Recording a Cello in a small vocal booth

gainreduction · 19th October 2006, 02:45 PM

Tomorrow I'm recording a Cello and unfortunately I have to do it in my small vocal booth. It's well treated and sounds ok but it's... small.

It's a rock track and the cello is there for a couple of vibey lines in the verses so it's not super-critical but anyway I want to do the best of it.

I guess I have two decisions to make. Mono or stereo and most of all, where to put the mic(s) in this small space.

I know a cello benefits from micing from some distance but there ain't much distance in this booth. I could of course leave the door open and mic it just outside the boot and record with headphones.

Mics available that might fit the purpose are:

- Neumann bottle with M7 capsule (U47-ish)
- Brauner VH-1
- AKG 414
- pair of KM84's

All tips welcome, thanx.

andychamp · 19th October 2006, 04:03 PM

The way I see it, there are 2 very different approaches to recording celli:
- Either VERY ambient, as in "orchestra".
A cello's directivity is hell

. Some frequencies go upwards, some to one side, some to the other, some go everywhere.
So you need 1 or 2 omni mics and a BIG room (not an option in your case)
-Or very close, like a cardioid aimed at the bridge. Listen to "Elanor Rigby", that was revolutionary in those days, but it works.
Since you're trying to fit it into a rock mix, my guess is you won't be needing the cello's full, natural tone anyway, so this approach should do the job.

Try to stick to either only 1 line or at least 4 layers of overdubs. Only 2 or 3 sound awfully out of tune.

As for the mic choice, I'd go with one of the 84s. The 414 may be too scratchy (unless that's what you're going for) and the other two's richness might get lost in the mix.
If you want some room sound, try sticking one of the LDCs in a corner of the booth. Compress and delay that track to taste.

Kris · 19th October 2006, 04:05 PM

Go for the close(ish) cardioid, and then throw up some sort of Omni in a corner and see what kind of blend you can get...

gainreduction · 20th October 2006, 03:03 PM

Recording successful !

Thanx for your input guys.

I ended up using the KM84's in X/Y and I even managed to get them about 3-4 feet away from the cello.

Sounded killer, the player thought so too.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
recording cello concert.	arpodthegreat	Remote Possibilities in Acoustic Music & Location Recording	14	21st October 2006 11:59 PM
Recording cello	Dragonfly	Remote Possibilities in Acoustic Music & Location Recording	14	13th November 2005 11:57 AM
Recording Cello and Violin	woongsae	Remote Possibilities in Acoustic Music & Location Recording	4	14th October 2005 08:04 PM
Drum recording tips needed for a small tracking booth	Impala	So much gear, so little time!	1	20th December 2004 01:09 PM
recording cello	PaRaNoId	Remote Possibilities in Acoustic Music & Location Recording	13	16th July 2004 05:18 PM

19th October 2006, 02:45 PM	#1
gainreduction Lives for gear Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 1,648	Recording a Cello in a small vocal booth Tomorrow I'm recording a Cello and unfortunately I have to do it in my small vocal booth. It's well treated and sounds ok but it's... small. It's a rock track and the cello is there for a couple of vibey lines in the verses so it's not super-critical but anyway I want to do the best of it. I guess I have two decisions to make. Mono or stereo and most of all, where to put the mic(s) in this small space. I know a cello benefits from micing from some distance but there ain't much distance in this booth. I could of course leave the door open and mic it just outside the boot and record with headphones. Mics available that might fit the purpose are: - Neumann bottle with M7 capsule (U47-ish) - Brauner VH-1 - AKG 414 - pair of KM84's All tips welcome, thanx.

19th October 2006, 04:03 PM	#2
andychamp Lives for gear Join Date: May 2005 Location: Basel, Switzerland Posts: 1,226	The way I see it, there are 2 very different approaches to recording celli: - Either VERY ambient, as in "orchestra". A cello's directivity is hell . Some frequencies go upwards, some to one side, some to the other, some go everywhere. So you need 1 or 2 omni mics and a BIG room (not an option in your case) -Or very close, like a cardioid aimed at the bridge. Listen to "Elanor Rigby", that was revolutionary in those days, but it works. Since you're trying to fit it into a rock mix, my guess is you won't be needing the cello's full, natural tone anyway, so this approach should do the job. Try to stick to either only 1 line or at least 4 layers of overdubs. Only 2 or 3 sound awfully out of tune. As for the mic choice, I'd go with one of the 84s. The 414 may be too scratchy (unless that's what you're going for) and the other two's richness might get lost in the mix. If you want some room sound, try sticking one of the LDCs in a corner of the booth. Compress and delay that track to taste. __________________ André ________________________________________ "keep it simple. get it right in tracking. record good drummers in good rooms. cake." mixman499 "no room, no boom!" Michael Wagener "every song is different." Dave Pensado "God dammit man! Just try! The best way to micing is the way that u will like!!!"mat1306

19th October 2006, 04:05 PM	#3
Kris Lives for gear Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Tallahassee Posts: 1,483	Go for the close(ish) cardioid, and then throw up some sort of Omni in a corner and see what kind of blend you can get... __________________ http://www.fullblackout.com - band http://www.logcabinmusic.com - studio ... - Yours Truely "a GOOD mic pre is good with any mic on any instrument or voice for any genre of music and into any recording device." W. Wittman (ProSoundWeb) "Real engineers know that no one gives a shit about their musical opinion. " Methlab

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search
Display Modes	Rate This Thread
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode	Rate This Thread:

20th October 2006, 03:03 PM	#4
gainreduction Lives for gear Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 1,648	Recording successful ! Thanx for your input guys. I ended up using the KM84's in X/Y and I even managed to get them about 3-4 feet away from the cello. Sounded killer, the player thought so too.