Recording - July 2016 - 27

But Don't Just Take My Word For It
While writing this article, I thought it would be useful for our
readers to know what other professional engineers like to do when
it comes to recording acoustic guitar. Here are some of the responses I received from some of our industry's top engineer/producers:
Pablo Munguía, multi-Emmy award winning engineer and producer
(see full profile in the February 2016 issue). www.pablomunguia.com
Mics: Large diaphragm: AKG C414-"It does a great job of
capturing all the nuances"; AKG C12: "amazing". Small
diaphragm: "The AKG 451 stands alone. It gives you all the
detail you need in the high frequency and doesn't require you to
remove lows with EQ. For rock n' roll, I like a dynamic mic. The
Shure SM57 is great, plus it's ideal for live situations."
Placement: "It's important that the microphone is pointing toward the
edge of the soundhole, but not directly at the soundhole, to avoid the
air and low frequencies you would then have to remove with EQ."
Javier Calderón Muñuzuri, award-winning producer, songwriter,
engineer, guitarist for top-selling Latin American and Spanish artists
such as Yuridia, Victor García and Rocío Durcal; owner, Ay, Ay,
Ay! Music; facebook.com/javier.calderonmunuzuri
His guitars: Washburn Cumberland Jumbo acoustic for thick
sounding guitars, Fender Custom Shop for arpeggios and "crystal
clear moments," and 1950s Valenciana acoustic.
Mics: "Vintage U 87 for leads or solo parts; also, a Blue Dragonfly.
Usually I will double strumming parts with either of them, or I'll go to a
thinner option if needed, e.g. Neumann KM 184 or RØDE NT55."
Signal flow: "Chandler TG2 and Germanium preamps, Purple
Audio MC77 for just a bit of limiting. I use an Apogee Rosetta 800
as an interface."
Placement: "I point the mic to the 12th fret, 3 or 4 inches away
from the strings. The most important element? Good fingers!"

Rafa Sardina, multi-Grammy-award winning engineer; credits
include Stevie Wonder, Elvis Costello & The Roots, Lady Gaga,
Michael Jackson. www.rafasardina.com
Tips: "It's essential to determine the style you are recording.
Techniques vary greatly depending on whether the technique
being used on the guitar is finger-picking, strummed acoustic, or
flamenco; and this affects the role the guitar track will play in the
song. One aspect that makes me change the recording technique
is whether the track will exist in mono or if it will be done as a
doubled part in stereo; this makes me decide how much body or
acoustic volume this recording should have in and of itself."
Mics: "I'm a big fan of small diaphragm condensers such as
Neumann KM 54 or Schoeps CMC5U, but I don't discount using
ribbon or large-diaphragm mics. These mics allow you to capture
the dynamics of the instrument without losing the details and interpretative subtleties of the musician."
Placement: "My first instinct is finding an initial balance between the
soundhole and the 12th fret, but this varies with the musical genre. I
always move the mic before applying any EQ or other processing.
Sometimes it's a good idea to compensate with a second mic pointing
towards the soundhole at mid-distance from the edge of the body."
Signal processing: "My favorite preamps are classics such as
Neve 1073, Avedis MA5, EAR 824M, and Kahayan 12K72."
Armando Ávila, producer, songwriter, guitarist, and engineer
for top Spanish-language artists including Thalía, Aleks Syntek
and Alejandra Guzmán.
Mics: "I always have a Neumann KM84 and an AKG C451
ready to go. When I want something warmer I use the KM84. For
acoustic guitars that need to cut through the mix I use the C451."
Signal processing: "A Neve 1084 preamp and a Universal
Audio 1176 blackface with slow attack and a faster release, with
a compression ratio at 4:1; I also use a Burl Audio converter."

http://www.rafasardina.com http://www.pablomunguia.com http://www.facebook.com/javier.calderonmunuzuri http://www.primacoustic.com http://www.primacoustic.com/hearthedifference

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - July 2016