Recording - October 2013 - 40

Twenty Questions

On Mics
and Miking:

I always put at least one mic on the midrange
hammers to guarantee some attack and presence.
The second mic can go farther down the soundboard, away from the hammers for more body
and warmth, or closer to the hammers for more
attack in the sound. Six inches from the soundboard, being cautious of the lid; in a good room,
open it all the way up or take it off entirely to eliminate reflections off the lid to the back of the mic.
16. I’m going to be miking a brass section for
the first time, and may have to get good
sounds from trumpets, a trombone, and an
alto sax. But I’ve heard that just sticking a mic
in the bell doesn’t always give the best sound.
So where do you mic these instruments?

Q&A 15: Cardioid mics over the hammers of a grand piano.
you a lot of different sounds, as will doubling up with another mic,
like a condenser mic further back (keeping phase issues in mind).
12. Why do some engineers put two different mics on the kick
or snare drum? What are they listening for... so I know what I
should be listening for?
Q&A 18: Two mics in an XY (coincident) array.
Drums have a lot of different sounds coming from them. Many people use a condenser mic and a dynamic mic on the same drum. Commonly you’d
Letting the instrument breathe is generally a
have a dynamic mic inside the hole in the kick drum head, in the center of the drum, good thing; rather than a clip-on mic on the bell,
plus a condenser or boundary mic resting on a pillow inside the shell. The former which tends to sound very direct and present, I
gives you boom and warmth, the latter gives you beater snap and attack; you can prefer to get a little distance. On a brass instrublend them later to taste.
ment, the bell is generally a safe target, but on a
On a snare, the bottom mic gives you snare sound and ringing, the top mic saxophone, a lot of the sound comes from the
gives you snap and attack; remember to flip the phase of the bottom mic vs. the soundholes where the left hand is, and miking the
top, since the drum is moving toward one mic while moving away from the other, instrument above the bell and pointed at the left
putting them out of phase. For brushwork in jazz, a condenser mic might be a hand will give you the most balanced and naturbetter choice than a second dynamic.
al sound. On a large sax like a baritone, you
might consider two mics since the instrument’s
13. I’m recording a group of backing vocalists. One mic per singer, or all gathsound comes from two very different places.
ered around a single mic (or a stereo pair)? What should govern my choice?
How well the group can blend! If they can blend very well, you can get away with 17. I have to get a nice blended sound for a
one omni mic in a good room. The safer way is to have them stand in a circle and use small group of string players, and I have
individual cardioid mics with their nulls toward the center of the circle, rejecting sound enough mics to mike each one individually if I
from other singers. Another good technique for a small group is Mid/Side, which I want. Is that the best choice, or would I be better off miking them as a group at a distance?
think we’ll get to in a moment.
For chamber groups and string instruments in
14. Some engineers like to mike toms individually, others leave toms to be
a good room, an ensemble room mic is always
picked up by overheads. What governs the choice?
your best choice; they can sound pretty harsh
Track count, musical style, how much control you want over the mix, and phase when close-miked. I lean toward capturing the
issues/room sound. In a really good room, if the style of music doesn’t require big ensemble as a group, and then spot-miking
thunderous toms but rather a more natural sound, you can get away with not mik- weaker or solo instruments as needed.
ing the toms as long as you do your homework on your overheads. But the safer
choice, when possible, is to mike them and end up not needing them rather than 18. There are so many different ways to
record in stereo: spaced mics, coincident
end up wishing you’d miked them!
(XY), near-coincident (ORTF), Blumlein... Why
15. I’m going to be miking a grand piano for the first time. What would be a good would I pick one over another?
choice for a mic and its placement? Is a stereo setup vital or just a nice option?
Personal preference and the amount of stereo
It depends on the musical genre. In classical, I would consider miking the whole image. The XY or near-coincident is generally a
instrument in stereo, at a distance, my primary choice. For pop or blues, I would good solution because the mics stay in phase,
consider close miking. It also very much depends on whether you’re also recording there are minimal phase issues from time delay
other instruments in the room at the same time; then you’re generally forced into difference as we discussed before. However,
close miking, getting the most isolation you can with packing blankets and gobos. they won’t yield as wide a stereo image as with
If you can do both, I would always try to do both.
spaced mics, which should follow the 3-to-1 Rule.
40

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