Anybody here recording FLUTE ?

[Reality Check]

Hi everybody,

After searching for a thread dedicated specifically to recording flutes in the hip hop forum, I realized that there was nothing.

So I would be interested in knowing how those among you who record flutes go about it?

What mic? What about ribbon mics for examples ?

What position ?

Any reverb / delay of choice ?

What pre-amp ?

And eventually, since I'm totally new to the matter :

What flute brands sounded good to your hears ?

Here's the kind of sound I'd like to go for "live" (as opposed to sampled/or played from a leyboard):





And special question for PSM and all the old school cats (and young ones with an old school state of mind) :

How were flutes recorded in the 1970s ? What mics could they have used ? What flutes ? (I know it's a very broad question... sorry, maybe somebody can help)

[MarvinDog]

Back in the 80s when I recorded woodwinds like flute and sax, it was a LDC about four to six feet away from the horn, directly in front of the player, in a really good room with a really good player. The sound from a flute or other woodwind comes from all over the horn, not just at one place, so you can't close mic it. The room is going to be part of the sound, so you can't record it in a vocal booth, for example.

[Igotsoul4u]

I think large condenser mic's work the best. The flute doesn't have a definitive bell like the trumpet so you need larger pattern and some space between the mic and the player. I think 2 feet is appropriate. I like putting the mic a little above head height facing down and aimed at the center of the flute. I have used u87's, tlm170's, and u89's and they all sounded pretty good to me. I imagine a brauner would be the ultimate for something like a flute. I typically used a millennia HV3d as a pre for nice clean sound and lots of headroom. If you are doing something non-classical you could use a neve or whatever but coloring of the sound will occur which may or may not please the player.

[chris carter]

LDC 2-6 feet away aimed at the middle of the flute for a good general sound. A dynamic like a 57 can sound pretty cool if you want a more aggressive flute for a hip-hop track, 2ft away, again at the middle of the flute.

[Windshore]

pretty funny, I am a woodwind player and record myself playing flute all the time and my methods have changed over the years as I have learned the value of different procedures. I used to think only one way worked, - then a different way.... ha!

If it's a "pretty and pure" (legit) sound you want, a SDC is actually better IMHO.

In orchestral recording a spot mic would be over my head pointing basically at my nose. (I would try to have at least 3 feet or more between mic and player's lips.) There are a lot of great quality SDCs but the most common you'll probably see in small studios is Neuman km 84 or 184. Sennheiser mkh40 or 8040 are great too. A good clean pre like API or Millenium is great.

If you're going for more of a jazz sound and want the sound of lip artifacts and breath etc. LDC is great as mentioned maybe 2-3 feet away. (close to level with flute is fine. - experiment!)

In both cases I find a more balanced sound by pointing the mic basically at the mouth or a bit down the flute from there. The sound does radiate from all over so - you HAVE to check position before recording. Do a test and have the player listen in the both. - they'll be more sensitive than you to how evenly it's getting "on-tape"

btw... Don't use a windshield or screen

[RedTuxedo]

I've been very successful with a Senn 421 about a foot or 2 from above pointing down at the mouth.

[DrFord]

Originally Posted by RedTuxedo

I've been very successful with a Senn 421 about a foot or 2 from above pointing down at the mouth.

This is good advice.

Micing technique first and foremost needs to be you listening to where the instrument is producing "good" sound. Use your ear and walk around the room. What you are hearing is what your mic will pick up. In the case of a fixed resonating instrument - like the flute - the sound comes from 2 to 3 places at once.

1 - Mouth hole. A flute player blows accross the hole, not into it... like you would on a bottle. The sound here is the biggest part of the tone, and the player's embouchure a big part of the sound.

1 mic here to capture this, use a windscreen so you don't get funky harmonics from wind in the mic - just like micing outside a kick drum. ''

2 - Body. Place a Mic roughly 2/3rd the way down the body of the flute to capture both the final opening hole on the flute, but also any of the pad openings on the body of the flute. As they are open or closed, air goes out through them instead of the final opening. This changes the length of the resonating chamber and changes the pitch. Most of the tone in this mic will be the sounds of the pads opening and closing, and wind noises.

1 large diaphragm condenser mic here, pull it a bit back (2 -3 feet) so that the player can move around freely and not hit the mic itself.

3 - One additional mic set back to pick up the room tone, if you have a good sounding room. You could also do this in stereo.

The mics you should use are the ones you own, same as which pre-amps to use. Learn how to get the best sound you can with the gear you already have, before buying new stuff.

Best,
doc

[ncoak]

yo where can i download one of these flutez

[Storyville]

u87, or any ldc with a softened top end is great for solo flute - as are many ribbons. Distance totally varies from player to player. As close as 1/2 foot, as far as 4ft. Orchestral stuff was perfectly stated above.

[phillysoulman]

Originally Posted by ncoak

yo where can i download one of these flutez

lol

[Reality Check]

Originally Posted by phillysoulman

lol

Hey philly (if you permit),

Would you mind telling us how do you go about recording flutes today versus (if such is the case) how flutes were recorded in the 1970/80s ? Could you please be as elaborate as possible ? I'd be really interested to hear your input on this topic.

Thank you.

And also thanks to everybody who has responded so far! Great stuff. It's really appreciated.

[sunflute]

Ribbon Microphones in Stereo M/S aimed at the center of the instrument a few feet out and above. It will capture the Natural sound of the instrument.
Peace.