Galaxy Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Wich is the best microphone to mic a basscabinet in live situations?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
umph Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 i like my re-20 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShergoldSnickers Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 (edited) Depends on what you want to pay really. £260 - [url="http://www.heilsound.com/pro/products/pr40/"]Heil Sound PR40[/url]. Despite the rather cool looks, this is a dynamic mic, not a condenser. It can handle high SPLs, with a very good frequency response. £110 - [url="http://www.akg.com/site/products/powerslave,id,261,pid,261,nodeid,2,_language,EN.html"]AKG D112[/url] - better known for recording drums, the kick drum in particular. Robust. Very robust. Some prefer the AKG 412 but this is £300. The 412 is better known as a tom mic, but there's no reason to limit it to that. £80 - [url="http://www.akg.com/site/products/powerslave,id,1159,pid,1159,nodeid,2,_country,EN,_language,EN.html"]AKG P2[/url] - cheaper than the D112, and possibly better suited to bass instruments in general than the D112, which is a kick drum specialist mic really. There are others from Electrovoice (RE20 or N/D868 for example) and Shure (PG52, Beta 52a) etc, but the golden rule is don't use a Shure SM58 or 57 - no real bass end at all. Edited March 24, 2011 by ShergoldSnickers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bankai Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 (edited) Sennheiser e602-II seems to be the microphone of choice for the touring bands we have in. Recommended [url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/sennheiser_e_602_ii.htm"]http://www.thomann.de/gb/sennheiser_e_602_ii.htm[/url] Edited March 24, 2011 by Bankai Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexclaber Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Contrary to Mr Snickers I'd avoid kick drum mics and go for instrument mics with better midrange performance. So I'd rather use an SM57 than a D112. For most bass sounds I'd rather DI, or DI and mic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doddy Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 [quote name='Bankai' post='1174637' date='Mar 24 2011, 01:52 PM']Sennheiser e602-II seems to be the microphone of choice for the touring bands we have in. Recommended [url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/sennheiser_e_602_ii.htm"]http://www.thomann.de/gb/sennheiser_e_602_ii.htm[/url][/quote] That's what I use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShergoldSnickers Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 [quote name='Bankai' post='1174637' date='Mar 24 2011, 01:52 PM']Sennheiser e602-II seems to be the microphone of choice for the touring bands we have in. Recommended [url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/sennheiser_e_602_ii.htm"]http://www.thomann.de/gb/sennheiser_e_602_ii.htm[/url][/quote] [quote name='Doddy' post='1174662' date='Mar 24 2011, 02:04 PM']That's what I use.[/quote] Asking around, two out of three responders have mentioned this Sennheiser mic. I actually agree with Alex's comment above, ideally you should use DI, or a combination of mic and DI, and preferably a suitable wide range instrument mic over a kick mic. However, with just one mic and no DI, I've found it easier to get a sound starting from a kick mic, rather than an instrument mic with no bottom end, but we are all different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
51m0n Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 (edited) I'll second the dont use a drum mic call above - its a bad idea, they tend to suck mids for a start, since you have to eq that mid back into the bass. I would also put a huge +1 on the Heil PR40, it is a sublime mic, designed for broadcast vocal, very good frequency plot, goes a lot higher and deeper than most dynamics do. Strangely it does in fact make a great kick mic too, you eq your own mid cut into it rather than relying on a built in one. In this case it can be ok to use the same mic for a bass cab and a kick since the frequency response of this mic is so much flatter than a kick mic. Oh and if you record vocals it sounds lovely on a pretty wide range of voices, and no one but no one is going to overload this mic with their voice... Ive also got pretty good results (mixed with a DI) with a 57, 58, Senn e835, and particularly good results with a [url="http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/aug03/articles/blueball.htm"]blueball[/url] Edited March 24, 2011 by 51m0n Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrtcat Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 SM57 all the way for me. I generally have that clanky middly live sound and a kick mic just doesn't cope that well with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nash Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 (edited) when i do sound i get the best live tone from a senn e609 for the mid-hi freq and getting that grunt and the DI dialled for lower freqs. also i like the shure beta 52 Edited March 24, 2011 by nash Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joegarcia Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Another vote against the scooped kick mics. My faves are EV RE-20, Sennheiser MD421, Beyer M88 and Shure SM7B. All of which are high quality dynamics with a very flat response. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_5 Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 [quote name='joegarcia' post='1175320' date='Mar 24 2011, 10:11 PM']My faves are EV RE-20, Sennheiser MD421,[/quote] +1. The RE20 is a great mic with no proximity effect (it can be practically up against the grille without over-emphasising the bottom end). The MD421s will take anything that you can throw at them and deliver a good sound. I've used them on everything from drums, banjo, trombone etc... I'd still recommend a quality DI though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LawrenceH Posted March 25, 2011 Share Posted March 25, 2011 I'd second a 57 plus DI. Or if you've got the rig and the PA to do it justice, a nice large diaphragm condenser capable of high spl eg AKG 414, mmm, lovely. Just don't spill beer in it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bankai Posted March 25, 2011 Share Posted March 25, 2011 You'd never use a cabinet mic solo. It should be used in combination with a good DI. The microphone is there just to add that bass power/tone to it that you just can't get from DI alone. Hence using what is primarily a bass drum microphone. You don't need to rely on it to reproduce everything, it's there to do a specific job in supplementing the DI, and a microphone like the e602 does that best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassnut62 Posted March 25, 2011 Share Posted March 25, 2011 (edited) +1 on mixing mic sound with DI I use an old Bassman 2x15 cab and got my best ever results by mic both speakers into separate channels and DI into a third channel. I can't remember for sure what mics we used though; but I think one was an SM57 and the other a big kick mic Edited March 25, 2011 by Bassnut62 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexclaber Posted March 25, 2011 Share Posted March 25, 2011 I've always felt that micing a cab is about capturing the midrange and treble character of the speaker, hence why it tends to be more popular with the Ampeg SVT rock set. With the larger scale pro tour rigs there's often an Avalon U5 or similar lurking in the background delivering the weight of the sound. Close micing a large 2 or 3 way rear-ported cab with no supplementary DI is not easy if you want a balanced sound! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joegarcia Posted March 25, 2011 Share Posted March 25, 2011 [quote name='Bankai' post='1175502' date='Mar 25 2011, 03:57 AM']You'd never use a cabinet mic solo. It should be used in combination with a good DI. The microphone is there just to add that bass power/tone to it that you just can't get from DI alone. Hence using what is primarily a bass drum microphone. You don't need to rely on it to reproduce everything, it's there to do a specific job in supplementing the DI, and a microphone like the e602 does that best.[/quote] Definitely agree on principle about mixing DI and mic but have to disagree about the e602. You want mids and highs from the mic and the e602 scoops loads of the important mids out. Check it's frequency response: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jbarks Posted March 25, 2011 Share Posted March 25, 2011 I've had good results with Senn 421s and D112s. Used to run it in combination with a REDDI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bankai Posted March 25, 2011 Share Posted March 25, 2011 [quote name='joegarcia' post='1176022' date='Mar 25 2011, 03:19 PM']You want mids and highs from the mic and the e602 scoops loads of the important mids out. Check it's frequency response: [/quote] Interesting. I go the other way round; relying on DI for clear and articulate mid/highs and then mic for POWERAWESOMENESSBLOWYOURFACEOFFBASS. Hence the e602 choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thumbo Posted March 25, 2011 Share Posted March 25, 2011 DI + mic is great if you get the right mic for the situation. Your best bet is going to be trying out a few mics and see what you like the sound of, also pay close attention to how much bleed you're getting from other loud things on the stage. There is no "best" mic for this situation, just personal preference. Take note of what the guys here prefer to use and then go and do a little online homework! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watchman Posted March 28, 2011 Share Posted March 28, 2011 [quote name='Bankai' post='1175502' date='Mar 25 2011, 04:57 AM']You'd never use a cabinet mic solo. It should be used in combination with a good DI. The microphone is there just to add that bass power/tone to it that you just can't get from DI alone. Hence using what is primarily a bass drum microphone. You don't need to rely on it to reproduce everything, it's there to do a specific job in supplementing the DI, and a microphone like the e602 does that best.[/quote] +1. Madness not to have DI as well IMHO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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