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Topic: Recording clawhammer banjo |
Tom Wolverton
From:
Carpinteria, CA
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Posted 20 Jan 2014 9:13 am |
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Forgive me for asking a banjo-related question. I record open-back clawhammer banjo from time to time and usually find the tone too bright. I like a nice mellow tubby sound. Sometimes I'll use 2 mics. One in front and one in the back. Somes, the back mic will be an old Shure SM10 lapel mic jamed inside the pot of the banjo. Anyone ever do it this way? Any suggestions for a good mic to put inside the pot?
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To write with a broken pencil is pointless. |
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John Macy
From:
Rockport TX/Denver CO
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Posted 21 Jan 2014 5:45 am
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A ribbon mic works well on a banjo. Some of the cheaper ribbons like the Cascade mics are a bit on the dark side, which works well with brighter instruments such as the banjo
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John Macy
Rockport, TX
Engineer/Producer/Steel Guitar |
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Tom Wolverton
From:
Carpinteria, CA
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Posted 21 Jan 2014 6:07 pm
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Thanks, John. I'll check it out. Does the Cascade need a powerful preamp like some ribbon mics need?
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To write with a broken pencil is pointless. |
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John Macy
From:
Rockport TX/Denver CO
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Posted 21 Jan 2014 8:06 pm
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What kind of pres do you have?
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John Macy
Rockport, TX
Engineer/Producer/Steel Guitar |
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Tom Wolverton
From:
Carpinteria, CA
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Posted 22 Jan 2014 10:52 am
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Just my Avid MBox Pro for mics and a Sarno V8 for direct steel signal.
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To write with a broken pencil is pointless. |
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John Macy
From:
Rockport TX/Denver CO
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Posted 22 Jan 2014 8:07 pm
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I keep a pair of these around for boosting low level ribbons into a mic pre with not enough gain--they work great and run off the phantom power...
http://www.zenproaudio.com/triton-audio-fethead.aspx
Notice you have the Sarno V8--I love mine!
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John Macy
Rockport, TX
Engineer/Producer/Steel Guitar |
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Tom Wolverton
From:
Carpinteria, CA
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Posted 23 Jan 2014 10:05 pm
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Thanks John. That FetHed is an interesting device.
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To write with a broken pencil is pointless. |
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Gary Shepherd
From:
Fox, Oklahoma, USA
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Posted 21 Jun 2014 7:54 pm
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Personally, I'd record a banjo with a small diaphragm condenser like and AKG C1000s.
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Gary Shepherd
Carter D-10 & Peavey Nashville 1000
www.16tracks.com |
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Tom Wolverton
From:
Carpinteria, CA
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Posted 24 Jun 2014 9:37 pm
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i've got a C1000 and a Rode NT5. I'll give it a try.
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To write with a broken pencil is pointless. |
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John Macy
From:
Rockport TX/Denver CO
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Posted 26 Jun 2014 7:19 pm
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I've recorded a lot of banjo players over the years and most ask for ribbons or dynamic mics...in addition to the ribbons, I have had great success with Sennheiser 421's and EV RE20's...amazingly enough, a SM57 or SM7b work quite well...all of these tame the high frequencies very nicely...
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John Macy
Rockport, TX
Engineer/Producer/Steel Guitar |
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James Quillian
From:
San Antonio, Texas, USA
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Posted 29 Jun 2014 7:18 pm Re: Recording clawhammer banjo
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| Tom Wolverton wrote: |
| Forgive me for asking a banjo-related question. I record open-back clawhammer banjo from time to time and usually find the tone too bright. I like a nice mellow tubby sound. Sometimes I'll use 2 mics. One in front and one in the back. Somes, the back mic will be an old Shure SM10 lapel mic jamed inside the pot of the banjo. Anyone ever do it this way? Any suggestions for a good mic to put inside the pot? |
For banjo, I use an sm81. IMO, the key is to put plenty of distance between the strings and the mic. Not 10 ft. or anything but far enough to get all of the ambience from the acoustics of the instrument.
I wouldn't expect a lot of good to come from putting a mic inside the resonator. I would try taking the resonator off, expecially if it is clawhammer style.
The banjo is an absolutely unforgiving instrument when recording. I stay away from large diaphram condensors for that reason.
I would try just one small condensor mic 2-3 feet from the 12th fret. Then add a tiny amount of electronic compression. It might help to eq to boost the mid range before adding compression. Treat the eq and compression as an experiment because it might make the track sound worse.
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Curbside Jimmy's New Act
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlzieFLE5no |
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Tom Wolverton
From:
Carpinteria, CA
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Posted 4 Jul 2014 7:44 am
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Thanks James. I'll try a small condenser mic about a foot away from the rim/neck joint.
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To write with a broken pencil is pointless. |
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