The_Evil_Erk wrote: What are some tips when recording vocals and acustic gutiar simultameously? Neither part can be overdubbed or done a second time. So basically everything would be done on the mixer. Any tips?

There are several methods.

Do you have mics with figure-8 pattern capability?

You don't say whether this is a live performance or a studio, but I assume from the "one-off" nature, it is a live gig. I also am assuming you have a multitrack recorder so you can record from many sources during the performance and mixdown later using good monitors in a decent sounding room.

The minimum is three sound sources: a vocal mic, an instrument mic and the DI from the guitar's pickup. Without going into paricular models of microphone, you need to position the vocal mic and the instrument mic so the direct sound from the other source does not bleed too badly. The response pattern of the microphones has a direct bearing on this.

One thing that gives the guitar a good "acoustic" sound is the blend between instrument mic and pickup. You need to EQ each separately and delay the instrument mic by about 1 millisecond to minimise phasing effects. Try also reversing the phase of the pickup channel and see which way gives you the better sound when blended with the instrument mic.

It is worth using two further tracks for a stereo pair of microphones placed further back to give you ambient sound and stereo positioning.

Some recordists like to use a mid-side (MS) microphone pair for the guitar to give a wide image for the sound. My experience is that is is almost impossible to get a guitarist to keep still enough in a live performance for this to work well, and a carefully positioned instrument mic (such as a Shure Beta 57A) will give a more satisfying result for both the live sound in the hall and on a recording.

One can debate all day the types of microphone that give the best results for voice and for guitar, but in the end it comes down to what gives you the sound you like. I used to draw a firm line between studio usage and stage usage, but more recently I have been experimenting with employing studio techniques on stage. This includes using large diaphragm capacitor (LDC) mics for the guitar where performer and mic can be carefully positioned relative to the FOH speakers. I have been surprised what a warm sound is achievable in a live gig, especially for nylon-strung (classical) guitars.

Tell us a bit more about the conditions of this performance and we may be able to offer more focussed advice.

i keep on reading everywhere about DI's, what are they?

i keep on reading everywhere about DI's, what are they?

DI = Direct Injection (box).

It takes a high impedance guitar pickup output and converts it to a balanced low-level signal compatible with a microphone input on a mixer or preamp.

DI boxes have other uses, but this is the main one relevant to your project.

thanks