Best way to record classical guitar?

Starnie wrote:
Yes, I will indeed research all options. I'm still trying to figure out whether the M-Audio Fast Track (basic version) has a pre-amp. Their "MobilePre" says it right on front of the unit.

Yes, the Fast Track has a pre-amp as well. To answer your other question above, that's right - all you need to do is buy an interface, plug your mic into it on one and plug the interface into the computer on the other. You won't need any additional software, although many interfaces require drivers, basically a piece of enabling software which comes with the interface (although it's often a good idea to download the driver from the manufacturer's website since it may be a more recent version than what shipped with the product). Also, the one thing to keep in mind with interfaces and drivers is to make sure whatever interface you get has a driver that is compatible with your operating system. I realize that with all these things to figure out, it adds up to a lot more than "one thing to keep in mind!"

I have a Shure microphone but I'm not completely sure if it's a condenser or dynamic one; my guess is that it's a condenser version.

Shure makes both types... and good versions of both. Shure condensers also offer pretty good bang for the buck.

Finally, once bitten, some people spend their lives searching for better gear to produce better recordings. Others are satisfied with modest gear. It's all a matter of jumping in and doing it, and then seeing how happy you are with the results. You may be surprised at how good the M-Audio sounds with your preexisting mic, or you may want to save up for a better mic or preamp. No way to know until you jump in! (One reason for buying from a retailer with a good return policy just in case!)

Starnie wrote:
I'd like to record my classical guitar using Garage Band '08, and I'd like it to sound "close miked" and not like it's coming from the next room over. My goal is to spend something under $200 dollars and I'd like the interface or mike or whatever to be simple to operate. Would something like the "Zoom H2 Handy Recorder" or M-Audio's "MobilePre USB" work? I'd like to hear directly from someone who has recorded either an acoustic or classical guitar. Thanks for any help. I'm running the newest version of Leopard w/2GB of memory.

Recording classical guitar is kind of like making a simple but elegant recipe in that you want as few ingredients as possible, but each ingredient to be of the very highest quality available.

$200 is not a lot of money, but it's a start! If you have nothing else, you'll likely want to buy a microphone and interface. The Zoom H2 is an all-in-one recorder, so it doesn't leverage your preexisting investment in your computer. There are some excellent all-in-one recorders, but for your budget, you'll probably get better results going with a USB or firewire interface and microphone ("individual ingredients" to continue my strained metaphor!).

For recording guitar you don't need an interface with a lot of inputs. Instead, I'd find the best quality simple interface you can afford, along with the best quality condenser mic you can afford. Also, since a condenser mic requires what's called "phantom power," you'll need an interface that provides it (most do, including the M-Audio MobilePre).

Starnie wrote:
I believe I do have a Shure condenser mike somewhere. I know that it needs some type of power or amplification, which you might mean by "phantom power.?"

Actually mic pre-amplification is another thing! Mics output low-level signals that need to be boosted to what's called "line level" in order to work with them. While you can buy microphone preamps that do nothing else but boost a mic level signal to line level signal, all the interfaces you are considering would likely include mic preamps. An interface actually combines several components into one, and a mic preamplifier is usually one of the included components.

Phantom power is simply power required by condenser microphones to work, and is supplied to the mic over the microphone cable. Most interfaces with mic inputs include this feature. Flip it on, juice flows to the mic, and the mic lights up. In turn, signal flows back from the microphone to the interface where it is amplified by the microphone preamplifier, and then converted from an analog signal into a digital one, and then sent to the computer over USB or Firewire.

Can I assume by "interface" you mean something between the mike and the computer like the "MobilePre?"

Yes, exactly. It's the box that contains all the necessary components to take sound from the outside world and deliver it to the computer.

Can you recommend an interface that's highly rated?

This is a very budget-sensitive question (and purpose-sensitive question, I suppose) since there are interfaces that range from cheap to expensive, horrible to excellent. I've worked with a number of them and while it is remarkable what low-priced interfaces are capable of these days, sound quality does tend to noticeably improve with higher prices.

One highly-rated interface for sound quality that is "simple but good" is the Apogee Duet at around $500. Core components such as mic preamps and converters are a couple steps up from the M-Audio, but at a price.

poflynn wrote:
For recording acoustic guitar it may be best to record two signals at once. Either with two mics (one condenser, one dynamic) or with a mic and a line-in. The Dean Markley ProMag Grand (about $50) fits in your guitar soundhole and was made with recording in mind. I have gotten a good sound using that and a condenser mic at the same time.

What you are describing are techniques used to record guitar for styles other than classical. Using both a condenser and a dynamic mic, or combining mic and line ins aren't generally what best captures the sound of a classical guitar.

For classical guitar, you usually want a transparent and accurate recording of the instrument, with some room sound. Mixing a condenser with a dynamic mic is great for other styles when you want to craft a certain sound that fits well with a particular song. But classical guitar isn't about crafting a sound in production as much as it is about capturing the sound and nuance of the player as accurately as possible.

Because condensers are more accurate then dynamics, I'd favor a condenser over a dynamic. I do agree about using more than one mic if available (I've even used stereo mics on guitars with good results) UNLESS you only have one really good mic, and your other mics would degrade the overall quality more than they would add to it. Again, for classical guitar.

Finally, of course, there are no real rules! If you do something and it sounds good, even if it breaks from conventional wisdom, then all the power to you!

Starnie wrote:
I believe I do have a Shure condenser mike somewhere. I know that it needs some type of power or amplification, which you might mean by "phantom power.?"

Actually mic pre-amplification is another thing! Mics output low-level signals that need to be boosted to what's called "line level" in order to work with them. While you can buy microphone preamps that do nothing else but boost a mic level signal to line level signal, all the interfaces you are considering would likely include mic preamps. An interface actually combines several components into one, and a mic preamplifier is usually one of the included components.

Phantom power is simply power required by condenser microphones to work, and is supplied to the mic over the microphone cable. Most interfaces with mic inputs include this feature. Flip it on, juice flows to the mic, and the mic lights up. In turn, signal flows back from the microphone to the interface where it is amplified by the microphone preamplifier, and then converted from an analog signal into a digital one, and then sent to the computer over USB or Firewire.

Can I assume by "interface" you mean something between the mike and the computer like the "MobilePre?"

Yes, exactly. It's the box that contains all the necessary components to take sound from the outside world and deliver it to the computer.

Can you recommend an interface that's highly rated?

This is a very budget-sensitive question (and purpose-sensitive question, I suppose) since there are interfaces that range from cheap to expensive, horrible to excellent. I've worked with a number of them and while it is remarkable what low-priced interfaces are capable of these days, sound quality does tend to noticeably improve with higher prices.

One highly-rated interface for sound quality that is "simple but good" is the Apogee Duet at around $500. Core components such as mic preamps and converters are a couple steps up from the M-Audio, but at a price.

For recording acoustic guitar it may be best to record two signals at once. Either with two mics (one condenser, one dynamic) or with a mic and a line-in. The Dean Markley ProMag Grand (about $50) fits in your guitar soundhole and was made with recording in mind. I have gotten a good sound using that and a condenser mic at the same time.

I have also gotten good results just plugging directly into my iMac. (Of course condenser mics are out as the Mac provides no phantom power).

Also, spend a bit of time researching the ins and outs (no pun) of interface units, etc. There are many options available. Make sure you know what's what before you spend.

And, of course, check out this site, which has lots of GB info and makes some recommends as to equipment (tho it is limited).

http://www.bulletsandbones.com/GB/GarageBand.html

I have a Shure microphone but I'm not completely sure if it's a condenser or dynamic one; my guess is that it's a condenser version.

Check the Shure website.

You may ultimately want to go the two-mic route for a good sound. But start with one. It all depends on your criteria.

APOLOGIES TO EVERYONE FOR MY TRIPLE POST!

I posted this just as the forums were taken offline. When I tried to go back and read it, I just got a message saying the forums were temporarily unavailable.

I didn't even think my reply went through once... apparently it went through three times!

SORRY EVERYONE!

poflynn wrote:
Thank you, MattiMatt, for the education. I'm always happy to learn more.
I wonder if there is a particular mic or mics out there that is a favorite for classical guitar.

Your welcome. I too learn a lot from these boards.

One thing about guitar is that rock guitar is so popular (I believe more guitars are sold in the U.S. than all other instruments combined, and most for rock), that guitar is almost a synonym for "rock guitar," and the things you hear about guitar (/rock guitar) you'd think would apply to every guitar! But classical guitar is really a different animal, so all those cool tricks that people talk about like taking an SM57 and tilting it towards the edge of the cone in your amp don't really translate to classical!

Mics from Neumann, DPA, and Schoeps are often favored for classical guitar because they are so good at recording detail, but are pricey little buggers! I've also used some more exotic mics for recording guitars in interesting spaces in order to capture their complex natural reverbs. For classical guitar, actually, the room in which you record can be every bit as important as any other factor. Sometimes churches, with their big sloping ceilings, can make great places to record guitar.

A guitar-playing friend of mine uses a Sennheiser MKH800 (with its vast frequency range) along with some of the smaller-diaphragm condenser Neumanns with great results. Earthworks makes some fantastic microphones that work well with guitar as well, and while not cheap, are more affordable than some of these other brands.

Lots of great mics out there! Unfortunately, the ones that are best at faithfully recording acoustic instruments are often among the most expensive! That only makes sense, I guess, because you're asking a mic to translate the motion of air molecules into an electrical signal, and the most accurate translation mechanisms with the microphone disappearing into as invisible a conduit as possible are going to be the most expensive to produce.

I just wanted to mention another option may be just out of your price range. I just had the chance to play with a Fishman Aura Imaging pedal. I used the dreadnought pedal but they make a classical version also.

The pedal seems a little overpriced but does a amazing job of making my under bridge pickup sound like it was mic'd in a quality studio. Of course you would also need a sound hole pickup. I wouldn't usually mention it because it's kind of a one trick pony and a decent interface is more versatile but if it's just your guitar this deserves a look.

Thank you, MattiMatt, for the education. I'm always happy to learn more.
I wonder if there is a particular mic or mics out there that is a favorite for classical guitar.

Starnie wrote:
I believe I do have a Shure condenser mike somewhere. I know that it needs some type of power or amplification, which you might mean by "phantom power.?"

Actually mic pre-amplification is another thing! Mics output low-level signals that need to be boosted to what's called "line level" in order to work with them. While you can buy microphone preamps that do nothing else but boost a mic level signal to line level signal, all the interfaces you are considering would likely include mic preamps. An interface actually combines several components into one, and a mic preamplifier is usually one of the included components.

Phantom power is simply power required by condenser microphones to work, and is supplied to the mic over the microphone cable. Most interfaces with mic inputs include this feature. Flip it on, juice flows to the mic, and the mic lights up. In turn, signal flows back from the microphone to the interface where it is amplified by the microphone preamplifier, and then converted from an analog signal into a digital one, and then sent to the computer over USB or Firewire.

Can I assume by "interface" you mean something between the mike and the computer like the "MobilePre?"

Yes, exactly. It's the box that contains all the necessary components to take sound from the outside world and deliver it to the computer.

Can you recommend an interface that's highly rated?

This is a very budget-sensitive question (and purpose-sensitive question, I suppose) since there are interfaces that range from cheap to expensive, horrible to excellent. I've worked with a number of them and while it is remarkable what low-priced interfaces are capable of these days, sound quality does tend to noticeably improve with higher prices.

One highly-rated interface for sound quality that is "simple but good" is the Apogee Duet at around $500. Core components such as mic preamps and converters are a couple steps up from the M-Audio, but at a price.