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How many ways are there to mic a sound source?
There are infinite ways to use mics, depending on what kind of sound you're trying to achieve. If your song calls for a piano to be miked from under a pillow, 20 feet away, then that's what you should do for that song. Music is, after all, a form of art.
However, there are some tried-and-true techniques for achieving predictably good results, using particular kinds of mics in specific ways to best capture the essance of the source you're recording or reinforcing. Most of the following techniques in the "How-To" section are those favored by professional recording and live sound engineers for the past 40+ years.
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How do I use a vocal mic correctly?
Different types of vocal miking require different ways of addressing a microphone. For example, if you're using a Digital Reference dynamic mic for backing vocals, the singer will probably stay a few inches back from the mic, with the front of the mic pointed directly at the mouth of the singer.
However, getting closer to the mic can cause it to perform with different sonic characteristics, called the Proximity Effect. Some vocalists like to get very close to the mic, practically brushing up against it while they sing or rap. Practice with your mic using techniques that sound good for your style of music. Good singers are said to "work" the microphone well, meaning they know how to best take advantage of their mic's characteristics by moving closer or farther away from it.
If you are using a side-address mic, be sure that you're singing into the proper side (i.e. where the capsule and diaphragm are pointing). This is usually the side with the manufacturer's logo on it. Singing into the wrong side will produce noticeably quieter results, as one would expect. If you're confused, try snapping your fingers in a circular motion around the live mic while wearing headphones... if there's a direction you should sing, it will be the one that poduces the loudest snap.
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How should I mike a drum kit?
This is an area where there are no definitive answers; however, there are a few proven techniques you may want to use as a starting point. First, be aware that more mics do NOT necessarily mean a bigger (or more controllable) drum sound. Some of the most respected drum recordings (like most of John Bonham's work with Led Zeppelin) were recorded with only two mics: one near the drum kit, and one further away to capture the sound of the room.
This, however, is the exception rather than the rule. In modern recording, it's common to minimally use a three-mic setup to capture a drum kit: one mic for the kick (bass) drum, and two mics positioned over the drummer, pointed down toward the drums, called overheads. The kick drum mic is ideally positioned inside the drum, and the overheads roughly three or four feet above the drummer. Careful positioning of drum mics is crucial... moving the mic an inch or two can drastically affect what type of sound you get. It's common to keep the kick drum mic panned near the center, while the overheads can be adjusted to the left and right for a greater sense of width in the sound.
Some drummers, engineers and producers prefer to use more mics so they can maintain greater control over the individual drum sounds going to a recorder or PA system. In those cases, individual mics may be used on the snare drum, the hi-hat, toms, or any combination thereof.
Drums are a loud instrument acoustically, so it's common to use dynamic mics (as opposed to more sensitive condenser mics), especially for the kick drum, snare, and toms. Condensers are sometimes employed for drum overheads, though specifically designed dynamic mics can do a fine job as well.
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How should I mike a guitar or bass amplifier?
Miking a guitar or bass amp is generally a pretty easy task. The most common approach is to want to capture the sound of the amp as cleanly as possible, which means you will take a dynamic instrument mic like the Digital Reference DRGX1, and place it right up against the grillcloth of the amp cabinet. You can try moving the mic back three to eight inches to capture some more of the air that's being pumped when your speakers flex. Also, different genres of music (like jazz versus metal) might be better suited for a more- or less-aggressive, "in your face" sound you get from close-miking the amp.
If you have a multi-speaker cabinet (i.e. a 4x10), try placing the mic near each of the different speakers and see if you have a favorite. Then, pick one and point the mic in its direction. Like drum miking, the exact positioning of the mic can really affect the sound, so take your time and wiggle the mic around until you've got just the tone you need, coming form the "sweet spot" of your amp.
Like other sources, you can choose to use one or more other mics to capture the natural ambience of the room where you're recording. If you're miking an amp for a PA or planning on adding effects via processing, the single mic on the amp might be all you need.
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How should I mike acoustic instruments and piano?
This is another good time to bring up that there are no hard and fast rules in microphone choice and placement, and you should experiment to find the best solutions for the instruments and styles you're trying to capture.
GUITAR: An acoustic guitar is a complex instrument, and there are many ways to address miking it, depending on the genre of music and the style of the player. One nice method to use as a starting point for miking an acoustic is to place one mic about 6" away from the sound hole of the guitar (positioned from the lower guitar body), then taking another mic and setting it up aimed toward the top of the guitar's fingerboard. The boominess of the sound hole mic can be tempered somewhat by the thinness of the fingerboard mic. Always place the mic far enough away so that the guitarist's hands are hampered by the mic's positing (and so that the mic is not inadvertently bumped during the performance).
HORNS AND STRINGS: Solo horns and strings can be miked in a similar way that a solo voice is recorded. Position the mic on a stand facing a horn player, about 12" away. Violins, violas, and cellos are softer instruments, and may require closer miking. Note that horns are loud, and you'll need to be careful when bringing up a volume level as to not overload your sound system. Horn and string sections can be miked together with a single mic, or using multiple mics that are arranged facing the section.
PIANO: Piano miking techniques vary greatly depending on the type of music you are trying to capture. A good place to start for both classical and pop grand piano is to use two mics in stereo, both placed under an open piano lid. Place one mic about 12" above the longer (bass) strings of the piano, about halfway down the string. Do the same with the second mic, but this one should be aimed near the shorter strings for higher notes. You can experiment in moving the mics closer to the strings, or in position to piano's front of rear. Mics that are closer to the hammers, for instance, produce a sharper sound with ore attack.
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How should I mike an orchestra/big band?
It's not only recording gurus who are faced with the task of miking a large ensemble of musicians. People are often challenged with this responsibility as a church audio director, or for school events and the like.
Believe it or not, miking an orchestra or other large ensemble can be a mostly painless act. Your job is to capture the sound of the entire orchestra as heard by the audience in a performance, so you are mostly trying to emulate the ideal experience of the listener. Since listeners have two ears, most orchestral miking is done in stereo. There are a few basic varieties of proven stereo miking techniques for orchestral and big band:
XY Technique: Mount two cardioid microphones on stands about six feet high placed behind the conductor, pointing slightly downward toward the orchestra. Position the mics at a 90 degree opposing angle, so that the mic on your right points diagonally toward the left side of the orchestra, and the mic on the left points diagonally toward the right side of the orchestra. The capsules of the mics should almost be touching each other. This mic setup is also known as a coincident pair.
ORTF: An acronym for the French national broadcast system, this is a variation on the XY technique. Designed to better emulate human hearing, the mics are angled more tightly (at 110 degrees) and are placed about 7" apart (like the width of your skull).
Blumlein: Named for an engineer who pioneered stereo audio recording, the Blumlein technique is yet another variation on XY. However, in this one, the mics use a figure-8 pattern, which allows for a strong center image... something that's sometime lost in the simple XY technique.
AB Technique: Unlike the XY technique where the mics are practically touching, in AB the mics are spaced about two feet apart (hence the name "spaced pair" for this technique). Also, instead of cardioid mics, which exhibit a directional response, the AB configuration uses omni polar patterned-mics. The AB technique can capture some more of the room's ambience, but you lose some of the intimacy of, for example, soloed instrument sections.
Decca Tree: This stereo technique actually uses three omni mics set up in the shape of a "T". Place two of the mics about six feet apart as before, but now add a third mic in between, about three feet in front of the pair (closer to the source).
Try out these different miking methods when you have the opportunity, and see which type works well on each particular piece of music and size/type of orchestra or choir. This is only the tip of the iceberg, by the way; there are several other techniques to try, and for pieces where a solo voice or instrument is important, spot mics are often used to beef up that source.
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How should I set up mics to record my whole pop/rock/jazz band playing live?
Now that you've read all of those stereo miking techniques above, you'll be happy to note that most of them work well in capturing your live rock, pop or jazz band as well. However, in many cases, you'll still want individual control over each source, and therein lies the need for multiple mics.
A common pop/rock band live miking setup would be as follows:
- (1) dynamic instrument mic for rhythm guitar amp.
- (1) dynamic instrument mic for lead guitar amp.
- (1) dynamic instrument mic for bass amp.
- (3 to 5) dynamic mics for a drum kit.
- (1 or 2) dynamic instrument mics for a keyboard or organ amp, if
not going direct into PA system.
- (1) dynamic lead vocal mic.
- (2-4) dynamic back vocal mics.
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What if my mic is feeding back or distorting?
Although these two problems plague most musicians at one time or the other (and sometimes together), they are actually two separate issues. Let's start with feedback, that horrible ringing/screeching sound we all know and love (not).
Mic Feedback is a simple idea. It is caused by the sound of your voice going into the microphone, through the PA system, out of the PA speakers, and back into the mic. The most simple way to eliminate feedback is to place your PA speakers in front of the band, facing the audience, so that the energy from the PA doesn't feed back into the mic.
However, there are some environments where feedback is more difficult to control. If the room is highly reverberant, the reflected energy of the PA can find its way back to your mic. Also, if you're playing in a very small room, it can be difficult to acoustically control the sound enough to avoid feedback. Also, you can get feedback off your stage monitors as well.
The first feedback control method is to turn down the mic causing the feedback. If the signal isn't loud enough at the point before it starts feeding back, you can use a graphic EQ to find the frequency that's feeding back and pull it down manually 9without affecting the volume of surrounding frequencies), or use a dedicated feedback eliminator which performs this process automatically.
Some feedback can be controlled by mic technique. Never point the mic toward a main or monitor speaker. Also, try using a more directional (cardioid or hypercardioid) mic so that the sound energy of the feedback source isn't picked up by the mic as easily.
Distortion is a broad term that basically means one thing: you're too loud. Distortion can occur at any stage in your signal chain (mic, preamp, mixer, PA) where the signal level going in is more than the component can handle. Although the general rule of thumb is that you should make every step as loud as it can be to maximize the sonic quality, distortion is usually not a pleasing sound from microphones, and can indicate that you are harming the mic's sensitive diaphragm.
If you are a singer and your mic is distorting, simply back away from the mic. An instrumentalist can either move the mic away from the instrument, or turn the amp volume down in the case of electric instruments.
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What if I'm getting static on a wireless system? How do I know which wireless system to choose?
Wireless mics and instrument systems have to function in a variety of environments, and the amount of radio interference (RF) that causes static noise can vary greatly. Also, the proliferation of cell phone and portable electronic devices compounds the potential problem, making it even more challenging in recent years. Performances near radio broadcast facilities, home appliances like microwave ovens, and many other sources can add to your RF problems.
The first step is to be sure that you're within the recommended range of the wireless system. If you're wandering away from your band and start to hear your signal getting fuzzy, start moseying back toward the band.
Choosing a wireless system for microphones or instruments should be based on your needs as defined by your environment. If you've experienced poor performance with wireless systems in the venues you perform in, you may want to consider one of the more advanced wireless technologies offered by Digital Reference. These include systems with higher degrees of unwanted signal rejection, multiple transmission channels to choose from, and even true diversity operation which switches automatically between identical channels for nearly flawless performance in terms of signal loss.
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