Whos recorded sax?

E

emergencyexit

New member
Hey guys,
A funk band has just asked me to record them, and they happen to have a sax player. I've never recorded sax before so I was wondering what were the best techniques for it, or if anyone out there has ever done it and has some advice. Thanks guys.

Ben
 
Depends on your mic i guess and your situation. When i record sax everything is done live so my mic positioning has to be a little different.

last time i did sax for a live jazz group i used a AKG C414 is hypercardiod pattern and put a few inches above the bell but facing the keys. This made the direct blasts off axis and still gave a bit of the airy ness from the body of the sax. It also kept pretty solid isolation from the rest of the stuff in the room.

I think in general that could work in any situation but you might want to use a cardiod instead to pick up a little more of the natural sound of the sax. Worked pretty good though i think.

Danny
 
I usually just use the video camera placed on top of the dresser...oh, you said sax. :o
 
Every article I've read in EQ mag and others have said to use an LDC pointed between the two hands, not at the bell. The sound from a sax comes mostly from the tone holes, where the keys are. If I can find an article, I'll post a link.
 
A good ribbon mic is very nice for saxophone. The Sennheiser MD421 or MD441 are generally-accepted dynamics for sax.

As others have said, you want to avoid getting too much of the bell. Not too close!
 
Use the 57...or rent a Sennheiser 421 or 441 for ten bucks.

Mount whatever mic you use (not an omni) on a stand higher then the sax bell and pointed downwards toward the instrument, about a foot or two out from the instrument. Adjust the angle of the mic up and down to find the right combo of bass response and key clack that you're looking for.

Also, with that setup your have to have a sax player that can work in the studio and dowsn't swing his schwing all over the place like Earth Wind and Fire on meth. If he's not used to the studio enviroment, you'll have to explain to him that if he wants to sound good on CD, he's got to work with the mic. :)

G.
 
SouthSIDE Glen said:
Also, with that setup your have to have a sax player that can work in the studio and dowsn't swing his schwing all over the place like Earth Wind and Fire on meth. If he's not used to the studio enviroment, you'll have to explain to him that if he wants to sound good on CD, he's got to work with the mic. :)
Click to expand...

Yea, that's vital to horn players in general, we tend to move with the music. I notice this best when I'm playing funk. I remember when I was playing for a large audience the first time and the solost got his/her own mic, I screwed up my rhythm really bad because I was concentrating on staying on top of the mic. So the lesson of the story is: make sure he can play standing still!
 
I have done some nice sax recordings with a 57 in a big room. I actually dislike the sax recorded in a tight space, but that is my personal prefrence.
 
If you can afford to spend $99 get a Marshall Electronics MXL V67g. I recorded some great sax tracks with one.
 
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