4x12 micing

Posted: Mon Sep 11, 2006 11:16 pm

would there be a difference in tone if i disconected the other 3 speakers on my cab? with them all on doesnt if mean that the other speakers are leaking frequencies that i dont want on to my track? i have done every thing to get it to sound as good as i can (i am not displeased with my results but it could get better). i still get a high frequency over tone, its not very noticable when i mix all the tracks together, but i imagine if its actually gone, i would get more clairity and definition.

i dont want to open my cab up if this isnt what the problem with the high frequency is.

any help?

Posted: Mon Sep 11, 2006 11:41 pm

There will always be some bleed from everything else in a multi-speaker cabinet. The 'other' speakers, the cabinet itself, the handles(really! try micing it there sometime...big surprise!!!), the floor, the walls close in proximity, the head sitting on the cabinet....Its an endless search to eradicate all these things, so, make these things your friend. Live with them and use certain techniques to control how much of them you will have present.

The ring you're hearing may be from the tubes vibrating in the head if its sitting on the speaker box when you're tracking. Dont put it there or isolate it with some sonic pads.

Isolate the cabinet from the floor. Its amazing how much mud comes from there...

A roll of foam in each handle cavity will silence some very obvious noise.

Getting the cabinet out away from any walls and sitting it in a non-parallel orientation to the wals will cut down of some standing waves...especially if you record loudly.

Turning down the amp usually results in a fuller much more usable sound with more harmonic content and purity.

Disconnecting three speakers in a four-twelve cab will result in an impedance your amp may or may not like. And it will increase the low-end rumble since only one speaker will be moving air in a cavity built for 4 speakers to do this work .

Try these things. enjoy.

Posted: Tue Sep 12, 2006 2:41 am

If the cab has a metal grill, those vibrate and resonate like crazy.
With cabs equipped with a metal grill it's best to remove the grill for recording if at all possible. Sometimes they have seperate grills on each speaker.

One time We were micing a Marshall cab at pretty much full tilt with a JCM2000 for power tube saturation. We had a loud buzzing at certain frequencies. It turns out the cab had a back brace that didn't have the screws in it and that allowed the back board to flex and vibrate against the brace. Installed some screws and it sounded ace!

Posted: Tue Sep 12, 2006 1:16 pm

I had this problem so bad once that it was even a problem playing live. It turned out to be the bottom cover of a cry baby wah pedal. At certain frequencies it sounded like a midget was playing a kazoo right under my microphone. I guess that's not always a bad thing, but it didn't really fit with the groove at the time.

BTW, a little silicone fixed me right up.

Posted: Wed Sep 13, 2006 1:52 pm

question.

isolate the cab from the floor? it is on wheels. is that what you mean? do i buy pads to put under it or something?

foam in the handles? what kind of noise comes from the handles? why am i asking i should just try it and hear right Smile

my amp has multiple impedence so this is'nt a problem. i try and record on the quieter side, but its hard to convince other guitar players that it sounds clearer and fuller.

i would move my cab out of the corner but i dont have space to move all the guitar rigs into a better location. so i must live with the sound that is created. Sad

is there any way to cut out the low end rumble when i dissconect the other speakers and use the same cab? the only solution i can think of would be to put my speaker in a 1x12 cab, which i have yet to buy.

Posted: Fri Sep 15, 2006 2:20 pm

You should be able to tell if it's someting rattling on the cabinet, and tape it up if you need to do so. Before unhooking the speakers I'd try not close-micing it. Get some distance between the mic and the cabinet, crank it and record a track that way and see what you think.

I would think that if it's the rattling wheels, handles, or grills, you'd be able to tell and fix that pretty easily.

Posted: Fri Sep 22, 2006 5:57 pm

ive tried micing it from further away and i just dont like the results. plus my band is recording in live sessions, so i need it up close for the isolation of tracks. i dont think that there is a overwhelming noise problem in my guitar tracks, i just want to make the best tone possible.

I changed the wiring and just like i suspected it sounds better than before. It gives me thicker more defined results. I will try and get a 1x12 cab at some point and post my results. thx for your help fellers.

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