Mic for bluegrass instruments

[Max The Dog]

What mic would you nashville guys use first on a Mandolin, dobro, banjo and fiddle?

[bgrotto]

Originally Posted by Max The Dog

What mic would you nashville guys use first on a Mandolin, dobro, banjo and fiddle?

The Gefell M300 is great for mosta those instrument (probably too upper-mid forward for fiddle, though). I tracked a record that's coming out in a week or three for a banjo virtuoso called Tony Furtado (KILLER player!!!), and it's all over it. You might be able to find the tunes up on iTunes soon if not immediately; the label sometimes releases to iTunes before putting out the physical copies. Pretty much all the acoustic instruments on it (other than drums) were recorded with M300s (sometimes with a combination of another mic or two).

[Steffmo]

We've been using the AEA R84 ribbon a lot for bluegrass.

[RCM - Ronan]

Shure KSM32.

[bgrotto]

Originally Posted by Steffmo

We've been using the AEA R84 ribbon a lot for bluegrass.

+1thumbsup

This mic popped up on a number of Tony Furtado tracks, too!

[DannyMac]

I would go for a ribbon mic matched to a clean high slew pre, or a U87 in omni with a slower valve pre.

Don't forget about the posistioning

[bgrotto]

Originally Posted by DannyMac

Don't forget about the posistioning

Th...the wha?!??

[digibird]

All of the above are excellent suggestions - I especially like the R84.
If, however, you want a budget alternative to these relatively pricey
suggestions, try: hm7u or hm2d

[bgrotto]

Originally Posted by digibird

All of the above are excellent suggestions - I especially like the R84.
If, however, you want a budget alternative to these relatively pricey
suggestions, try: hm7u or hm2d

Speakin' of pricey, if you're lookin' for an LDC, check out the TLM170. That's my favorite new (post, I dunno...1975?) Neumann. Really killer; I've yet to find a source it sounds bad on.

[fifthcircle]

I usually reach for a Beyer 160 for fiddle, a clean SDC for mandolin (usually a Neumann KM84 or Schoeps CMC6/MK4), Banjo depends on the player. Usually a M930, but can be any one of a bunch of mics. Mojave MA100 would also be great (is also great for acoustic guitar). For Dobro, I've had the best luck with a Royer SF-1 going through a fat pre (most recently a Phoenix Audio DRS-2. This setup sounded like butter- rich and smooth).

The one thing that I find with much bluegrass is that it is really easy for things to get overly bright. So many picked, bright sounds that mics and pres can really get to be a bit much sometimes. Use of ribbons and mellow condensers with pres that have some "heft" to the sound are a huge help.

--Ben

[jeffsochor]

I'm gonna start with a km-54 on all but the banjo, might use a dynamic on that. Mastering Lab pres if you can get 'em.

[skiltrip]

The AT4033 has been known to be a good Bluegrass microphone.

[seaneldon]

I've always loved ribbons on dobro, though not necessarily the darker Coles variety. Something a bit more extended in high frequencies tends to balance the tone of the instrument a little more and get some of the slide and click detail.

Have a gander at the Meth Lab media section for the Jamie Walker/Steve Sadler session ("Guitars & Vox: Fig-8 mics") to hear one of the techniques we often use for dobro recording. An AK47 and a KM69 were used on this particular session. Multi-tracks can be downloaded as well.

But really, the easiest way to get a good bluegrass recording is to set the players up next to or around each other, hang a couple spot mics and a room mic or two, and let the musicians do their thing.

[rob S]

km86 on mando
54 or 221 on fiddle

[Don Clendenon]

i met bil vorndick at namm last summer and he told me he was using the km69 alot for things like mandolin and i think he has about a good a track record as anyone in recording bluegrass and acoustic music. i use it for drim overheads. great mic

[mbvoxx]

I have a small selection of mics to pick from and record bluegrass music about every other week. From my mic locker I've found these to be the best combinations of mics/instruments...of course there's a number of options out there, these are just what I have to choose from and they work great.

Martin 000-28 ...14 & 12 fret - U87, RE27, E47
Gibson J45...U87, TF-AK47, and Senn 416 (if recording vocal with guitar)
Collings mando (satin finish)...Neumann BCM104 - every time
Banjo (walnut)...E47
Banjo (Maple)...E47
Banjo (mahog)...BCM 104 or Senn 421

The band I record uses an electric bass so that's a DI thru a bass pod.

[Steffmo]

Originally Posted by seaneldon

I've always loved ribbons on dobro, though not necessarily the darker Coles variety. Something a bit more extended in high frequencies tends to balance the tone of the instrument a little more and get some of the slide and click detail.

Have a gander at the Meth Lab media section for the Jamie Walker/Steve Sadler session ("Guitars & Vox: Fig-8 mics") to hear one of the techniques we often use for dobro recording. An AK47 and a KM69 were used on this particular session. Multi-tracks can be downloaded as well.

But really, the easiest way to get a good bluegrass recording is to set the players up next to or around each other, hang a couple spot mics and a room mic or two, and let the musicians do their thing.

I did Grammy winning dobroist Stacy Phillips last CD: Stacy Phillips' Sound Clips

Used 2 Coles 4038 12-18 inches above with a UA 2610. He loved it

I find with Bluegrass ribbons ignore a lot of frequencies you really don't want to hear anyway. A lot of those instruments have more than enough high end as it iis.

http://www.stacyphillips.com/mp3/fourfromhawaii113.mp3 Show his playing nicely.

[seaneldon]

Sounds great, Steffmo...this guy can definitely play and has an AWESOME sense of "where to go". Perhaps I'll pick this disc up for some of those chilling Foxboro winter nights!

This further proves the point that what one guy says doesn't apply to all situations and that everyone hears things differently, goes for different sounds...that's what makes this "audio stuff" exciting to me in the first place!

[Gladstone]

Bookmarking this thread. Good advice!

God I love bluegrass... Anyone love The Telluride Sessions by Strength In Numbers as much as me? Anyone a Béla Fleck fan here? How about Jerry Douglas?

You lucky Americans, no bluegrass to be found in my country, not on that level atleast.

Bgrotto, what type of bluegrass does Tony Furtado play? Could you describe it? Maybe I should find out on my own, I feel like expanding my music library!

[ryancork]

Don't have much experience recording bluegrass but i sure do love listening to Punch Brothers. Punch Brothers - HOME

It's Chris Thile's (mandolin player from Nickel Creek) band. Check 'em out, by the way if anyone has any info on how this was recorded I'd love to hear it.

[AllAboutTone]

Originally Posted by rcm

Shure KSM32.

and the sm81s

[analogjeff]

yes, based on experience, another solid vote for ribbons -- royer 121, beyer 160, aea 84...

[elkpantscamino]

km84

[Jim Williams]

AKG 460B transformerless. Sounds like the source.

In a pinch, AKG 451EB.

Jim Williams
Audio Upgrades

[thebeardedfreak]

I did a session with two Sony C-37A's set to omni mode. I let the quartet set up the way that they were used to, and I placed the mics using headphones to get a balanced mix. It is still the best bluegrass / old-time sound I ever got out of a session.

[Sean Sullivan]

Kind of an old thread, but being involved in several bluegrass sessions this year I usually see KM54 or KM84s on mandolin and fiddle, a nice ribbon (RCA 44, R-121) and/or a U87/U67s on banjo, and dobro is all over the place. I've worked with Randy Khors in the past, and along with being a great engineer and producer he's one of the best dobro players in the world. He likes KM54s (or the Peluso clones) or Royer R-121s, depending on the dobro.

Or just toss up a RCA 44 in the middle of the players and just let the music happen!