Ever watch a recording engineer set up a session? If you watch 5 engineers, you’ll see 5 different approaches to setting up microphones.
We have come to the obvious conclusion that there is no right or wrong way to mic an instrument – only different ways. Considerations are often made for the artist, the style of music, the musician, the instrument, the room, the producer, the engineer, etc. Whether you mic a snare from the top, or the bottom, or the inside, or a combination of all three – you can always get a variety of sounds.
When you take into consideration the placement of the mic, and the instrument, and the song, and the performance, and the room – all of these have an effect on the recorded sound. There are as many approaches to micing a grand piano as there are engineers. For the first time we take a long and detailed look at the relationship between the position of the mic, and the type of mic, the instrument and the way it is played.
Every engineer has his or her ‘secrets.’ We take a slow and deliberate approach to duplicate all of these variations and we listen closely to the differences. Maybe you want that ‘cutting’ sound, or maybe you want a softer ‘ensemble’ sound. We take a documented look at what the same mic sounds like in a variety of positions and environments. You may learn some new tips and tricks, and you may be surprised at what you find.
It is quite possible that you’ll say ‘I never thought of that.’ We all find new styles and methods, and you’ll certainly learn how to improve your micing technique. Instead of always being under the gun and out of time with no opportunity to experiment, we have focused exclusively on how to achieve a huge variety of sounds simply by using different mic placements. Depending on the music – you’ll be surprised at what you hear.