[Les Cargill[_4_]]

Nate Najar wrote:
I posted this over at PRW (my new favorite recording place!) but I
wanted to see what you guys think over here.

What's your favorite spot mic and placement for upright bass in a
small combo setting?



A spot on the bass doesn't hurt, but make sure
you get a pickup track. If you can't get one,
you can't, but get one if you can.

This being said, I stuck a Marshall SP-1 about 3 foot out on the
last bass I recorded, and it worked great. Pointed about at
the bottom of the fingerboard. This was isolated, but
I would not be surprised if it would have worked in an ensemble
setting.

This also being said, if the bassist uses an amp and it's an ensemble
session, don't be afraid to mic the amp or just EQ the main
stereo pair. But a DI track is a very good safety...

I have a few I like to use, depending on what's available and the
room and situation- most anything will work fine actually- but I
don't have an absolute favorite "go to" so I am curious how others
like to do it.

I'll start, RCA44 about 24inches in front of the bridge works nicely
but you still need to hp the hell out of it. You can substitute an
RE20 or 421 also. That's usually where I start. My biggest problem
is I end up miking too close and then I have all kinds of issues to
deal with in post that I would rather not do. For a jazz group I
prefer to get the sound and not have too many fader moves unless they
are necessary (preserves the groups dynamics).... too close miking
makes this more difficult!

what do you like and why?


--
Les Cargill