Sounds good "live" but hard (for me) to get a good sound when mic'ed.
Just a stupid short take using the strat -> amp (1x12) -> sm57. Reverb and a bit of stereo enhancer on the final mix.
Whaat do you think ? (it sound a bit boxy to my ears..)
Thanks a lot for your patience ! ;)
I like it, sounds good to me.
Does it sound like your amp to you?
I always find that if I stick my ear right where I put the mic, about an inch away from the speaker, yeah it sounds like what's there, but man does that sound suck!
The sound of your amp is something you hear from maybe 5' above it and 6 feet away, if you're around 6' tall. Don't ask me to do that in metric units. The sound of the amp 1" from the speaker is generally a like what comes out of the SM57 that's stuck right up on the speaker. If you want a sound more like what you hear from where you are, put the mic there! I realize this doesn't work with an SM57... Chinese condensers are very cheap nowadays, grab one, stick it a couple feet out, low to the ground, put it in omni if you can, and enjoy. Also, don't be afraid to stray from the SM57...
Thanks Charger !
About mics,wich one (cheap please ;) ) you would suggest ?
At thomann.de there're a lot of condenser mics but I don't know anything about them. What specs shuld I consider ? It seems that they're all phantom powered, is it true ? Some of those mics are USB, so no phantom but another A/D - D/A conversion would be added..
Sorry for all these questions!
Ciao!
Marco
P.S: This amp make me feel so young... It's a Peavey Bandit ! :)
I can't really recommend anything particular, though I have an M-Audio Solaris--great mic-- that M-Audio Nova mic is the little brother of it. I go for cheap. China makes most of the mics out there anyway. Yes, you need phantom power for most condensers. No, you probably don't want a USB mic. If I had my choice I'd get something with switchable polar patterns because omni is very useful, especially if you can play the amp at reasonable volume in a room with a decent sound. But cardioid works fine.
Thanks again Charger.
I've seen some condenser mic that is really cheap. I'll try one ASAP !
Ciao!
Marco
Remember charger's rule of cheap gear.
The first $100 gets you 93% of the way there. The next $5000 covers the other 7%. If you want a good sound, an under -$100 mic will give it. You could easily pay $600 and get a little further there (94%?). Or you can pay $2000 and get to 97%.
The other part of the rule, though, is that 98% of people will never hear the difference. ;)
:)
I've found the M-Audio Nova @ 60 Euro, so I think I'll go for it; for that price (and for what I play) I can't go wrong.
Thanks again !
Marco
I just saw this - Marco it sounds good, although I agree it's a bit boxy. Did you have the 57 off axis? They are notoriously boxy that way.
It does sound it bit boxy and a bit dark to my ears too. I agree with charger on the distance micing thing, however it's also worth trying micing the speaker dead centre on the cone with the sm57 to get the brightness (roll of the bass completely) and then a condenser mic a few feet back. Get most of your sound from the condenser but mix in a tiny amount of the sm57 to get the bite. I've been dicking around with lots of variations like this lately and you can get some very satisfying results, I just need to actually record some music now instead of constant testing :)
Thanks for listening guys!
I've spent a lot of time playing the same riff with different mic positions and teaking the amp knobs so I think it's because of ear fatigue and when I was thinking the sound was not too bad, it was too late.
Anyway if after years of playing I'm still not able to get a decent sound, it's probably time to stop with this hobby and start a new one.... What do you thing about gardening ? :)
Lwb — Mar 18, 2012Thanks for listening guys!
I've spent a lot of time playing the same riff with different mic positions and teaking the amp knobs so I think it's because of ear fatigue and when I was thinking the sound was not too bad, it was too late.
Anyway if after years of playing I'm still not able to get a decent sound, it's probably time to stop with this hobby and start a new one.... What do you thing about gardening ? :)
I suffer from this too and the problem is listening too much to the sound and testing testing testing instead of just getting on with it and writing music and playing. Your tones are generally very good so I wouldn't worry about it, just play :) By the way, it depends on which guitar you use for gardening....my les paul is a good shape for a shovel substitute, it works well but I just can't get it to sound like a real shovel when digging....it never ends ;D
Lwb — Mar 18, 2012Thanks for listening guys!
I've spent a lot of time playing the same riff with different mic positions and teaking the amp knobs so I think it's because of ear fatigue and when I was thinking the sound was not too bad, it was too late.
Anyway if after years of playing I'm still not able to get a decent sound, it's probably time to stop with this hobby and start a new one.... What do you thing about gardening ? :)
Gardening can be very rewarding.
However, your guitar tones are pretty frigging epic and your playing is stellar, so I'd stick with guitar as your primary hobby.
Thanks a lot, Charger. :)
My beloved red VOX is back home !!!!!!!
It was not sold yet, so I've returned the Peavey to the shop ( + a V30 I've used to replace the stock speaker)
The AC15 is probably not the best sounding amp in the world but I feel at home when I play it !
Ciao!
Marco