Will I damage my mic?

[vomortis]

Hi - I'm intending to record electric guitar, using the following chain -

Guitar - jcm900 amp - MXL 990 condenser mic - audio buddy - Audigy 2 platinum soundcard

The point is, am I using the right mic for the job? Will I damage the condenser mic if I use it to mic up the amp (which will be played very loud in order to get the right tone)?

The MXL 990 is the only mic I have at the mo, but it is possible for me to borrow a sm58 from the church I go to, but it would be impractical to borrow it every time I want to record, so I'm wondering if the condenser mic will be better/worse.

Thanks

 

[Tnglwd_Stu]

If you can, borrow that 58 - put that as a close mic to the amp and position the 990 further away. So you have a close mic and a more ambient mic - then experiment with positioning for the best sound.

Stu

 

[vomortis]

Thanks, I might try that (I'm not sure how to record two mic's at once using my soundcard, I'll have a look tonight).

If I chose to only use the 990, would it damage the mic (or create unwanted distortion) if I put it close up to the amp (1 ft - 2 ft)?

 

[Tnglwd_Stu]

I have a couple of MXL 990 as as their diapragms are pretty small - you have to put a serious amount of sound into them to get distortion or clipping - but they don't have a 'pad' so be careful. Start with it further away and gradually move it forward towards the amp.

I use my MXL990's a overheads on a drumkit sometimes, they seem to be able to handle that alright - although I usually have the gain turned very very low on the mixer.

Experiment - move the slowly foward, as soon as you hear anything untoward in the signal stop and move it back slightly. I take it we're going foe a decent sound here, as oppose to proximity of mic to amp

Stu

 

[Track Rat]

I like condensors on cabs but I've never used your particular mic. I took a look at its spec sheet and I see it'll take 130 dB so you should be able to put it in front of an amp. I wouldn't have the amp turned up to too rude of a level though. You CAN stretch the diaphram. I usually set a 4033 back about 12" and angle it off axis a bit.

 

[DJL]

vomortis,
No that won't damage the MXL990. The Marshall MXL990 can work good on guitar amps, give it a try. The Sennheiser MD421 is one of my favorite mic's for miking up many guitar amps.

 

[Modus]

Great Scott!

Remember that scene in Back to the Future when Marty hooks up his guitar to the huge speakers? Well you might damage your mic if you do what Marty did but otherwise you wont damage the mic.