help w/acoustic-electric guitar recording
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Posted on Nov 23, 2010 04:44 am
toni
Member Since: May 06, 2010
This forum has helped me a lot. I'm a novice at recording/mixing, though come a long LONG way.
I use an Apple and just Garageband for now, I bought a Taylor acoustic/electric (210e) when all I've ever had is an old acoustic and never plugged in before. It came with no cables, no instructions. I can't get a good sound with my "starter" mic. It sounds dull and muted, yet when I record the regular piano with just this mic, it sounds not too bad. I want to plug in to my laptop and see what I get. Though from the VOLUMES of info I've read say that mic is better for acoustic. Please direct me as to what I should buy to help the sound. Which sound card? Do type of cables matter?
And any tips/tricks or the trade I can do as a performer and recorder to make a better guitar sound. I play very folksy, picking singer/songwriter type material.
Thanks!!
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cruxTypo SzarMember
Since: Jul 04, 2002
Nov 23, 2010 10:29 am definitely getting a sound card will help a ton, which one will depend, but if ur just doing the small home thing any single or dual channel USB or firewire card will do just fine
ppl will say the Line 6 toneports, thats a good starting point, relatively cheap with tons of features. Focusrite r my fave, then there r m-audio and a slew of others.
Technology has come along way and plugging a guitar like ur taylor straight into the soundcard will not sound. If u get a two channel soundcard, u can mic it and also line it in at the same time and mix the two sounds to find wat u want.
those r all starting points, more questions will definitely pop up when u start getting into the thick of it
toniMember
Since: May 06, 2010
Nov 24, 2010 11:39 am Thank you very much. A couple questions. What did you mean my Taylor "wouldn't sound"? "Sound good? Sound bad? :)
I looked at your suggestions. Is the Line 6 your talking about several hundred bucks? Focusrite - which one? I've decided to go firewire since my USB2 on my MacBook is said to be good without interface (?)
I do want a multi channel device because I'm planning on situations with multiple input needs. I don't want to under-buy and regret it. But I have to keep the price down to about $200 at the most.
Since I posted, I've tried recording with the mic in different ways and it's clear I had the mic too close to the guitar at the beginning.
I don't use a pick and I wonder if that is contributing to the dullness. I'm never going to use picks so will the interface help brighten the strings? Thanks again!
BeerHunterwww.TheLondonProject.caMember
Since: Feb 07, 2005
Nov 24, 2010 02:58 pm Toni, I think crux was mentioning that your Taylor will not sound as good going DI only as it would as a blend of DI and mic'ing.
The brightness that you are looking for can be acheived by mic placement. Experiment a bit. Try pointing a mic at th 12th fret pointing slightly up the neck. Try to mininmize using EQ and try to get a natural brightness instead. Also, new strings might help.
