Mics used for profiles

    Quote from flyingheelhook

    For the record, I am a retired MMA referee (formerly licensed professional & amateur in DC and Virginia in the USA). If anyone gets to the point they feel they really do have to duke it out, I am available to officiate. For a modest fee... :D


    Thanks for that. The strange thing is that I did state that it was my opinion. I just said that I did not like the SM57 on my guitar sounds. It's a bit like saying I don't like carrots and have people saying that they are good for you and give you important minerals and well, everyone likes them. Well how so, because I certainly don't - and you know I won't like carrots because you do - also I won't particularly care that you do like them either. I won't be trying to stop other people eating carrots or telling them how to cook them - although I have heard they are nice sautéed with a little cinnamon. Which come to think of it is how I like my SM57's.

    I think it really depends on what kind of sound you are looking for. I found it very useful to research what was used on specific recordings by specific guitarists. For example, I have noticed that for guitarists like Alex Lifeson or John Petrucci, they like to use a combination of mics -- like SM57, MD421, etc. And maybe mix the two. On Petrucci's sound, see here: http://www.musicplayers.com/fe…006/0306John_Petrucci.php


    Alex Lifeson has used a variety of mics though the years, but recently it seems to be SM57 and U47, again mixed to a mono track.


    I also noticed that many people use the Royer R-121 -- esp to add girth and low-end. If you listen to IRs, you will easily hear that.


    For my tastes, I like recordings which use SM57, MD421, and R-121 for lead and rhythm. Usually miced very close to the grill and slightly off the cone and on-axis. For clean tones, I still like the U87, U47, or AKG 414 or some mix.

    Man there is some sensitive people on this forum... Good grief...


    you said you were " astounded" at the number of commercial profilers who use the 57; and then you made up an idea in your head that well, maybe they keep just a few mics around and that's all they have.... This is exactly why I made the statements I did: you sounded as if you weren't aware of how many records a 57 is often used on and for what exact reasons. I then stated if that doesn't apply to you no harm no foul. I was not implying you were a noob at that point in the least, just making conversation: take a chill pilll...


    and no quite honestly, there aren't really any guitar tones prior to 1965 that I try to obtain or consider "classics" really, but of course that is purely subjective. Nothing was really ckosed micd before then , and those guitar tones on older records really don't do much for me personally. Of course yes, Chet Atkins had great tone no doubt, and so did many others before that...


    my point is the 57 is so popular and relevant, to say you don't like it or the way it sounds, is almost to say you don't like the tone of a recorded guitar tone or a guitar tone live... That may sound extreme but think about it: when 9/10 tones you hear on a record do in fact have that mic on the guitar( maybe even a higher percentage ) , that's quite hard to argue... That was MY point dude....

    Quote from VESmedic


    my point is the 57 is so popular and relevant, to say you don't like it or the way it sounds, is almost to say you don't like the tone of a recorded guitar tone or a guitar tone live... That may sound extreme but think about it: when 9/10 tones you hear on a record do in fact have that mic on the guitar( maybe even a higher percentage ) , that's quite hard to argue... That was MY point dude....


    I gotta say, aside from everybody having his preferences, this man definitely has a point.

    Quote from VESmedic


    my point is the 57 is so popular and relevant, to say you don't like it or the way it sounds, is almost to say you don't like the tone of a recorded guitar tone or a guitar tone live... That may sound extreme but think about it: when 9/10 tones you hear on a record do in fact have that mic on the guitar( maybe even a higher percentage ) , that's quite hard to argue... That was MY point dude....


    Look this is getting old. I am not partial to SM57 on their own for my guitar sounds. Combine them with something else like a R121 to take the edge off the bright midrange of the 57 and add some fatness and I can live with that. The kind of clean/edge of breakup sound I like is more towards the jazzy end of things with a fat midrange and a little shimmer on top. Think Deluxe with a Coles4038 or a R121 4-5 " from the cone. The closest I have got to this is the Michael Britt profiles of the 67 Deluxe with a SM57 and a Cascade Fathead 2 ribbon. This I usually use with a Musicman Silhouette with some P 90 type pickups. However Soundside.de have a great Vibroverb with a R121 that I like a lot. I find that the R121 has a really smooth top end, a nice bottom end, with a lovely expressive midrange and needs little in the way of eq. Great for touch sensitive playing. They also have a deluxe that has been profiled with a 57 that sounds a little bit hard to my ears. I can address this with bit of mid boost at 600k and a low pass filter.


    On the overdrive front I am really enjoying M Britts Dumble Overdrive Special.Another set of profiles I have really enjoyed using are the And44 Stileto Profiles with a TC30/87/121.

    Quote from flyingheelhook

    For the record, I am a retired MMA referee (formerly licensed professional & amateur in DC and Virginia in the USA). If anyone gets to the point they feel they really do have to duke it out, I am available to officiate. For a modest fee... :D


    Awesome, we have our own personal Big John :)