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Old 02-03-2020, 11:23 AM   #10
ashcat_lt
Human being with feelings
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 7,272
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So assuming the condenser has about the same polar pattern and you put it in the same place relative to the guitar and you play basically the same volume, the signal to room noise ratio will be the same. The idea that condensers pick up more room noise comes from the fact that they’re usually placed further from the source and is not some inherent difference in the technology.

That said, I usually can’t stand the sound of a close condenser on an acoustic. It very much does depend on the context of the mix, but that really high frequency clack and zing that condensers tend to pick up and sometimes even amplify just sounds horrible to me. It’s basically the exact same thing that I don’t like about the piezo pickup DI sound. That is A sound, and actually pretty important when you’re using the acoustic like a tambourine in a big production, but I don’t like it for most of the things I do.

When I know that it’s not what I want, I just use a dynamic. I usually put it in front of the bridge, but pointed toward the face of the guitar below and beyond the sound hole sometimes at a pretty extreme angle. Ideally you’d have headphones and you move the guitar around until you find something you like. Then maybe move the mic to get the same thing but with the guitar where you actually want it.

Or I happen to have a couple of decent, neutral rooms where I can back off a few feet which is good way to get a real honest picture of the instrument as a whole. Like that’s kind of where they’re meant to be heard from. In that case the top end of a condenser can still be a little strident, but it also helps provide some detail and “air” to the sound.

But also there isn’t a damn thing wrong with EQing it to get what you need. You need a good idea of what you’re actually looking for - what you need in the context of the mix. Try to get as close to that as you can with mic selection and placement. Then force it do what you want with whatever plugins it takes to get there.
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