Recording - December 2014 - 44
By Paul J. Stamler
We've been discussing how phase mismatch and
comb filtering can destroy the lovely leakage
between mics that lends magic to band recordings.
In Part 1 of this article, I focused on recording multiple instruments in a room, with multiple mics picking
them up. The Phase Monster is sneaky, though; even
if you make your recordings by layering one or two
tracks at a time, it can still jump up and bite you.
Here are a couple of ways that can happen, and
some possible remedies.
Follow the bouncing ball
If a sound source, or a microphone, is close to a
reflecting surface, it can cause phase interference
even with a single microphone. Take a look at
Figures 1 and 2; they show a couple of ways that
sound can arrive at a microphone twice-once
direct, once on a single bounce. Sound can bounce
off a wall or a floor-or even a music stand, if it's
one of the fancy ones that's made from a large
expanse of sheet metal-that's why, at our university's studio, the music stands are covered with carpet!
The solution, obviously, is to soak up the bounce;
figure out where the sound is reflecting, and put some
absorption there. When I used to make recordings of
classical recitals at another university's chapel, which
had highly-reflective stone floors, I used to record
them using ORTF microphones several feet from the
performers. To keep the Phase Monster at bay, I'd
bring 4' x 6' throw rugs to the gig and place them
on the floor between the performers and my mic
stand, calculating where the sound would bounce
(often halfway between the performers and the mics,
if both were at the same height) and dropping a rug
44
RECORDING December 2014
in that spot. It cleaned up the recordings wonderfully. If you try this trick,
make sure you vacuum the rugs often; you don't want the clarinet player sneezing from dust mid-solo. Yes, it happens.
1
Amps that bite back
It's common, when recording electric guitar tracks, to use a pair of
microphones: one up against the cabinet's grille, the other out in the
room picking up the ambience, adding a little controlled leakage even
with a single source (see Eleanor Goldfield's article "Capturing The
Cab" in our May 2014 issue). The trouble is, the mic on the grille picks
up each note before the room mic does, which can let the Phase
Monster take serious bites out of your sound.
2
Recording - December 2014
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - December 2014
Contents
Recording - December 2014 - Cover1
Recording - December 2014 - Cover2
Recording - December 2014 - 1
Recording - December 2014 - 2
Recording - December 2014 - 3
Recording - December 2014 - 4
Recording - December 2014 - 5
Recording - December 2014 - Contents
Recording - December 2014 - 7
Recording - December 2014 - 8
Recording - December 2014 - 9
Recording - December 2014 - 10
Recording - December 2014 - 11
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Recording - December 2014 - Cover3
Recording - December 2014 - Cover4
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