Recording: mic alone, pickup alone, or a blend?

dobro Posted 2011-10-02 3:30 PM (#348388) Subject: Recording: mic alone, pickup alone, or a blend? Joined: January 2006 Posts: 2120 Location: Chicago What's your experience with capturing the best Ovation sound? Pure acoustic with microphones alone (no pickup)? Do you go direct into the recorder/board (no mics at all), or does the magic happen with a blend of the two? elginacres Posted 2011-10-02 3:51 PM (#348389 - in reply to #348388) Subject: Re: Recording: mic alone, pickup alone, or a blend? Joined: July 2005 Posts: 1609 Location: Colorado Start with a great and quiet room....Use great mics - a great pre-amp - a great recorder....oh... a great player is the most important......plug in too.....record to separate channels.... listen carefully for the fairy dust......and enjoy....mix to suit.... publish to itunes...sell. Fridave Posted 2011-10-02 3:58 PM (#348390 - in reply to #348388) Subject: Re: Recording: mic alone, pickup alone, or a blend? Joined: February 2008 Posts: 247 Location: Delaware I use both, recording digitally, then in the mixdown try different combinations of Mic heavy, pickup heavy, Mic only, pickup only. See what sounds best to you. Also try messing with the left/right balance of mic/pickup combinations. See what sounds best to you. Sometimes "the magic" comes from just playing around, though I never have much luck finding "it". alpep Posted 2011-10-02 3:59 PM (#348391 - in reply to #348388) Subject: Re: Recording: mic alone, pickup alone, or a blend? Joined: December 2001 Posts: 10583 Location: NJ plug the low z output of the guitar into a board use a neumann km 84 pointed at the epaulets blend the 2 kitmann Posted 2011-10-02 5:04 PM (#348392 - in reply to #348388) Subject: Re: Recording: mic alone, pickup alone, or a blend? Joined: April 2010 Posts: 1227 Location: Connersville, Indiana For me it depends on the sound I'm looking for, for a specific song I have written. Some times I'm plugged into the board, other times, the guitar is just mic-ed, and I have recorded with both at the same time, and then adjust in the mix. I have also mic-ed the amp, for a specific sound I'm trying to obtain. I guess mostly because what I write and record is eclectic, so I'm always searching for the right sound for that song. I have recorded with one mic on the guitar and plugged into the board, and I have recorded, plugged into the boar, two mic's on the guitar and two mic's above my head to pick up ambient sound. Then fine tune in the mix. But thats just me. :) kitmann Posted 2011-10-02 5:15 PM (#348393 - in reply to #348388) Subject: Re: Recording: mic alone, pickup alone, or a blend? Joined: April 2010 Posts: 1227 Location: Connersville, Indiana I forgot, on my 12 strings I use a mic on the 12th fret pointed toward the sound holes and plugged in to the board, then mix the two and move to one side of the track about 60% or so. Damon67 Posted 2011-10-03 1:01 PM (#348394 - in reply to #348388) Subject: Re: Recording: mic alone, pickup alone, or a blend? Joined: December 2006 Posts: 6996 Location: Jet City a mix of the 2 has worked for me quite well. use the best mic you can, for me it's been a Rode NT2 (can't afford a neumann)