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When recording an acoustic guitar, the first thing you have to
decide is what sound you are looking for. Do you want the acoustic to sound
big and brassy, percussive, or rich and woody? Do you a small mid range sound
or more of a hi-fi sound? Different miking techniques will yield very different
results. When you've decided what sound you're after, then you can apply the
mic and technique that you need to get that sound. From this starting point, you can add mics or make modifications to achieve
the sound you want. For a bigger sound, I'll add another mic. This second mic
will be a small diaphragm condenser placed above the neck and aimed at the body
- it captures the air and top end of the strings. For a more woody sound, I'll
place another mic down by the bridge, either a small diaphragm condenser or
a dynamic mic, to get the finger picking and the tone of the body. If I really
want the sound to be thick and chunky, I'll only use the mic down by the bridge
of the guitar. But, it is usually placed in conjunction with another mic. Sometimes
I use all three. When I was recording Davey Johnstone for Elton John's last
record, I used the Blue Kiwi aimed at the sound hole, a KM84 or AT 4051 by the
neck, and sometimes a SM57 by the bridge. For a rock mix, the low-fi approach
often cuts through the mix best. For that, I use a mid-range sounding mic like
a MD421 or a SM57. I use a completely different mic technique for nylon string
guitars; perhaps a stereo mic like the AKG C24 or Neumann SM69. It gets a bigger
sound, giving a broader more natural picture of the sound. Using different mics
and techniques make a big difference.
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