mic'n the cab

[JacksonsMen]

ok, this isnt so much for recording, but more for playing in general, im looking to mic my 4x10 so that i dont have to push it so hard, but i was looking at microphones and came across a condenser mic for a sweet deal, but i was wondering if this would be a good choice.

TIA guys
-evan

 

[KeithBMI]

I've heard that condensers are for vocals and acoustic stuff, and will overload when mic'ing a cab. I'd go with a dynamic mic.

 

[JacksonsMen]

hmm, i dunno why i thought condeser mics would work, i know ive seen rigs with shockmounted (what i thought were conderer) mics but i guess not.....


any suggestions on which mic to go for? just the plain ol SM57 or something different?

 

[Godhead'sLament]

for live use a dynamic mic is highly recomended, a condenser will pick up too mush surrounding sounds.. for recording you could experiment with a condenser, it will give a clearer sound, might be too clear..

 

[bass-shy]

I've used an SM57 for the last seven years. Good mic, good results.

 

[Mike Caldwell]

Hello
From a live sound guys point of view I have good luck with the Audix D4 and the Sennheiser 421. The Audix D6 would work as well. I will always take a direct feed with the mic to get a blend of the two and will send only the direct feed into the monitor mix. It's worth experimenting with the phase/polarity between the direct feed and the mic.


Mike Caldwell

 

[bass-shy]

Yeah. Experimentation is the key. If you find a method that really blows your mind, be sure to let us know. Good luck.

 

[steve_man]

might want to try this link...

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/Oct01/articles/bassrecording.asp

 

[jeffroloc]

Just the other day I decided to try my AKG 991 inst. condenser. It actually gave a really nice tone for such a cheap mic. The frequency response is 30-20k. The only gripe was my own mistake accentuating too much sub and midbass frequency but the highs were killer!

 

[Eric Cameron]

Well, it all really depends. If you are close micing, you can use pretty much anythign except a ribbon mic. A condenser isn't going to pick up monitor signal if it's only 2 inches away from the speaker.

If you want to go dynamic, there are some good options for you:

Audix D4. Don't use the D6, it's meant for kick drums, so it has no top end. You end up sounding really muddy.
Shure SM57
Sennheiser MD421

Condensers that sound really good with bass are few and far between, but here are a few that I like:

AKG 414 (if you wanna spend $900)
Shure KSM87
Sennheiser MD 409

I'm sure there are others, but I have only used these ones myself, and thenin a recording studio, not live. Still, if they sound good in the studio, they're probably good live.

Rock on
Eric

 

[sjleland]

In my bands recording studio we mic the cabs with SM58s instead of using the inputs on the multi-track recorder, then we set levels with the recorder. It sounds good enough for us but if you'd like a more professional sound I'd probably suggest a different mic.

 

[avast_bass]

of course you can use a condensor to mic a cab! As mentioned, It's not a great idea for live use, but recording it's fine. They can handle higher SPL's than you'd expect. I use an AT4033 on the cab sometimes and it gives a good smooth poppy tone, but doesnt give you much bass. Try different mic's!

Dynamic wise I am always friends with beta 52's, Shure SM7's (NOT 57's) and MD421's

 

[cosmicevan]

i've had good luck using a blue baby bottle on my cab in isolation for recording.

another great dynamic worth looking into is they Beyer M88