Re: OT: Recommendations for Microphone and Archtop or Acoustic Guitar

["Kris Hartung" <khartung@q.com>]

Good idea, Bill.

In the context of large diaphram, I may consider the Rode:

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/NT2A/ 

I have used Rode before, and I really like them...very quite.

This one is Omni, Cardioid & Figure 8, which provides a lot of options.

Kris





----- Original Message ----- 



> krispen wrote:
> 
>> "What I am trying to consider in this context is the jazz archtop  
>> guitar.  It is quite a different animal than the acoustic guitar.  
>> For one, it projects at only about half of the volume of an  
>> acoustic, because of the volume in the body, that it typically only  
>> has f-holes, and that it is often strung with flat wound strings. In  
>> that case, it tends to sound thinner than an acoustic when micing  
>> it, which is what you don't want in a jazz guitar. So I really need  
>> a mic that can pick up the subltles of the guitar, but probably has  
>> a good proximity effect when it move the mic closer to the guitar.   
>> Of course, I'll be blending the tone with the mag pickup through an  
>> amp."
> 
>  I would definitely go with a large  diaphragm mic for arch top,  as  
> it will achieve a broader spectrum sound  than a pencil condenser mic,  
> which is great for detail and high end definition, but won't bring out  
> the body and fullness of an arch top. I actually prefer the sound of  
> one large mic on the lower bout,  and one small condenser mic pointed  
> toward the fingerboard, rather than a stereo xy pattern pair of pencil  
> condensers, as I like the extra bottom end of the big mic. I use an AT  
> 4050 and sometimes set it to a figure 8 pattern if the room ambience  
> is worth capturing. As Rick elaborated the 4033 is the same mic but  
> with one element rather than two. I've been finding I really like  
> using a large diaphragm mic on small tube amps as well, way better  
> than the tried and true SM-57, as it really makes small amps sound  
> huge. The truth is, there are a ton of affordable good sounding mics  
> coming out of China right now, not just SE but MXL/ Marshall makes  
> some decent dirt cheap mics. Will they have the longevity of an AKG or  
> Neumann Mic? probably not, but if the  sound is good who cares?  
> Another thing you might consider if noise and bleed are an issue is  
> getting a good speaker simulator that can be  hooked up between your  
> amp and its speaker. I use the bluestone pro made by emerson williams  
> which is an excellent sounding compact  alternative to the pricier and  
> industry standard Palmer speaker emulator. Right now I'm recording  
> directly using a Ethos preamp, a Vox ac 10 and a princeton reverb  
> (both using bluestones), and even with ought adding mics, which I also  
> do,  I can get a very rich dimensional sound going direct. I but the  
> Ethos at the center of the mix and spread the amps wide. I tell ya its  
> like Budda...
>  Bill
>