AEA R84 or R92 for electric guitar?

[Sean Sullivan]

I've been considering an AEA microphone to give me a different flavor for electric guitar, since I've been a SM57/MD421 guy for a long time. Which is preferred for electric guitar?

[Elof]

The R84 compared to a 57 is very round and full especially if you use them at the same distance. I always put an R84 and 57 in front of the cab when recording guitars. Usually end up with a 60/40 blend between them, more of the R84. I take the attack and "bite" from the 57. Never tried the R92 though...
I could upload some samples of a guitar recorded with a 57 and an R84 if you like, both tracks of course.

[Doc Mixwell]

BOTH!!!
There are very different,

I like the R92 for more "meat" and smooth colorful midrange character on more hefty sounding amplifiers. I'd say if you are used to the SM57/MD421 "darkness", the R92 will allow smooth character with a MUCH creamier midrange response.

The R84 is amazingly smooth, and does offer the traditional ribbon response, I tend to use it for cleaner, more focused GTR sounds for certain styles of music like bluegrass, rock, jazz, etc....

Both offer phenomenal tone that will always have a place in the studio, no matter the style.

[Sean Sullivan]

I recorded 90% rock music, if that helps. My only preamps at the moment are a Focusrite ISA 428 and UA M610. I'm looking to buy another two channel preamp, probably a Vintech Dual 72 because for the money they seem like a good value.

[warhead]

One thing it would come down to would be your preferred proximity of the mic to the cab. If you are typically going to use close mic'ing then I would whole heartedly recommend the R92 as it is tuned with less low end boominess. If you enjoy a roomier sound and can back off the mic by a foot maybe in most cases, then the R84 would be preferred for its larger low end response and to my ears, richer sound top to bottom.

The R92 simply has less proximity effect and also a more present upper midrange and top end. The R84 sounds huge with a smoother top.

Overall I find the R84 to be a more versatile mic, more varied sounds when comparing the front of the mic to the back.

But proximity could be the sole deciding factor.

War

[soupking]

Have you tried using an RCA BK-5?

It's awesome. Off topic, but awesome.

[Sean Sullivan]

I think I'm going to go with the R92, because I don't usually have the live space to put a microphone a couple feet back and crank an amplifier, so I would prefer something that as designed for close miking. Maybe a combination of the R92 and SM57/MD421 will rock my world?

[NathanEldred]

If you are using brighter mics like an SM-57 or MD421 II, then I find the R84 to be a better counter sound because it's darker with a fuller proximity than the R92. If you were going to just use one mic, i.e. for a mono track, then I'd go for the R92. The R92 is like splitting a 421 and an R84 down the middle (sort of, it's closer to the R84 than it is the 421 but that's as close a description I can think of that makes sense here).

[Sean Sullivan]

Well, I like to use just one microphone on guitars when I can. Now I'm wondering if I should just come up with a couple hundred more and get the R84.