Any ideas on how to achieve the guitar tone...
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Posted on Mar 02, 2008 10:55 pm
CynicEidolon
I tune down down...
Member Since: Jun 11, 2007
For those of you familiar with the song Jambi by Tool, that's what I am talking about. The guitar tone in that is HUGE! Any techniques, plug-ins, mics, etc... that you guys have that would help get something of this stature. Or do you think it's simply because of the high end stuff that they have used? IE. Immaculate pre's and converters?
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pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
Mar 02, 2008 11:13 pm not knowing the song (though I do know tool a bit), I've heard the holy grail of guitar recording is good ribbon mics. I bet a good pre wouldn't hurt either.
Course, this is assuming that your tone is great to begin with. It really is, garbage in, garbage out. It can't be fixed in the mix. Get your tone luscious to begin with, then don't subtract =).
Layering your recorded tracks can really add depth, and fullness.
Mar 02, 2008 11:43 pm Well, to add to that? Have you used a ribbon mic and what's a GOOD one that's not a house payment? :)
Mar 03, 2008 01:12 am Just looked it up, and Joe Barresi was engineer! Hes the man. Pinkerton and Lullabies To Paralyze rule.
I'm not sure about his engineering on tool, but I have an article from SOS about QOTSA.
[quote]"I have 250 guitar pedals, probably close to 45 guitars, 75
guitar amps (35 combos and 40 heads), and countless pieces of outboard gear.
Altogether enough to fill a garage." [/quote]
[quote]"The two microphones I use most for recording electric guitars are the Shure SM57 and
the Sennheiser MD421, often both, close up, placed at the edge of the speaker, where the
speaker centre meets the cone, or, if I'm looking for a more bright sound, dead centre.
When I want more low end, I may have an AKG 414 on there, and when I'm after a little
more personality, a Neumann 87, backed up a foot, or a ribbon mic — like the Royer 122,
or an RCA BK5 or 77. I'll often take the microphones through some Neve 1272 preamps
into the desk, and then via an API 550 or Quad Eight EQ to the multitrack."[/quote]
Quote:
In choosing the amplifiers and speakers, it's important to remember that larger speakers give a more compact, tighter sound. A tiny amp turned all the way up will give a more blown-out sound. This volume war obviously also applies to bass amps and cabinets.
I'll see what else I can find....
Mar 03, 2008 01:15 am Re: Ribbon Mics, the Royer 122 is supposed to be the modern king. Shes a pretty penny though, and I've used one a couple of times and wasn't overly impressed.... But all the 'pro's' seem to love em', so I must be doing something wrong :-).
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
Mar 03, 2008 11:49 am ha, CS, you made me lol
Sorry cynic, i haven't use one. Alas, i feel that if I spend low-$$$ for one, i'm just wasting my time. A royer would probably be my first choice, but whew, 4 digit prices aren't in my future for mics.
Course, then I'd need a 500+$ preamp to go with it =/.
ahh, what fun.
JDODBrother Number OneMember
Since: Jan 22, 2008
Mar 03, 2008 12:02 pm I'm a big fan of tool, my favorite tone is from the middle 8 of stinkfist the "I'll keep digging" bit.
I've just about achived that in GearBox, took me ages though, I started off with the Thick and Juicy preset, removed the flanging and delay, then played with the micing and reverb, although I may have also altered the distortion slightly.
I realise that this will be of little use to you if you don't use gearbox or for that matter dont care for teh tone in the middle 8 of stinkfist. Sorry
JDODBrother Number OneMember
Since: Jan 22, 2008
Mar 03, 2008 12:15 pm I do like the tone from Jambi actually, I just looked up which one it is, I dont know the name of many of the songs, I might have a go at it myself.
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Mar 07, 2008 07:20 pm I use the Karma Audio K6 ribbon mic and love it. You can see it here, and its not a house payment by any stretch of the imagination.
www.karmaaudio.com
Mar 08, 2008 11:27 am Thanks guys! I'm going to look into getting a ribbon mic then. And that Karma looks pretty good. What do you like about it Noize?
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Mar 09, 2008 09:36 pm It has a very old school sound to it. Extremely heavy and well built, which is a plus around here.
I love it for vocals and acoustic instruments, very different tone to it in a good way. It is also a great ambiance mic. It just seems to have a tonal quality that reminds me of some of the old school mic's I grew up using. A very clear and stout mic as well. Works great on both male and female vocalists.
I don't recomend it for close miccing percussive or very loud signals though I did use it on some light hand percussion and it was just fine. It is still a delicate mic in the sense of the old school ribbons.
It is a much larger diaphragm then say the Royer 120 series and is much fuller though that gives it a lower max spl rating which is not bad when used properly.
Just an overall good warm tone.
