guitar in mono.

My instinct would be SDC so SM81, the other condensors might be worth a try though.

 

[Steenamaroo]

yeah at times there's a lot happening,,like the chorus in the clip...

i might end up giving that a go!!! i know the rule of thumb is to spend time and to try everything,,,but i just thought i'd see...

thanks!

 

[Dogbreath]

just chiming in with a "+3" or whatever it is.

The 81's would be my first thoughts.
Either 1 at the 12th fret and 1 towards the bridge or maybe 12th fret and 1 over the shoulder technique. I'd probably mess with the 12th fret and bridge first.

My 2c..........

 

[Steenamaroo]

unanimous thus far...

thanks people.

 

[apl]

You could get yourself a pair of Naiants for Christmas.

 

[Steenamaroo]

i got myself a d112 and an sm7 for christmas

thanks tho.....easters not far away

 

[astoebe]

I echo that the 81's would be great. I would mess around with stereo too just to see if you like it.

 

[antichef]

SM81s are my favorite for stereo acoustic in a dense-ish mix

 

[cavedog101]

SM81's in a stereo pair has the biggest cutting ability in a dense mix. Mono SM81 somewhere between the soundhole and the 12th fret is good for a bed track. Your Rode below the bridge and the SM81 over the shoulder will produce a clear and very full sound, much like you hear when you are playing the guitar.

 

[tdukex]

Going against the consenses, I would try a single LD pointed right at the neck joint, about 12" out.

But what I'd really do is try several different configs, including the stereo 81's then see what sounds best in the mix. Since there is going to be a certain amount of low-end detail from the bass, I would guess you would not want a lot of it in the guit track, but you never know until you try it.

Record, mix, listen
Record, mix, listen
Record, mix, listen

I don't know of any other way to get the sound you want.

 

[gehauser]

I would probably use a single SM81 pointed straight down over left shoulder, about 1-2 ft above the top of the guitar.

 

[Steenamaroo]

ok, i used the 81s and got a great stereo sound,,,,so thanks everyone for that!


ordinarily i would have used them,,,but i test recorded with my yamaha guitar and the sound was awful,,which put me off....

i know its nowhere near as nice as a guitar,,,but the recording tests with it were terrible on sm81s?!?!

guess the 81s just don't like it! lol....


anyways,,,i'll be posting the album up sometime after christmas!

thanks again.