Recording a Piano-- Starting at Square One.
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Posted on Dec 22, 2006 10:34 pm
Patrick Connolly
Member Since: Dec 22, 2006
Ok, so no kidding, I have the base minimum. A Kohler & Campbell baby grand piano (short...maybe 5'2"? I can't remember exactly) and a laptop. I do have an offbrand audio editing software (at least, I think its offbrand..."Record Producer"?), and it's actually pretty useful; seems to do all the things I might need, such as noise reduction, reverb and other effects, etc. Let's pretend I have a $200 dollar budget. What might be the best way for me to record my piano? I'm not looking for an overly punchy sound, but I want it to be full. Mostly the type of sound for smooth jazz. I'm looking for recommendations on mics (specific brands or general types), mic placement, how the lid should be set up, and ANYTHING else you might have to offer. I would love to record in stereo, if that's possible under my budget. Don't be afraid to bring out the lingo on me-- I know all the words, all I'm lacking is experience!
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pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
Dec 23, 2006 12:45 am at the risk of cheesin off our host, but in the interest of better recording for all (and free exchange of knowledge), i'd suggest a trip over to audiominds.com. There's a guy over there - Mac - that's done lots of posts regarding recording pianos. I'm thinking he's done lots of it in his days, and seems pretty free with good info.
short of that, you're really facing an uphill battle for a full piano sound. Having a good sounding piano is most of the battle, and i'm assuming it's a good sounding one.
Now, you'll need mics, probably two, to get the whole soundboard in an even manner, but I guess one will do if you set it up right.
You'll also need 1 or 2 preamps to go with this. Now this can be done with a small mixer, or a standalone preamp. Both can be had for around 50$ or so. Not the best quality, mind, but it'll get the job done.
Then you'll be putting this sound into your soundcard. If you don't have a line in on your laptop, then you may need to expand your needs a little. Mine only has mic input, and I wouldn't use that for anything but internet chatting. Audio is certainly out.
My Humble Opinion:
To stay under 200$, providing your laptop has a line in jack (i'm pretty sure it would be stereo),
I'd get a small behringer mixer, for it's preamps. Behry has a xenyx 802 mixer, with 2 xlr inputs with phantom power - 50$.
Then cables: 30 - 40$
Mics: This is a tough one. Samson has their C02 set, which is a matched pair ( i think) for 120$. Noize2u has used them, and has reviewed them fairly well, so I'd say that's a pretty good bet. From what I've heard, I'd say a pair of SDC like the C02 is the way to go, BUT a large diaphragm condensor might be more the way to go. Using one, and let the lid direct some of the sound to the mic.
I guess experienced posters can help with that one, as I've not done any recording like that. Plus I have a RODE NT5 pair, and that would be my choice.
Once you've made a decision, work those mics around until you find the sweet spot.
Spending time on placement really pays off.
Hope that helps some, wish I could be of more assistance.
Dec 23, 2006 08:14 am Considering the budget I'd suggest hockshops or used gear places and try to find 2 or 3 matched condensers if possible. Placing them a couple feet apart equally spread across the strings of the piano will help give a balanced sound across the board since the strings will be close to one of the mics and the farther mics will still pick up ambiance and depth in the sound. I have only miked pianos a couple of times but have always been please by using 2 or 3 mics spread across the string rack.
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Dec 23, 2006 09:36 pm Yep, with the budget suggested looking at somewhere such as Music Go Round or the like for used gear would be the best.
As indeed for a good piano sound I sure do suggest at least 2 small diaphragm condenser mic's to capture the full sound. I have also done a stereo capture using a combo of 1 large diaphragm and 1 small diaphragm condenser. But my best grand and baby grand capture has been using 2 small for the stereo image and 1 large centered for capturing the wider picture of tone.
So that is minimum miccing and you would need at the very least a 2 channel audio interface with the pre amps built in. Which in reality could be replaced with a low end 2 channel sound card and a small low end mixer with the pre amps built in.
Dec 23, 2006 10:08 pm pjk-- You mentioned that if I don't have a line in (which I don't), I will have to expand my needs. What are my options? Remember-- we're trying to stay relatively inexpensive here...
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
Dec 23, 2006 10:54 pm well, to get any decent recording, you'll want to forget using the mic input on your laptop. You'll need to expand to either 1: external sound card, or 2: cardbus device.
Example of the external device, includes the Maudio mobile pre, or fastrack (and others), tascam us122 or 144, edirol ua101 and fa101 (i think that's right), plus the Line6 UX1 and 2, plus others.
Example of carbus devices, like the emu1616, and the echo indigo. EMU 1616 (and 1616m) are hi-$$$, so that'd be out. Indigo IO can be had on ebay for 149, i just saw.
The external devices can connect via USB or Firewire. You'd want a 2 channel device, so you can input 2 mics at a time, for good stereo field, but a 1 channel device could work.
I'd really think that this endeavor will easily crest the 200$ mark, for any decent kind of recordings. Postings above mention the used market, and that may well be a plausible route, provided you get useable decent stuff.
