User Manual

23
pseudo stereo by having one mic on the body and one aimed
somewhere along the neck, the stereo image will tend to shift
if the player moves around, even slightly. For pop work, a mono
recording with articial stereo ambience added later may be a
more appropriate option. Stereo recording is more useful when
miking from a greater distance to capture both the sound of
the instrument and the contribution of the room acoustics - for
example when recording a classical guitar recital in a hall.
In that situation the mic distance needs to be adjusted until the
right balance of direct sound and room ambience is achieved.
Starlight Options
If the guitar needs more ‘zing’, try the Modern voicing whereas if
it sounds a little lightweight, the Hybrid setting may produce
a better result. Once you nd the best mic position, make a note
of where the laser spot is visible and also measure the mic-to-
guitar distance. Better still, take a photo on your phone as that
will show the light spot and you can include the mic-to-instru-
ment distance in the photo le name.
Electric Guitar
There are many ways to record the electric guitar but the classic
approach is to use a cardioid pattern microphone fairly close
to the amplier’s speaker grille. Some engineers like the mic
to be almost touching the grille while others may back it o by
150mm or more so make a few test recordings and see what
sounds right to you. If there’s too much signal level, use the pad
switch to attenuate the microphone output. The tonality will
also be aected by whether the mic is aimed at the centre of the
speaker or towards the edges, so again experimentation is the
key. Also be aware that when using cardioid and gure-of-eight
pattern mics, the tonality will be aected by mic distance where
closer placement will tend to emphasise the low end more
because of the proximity eect. Choosing the right electric
guitar mic is more about character than technical spec so try
whatever mics you have to hand to see what produces the most
pleasing result. If you nd that close miking with one of your
dynamic models sounds encouraging, try combining that with
one of your Aston mics placed between one and three metres
from the amplier. This will add a little more ‘space’ around the
sound while adjusting the distance will also change the timbre
of the recorded sound when the two mic signals are mixed.
Microphone
Guitar
Amplifier
Spirit
-10dB
0dB