GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

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tytlblues
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GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

Post by tytlblues »

OK ladies and gentleman, and ALL 12bar's. I have GAS......I currently record into a MAC, into Garage Band, through a Tascam USB 144 MkII interface. Also some various pedals on my board. An 80's vintage tube screamer (always on with the Strat), Fulltone OCD, Cry baby wah. While this yields OK results, I am on the verge on buying a Shure SMG 57 mic, and trying the sound of mic-ing up my amps. I currently have a Fender Reissue Deluxe Reverb, and a Fender Reissue Champion 600. I am curious what kind of tones I can get. Unfortunately, due to neighbor constraints and such, it is not that often I get to crank up the volume, and to make matters worse, I tend to play and record late at night.

Any hoooooo, so I was wondering via an informal poll, what are the majority of you guys using to record and post? Straight into PC, or Mic'ed up amps?


tytl
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VikingBlues
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Re: GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

Post by VikingBlues »

tytlblues wrote:what are the majority of you guys using to record and post? Straight into PC, or Mic'ed up amps?
Hi tytl - both of these but more often straight into PC due to ...
tytlblues wrote:Unfortunately, due to neighbor constraints and such, it is not that often I get to crank up the volume, and to make matters worse, I tend to play and record late at night.
yes ... exactly that for me too ... living in a flat has it's disadvantages. It has to be said to that the ability just to plug my Tonelab into the PC interface and start recording is the eaier and quicker to set up option - which suits my lazy streak! :roll:
tytlblues wrote:I am on the verge on buying a Shure SMG 57 mic, and trying the sound of mic-ing up my amps. I currently have a Fender Reissue Deluxe Reverb, and a Fender Reissue Champion 600. I am curious what kind of tones I can get.
Of the two possibilities the recordings mic'd up to the amp should produce the better tonal results for you, though you will find there is a huge variation in tones caused by the mic placement - distance from the speaker and position relative to centre or edge of the speaker cone - even the angle of the mic can have an effect. Trying to recreate the tonal quality you are looking for so that what you hear on the recording is like what you hear with your ears when playing the amp is not 100% straightforward. :sad:

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.................................................

There is also the matter of what sort of sounds you are looking to record - if your amp has a limited range of options tonally then that is going to colour the tone of your recordings towards that particular amps basic sounds. For example if I record mic'd up it's the Vox AC4TV, which has a sound I like a lot, it's not versatile and it doesn't always have a tone / sound that suits the particular piece of music I want to record. If I plug my Vox Tonelab LE through the AC4TV amp I will always get 'that' Vox sound overlaying whatever amp modulations, etc, the Tonelab is set to play.

If you have a much more versatile amp and the ability to get the most from it (think HBL and his Fender CyberTwin SE - tasteful! :pray: ) you get the sonic benefit of being mic'd up plus the range of sounds which will with it's hardware modulation give more convincing sounds than pure software (in my opinion).

Good luck with coping with the GAS - there really is no cure I'm afraid. :big_smile:
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roswellj
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Re: GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

Post by roswellj »

It depends what kind of recording im doing.
At home - Shure SM 57 mic into Yamaha audiogram6 which goes to my mac and then I record with either Cubase AI 4 or Garageband depending on how much fiddling i want to do.
For acoustic at home I either use the SM 57 or a cheap condensor mic with phantom power, both give similar results.
on the run - I use garageband on my ipad, just sit it down nearby to the instrument or mic and it does a pretty decent job with the standard ipad mic, wouldn't use it for anything other than getting down ideas though.
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tytlblues
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Re: GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

Post by tytlblues »

Hey thanks for the info, I just got my first look at Garage Band on the Ipad. It actually is much better than I anticipated.
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oldskoolchop
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Re: GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

Post by oldskoolchop »

Hey I use garageband on a mac with a line 6 ux1, and i have the same mic. To me it depends, if just jamming and brainstorming I just use the line 6 catalogue which is pretty good, sometimes I want a real warm feel and I go with the mic, even then I use a little of both worlds and mix them in together. The mic will give better warm sounds for melodies and solo's but you have to try different angles and distances. Sure SM57 is not a specialty mic it is an all purpose mic, it is great for alot of things but not the best at any one thing. There is more control and it is easier to handle when just plugging into a computer, but a mic on a melody or solo can give it just enough warmth and special presence. Thats my 2 cents as an amateur, who does this for fun, and rarely lets anyone listen to what he has done.
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Blackhorse
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Re: GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

Post by Blackhorse »

FWIW I use a mix of both. I have a Blues Jr amp, which I can play at a reasonable volume in the evening or louder during the day. I can't really crank it, but I can get it loud enough to record, with pedals for distortion. I use a dynamic usb mike, which I'm not too happy with, but it does the job. I use the same mike for my acoustic. I was thinking of getting a better dynamic mike, like an SM57 or SM58, but I'm starting to think a condenser might be better. AT least it will be better for vocals and acoustic, and would be worth trying on my amp too.

Sometimes though it just seems like too much work, so I just plug in to a Behringer V-amp. The results range from ok to not very good imo.

I use Cool Edit Pro (an older version of Adobe Audition) for recording and mixing on a pc, and Fruity Loops for drums.


I have a problem with GAS - every time I save up some money for new gear, like a microphone, or an audio interface, I end up buying a new guitar instead. :icon_whoknows:
oldskoolchop
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Re: GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

Post by oldskoolchop »

what GAS anyway
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Blindboy
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Re: GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

Post by Blindboy »

oldskoolchop wrote:what GAS anyway
GAS=Gear Aquisition Syndrome... :thumbsup:
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12bar
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Re: GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

Post by 12bar »

Or Guitar acquisition syndrome :lol:

With XP my world was fine - Toneport and Gearbox, lots of predefined settings, all working well. :music2:
Now with Win7 I simply can't control the volume - it's too low, no matter what I do. Still hoping for a new driver update. :icon_whoknows:

Mic? Not for the next 10 years... :baby:
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HalfBlindLefty
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Re: GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

Post by HalfBlindLefty »

12bar wrote:Mic? Not for the next 10 years... :baby:
Make it GBS.... Gear Building Syndrome

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or

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Oh man, I would k*ll to get my hands on that BT :drool:
A long time ago, in the old forum : Registered: Mon, 27 Nov 2006. Wonder were the other old members all went....
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tytlblues
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Re: GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

Post by tytlblues »

Yeah, that's a cool rig alright. that BT does have potential doesn't?
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HalfBlindLefty
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Re: GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

Post by HalfBlindLefty »

:thumbsup: :pray: :drool: :drool: :drool: :drool: :drool: :drool: :drool: :drool: :phew:
A long time ago, in the old forum : Registered: Mon, 27 Nov 2006. Wonder were the other old members all went....
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ratfinkdan
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Re: GAS never will Stop!........Mic'ed amps Vs. Computer

Post by ratfinkdan »

Sometimes mic an amp, sometimes diect through a modeler. Although I record on a boss br1600 not a computer. I generally use either a super champ xd or a champion 6oo, you really don't need lots of volume from the amp, also put the amp in a closet and mic it up or in a bedroom and close the door. The champion isn't a really loud amp to begin with so putting it in a closet or somewhere really helps to keep the volume down. A sm57 is a great mic to start with ( used on lots of classic recordings) , different mic's sound different, so as time and money is available add another mic or two, I have heard good things with ribbion mics for recording guitars also.
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