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Hello

I'm looking for some help on getting a real good microphone for guitar. I've been doing some amateur recording with the "classic" SM-57 and I can't believe how bland and shitty everything sounds. I got so depressed using that piece of shit that now I have no problem on spending over 300-400 $ on some decent microphone with some guaranteed value.

My amp is the compretely unremarkable Marshall MG-250DFX. I like to play quite cranked up and my aim is to get a very 'alive' sound with lots of crunch and power.

I've done some searches for similar threads and I think people always mention the Beyer M-88 as well as the Senheisser MD421. But they also talk about them as 'all around' good microphones that happen to work well on guitars. I am, on the other hand, just looking for a mic that works especially good on guitar and don't care really much about the rest of features. Would any of those be useful to get the sound I described? Or are there better choices?

Thank you so much and forgive me if this question has been already answered

the sennheiser e609 is pretty popular for miking guitar cabinets.
but i think you should also try other different things.
a) another guitar amp. really. those marshall mg's can be painfully trebly.
b) use two mics (even two sm57's), one near and one far away for ambience. and mix both signals.
c) move the mic. use headphones and move it a lot until you found places where it sounds better. it really changes.
also, try a search on the forum in the tech room regarding recording guitars.

good luck.

ribbon mic

r0ck1r0ck2 wrote:ribbon mic

I bought 2 cheapo chinese ribbonmics a few weeks back and at the moment it is my favorite thing on guitar amps that I own. Keep in mind this is distance miced from at least several feet and I've recorded mostly cleanish guitars with it so it may not provide the same results for you. Trial and error is the only real answer to your question but a lot of folks seem to agree that large diaphragm dynamics ( like the senn. MD 421 or EV RE 20 ) or a quality ( in my case a not so quality) ribbon mic are a good place to start.

What are you running the SM57 into? That's another question.

Beyer M201

Antero wrote:What are you running the SM57 into? That's another question.

another important question.

if you have a preamp with nice enough gain, you should consider taking the transformer out of the sm57 (tape op mod). it gives the mic a more pronounced low and mid range, but significantly lowers the output level, making it require more gain. depending on your preamp, this could be a good or bad thing.

Hey, thank you so much for your answers.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention my guitar. It's a Vintage 65' Mexican Telecaster. Nothing particularly great.

I never thought I would need a preamp. Maybe I should consider getting one as well?

From your answers I'm beginning to think that my shitty sound might be a combination of a lot of shitty factors (my crummy amp, my less-than-stellar guitar, and also the SM57). I guess it's time for a major upgrade

mics like preamps.

what are you recording to?

I'm using one of those Yamaha AW1600 workstations. Again, I know it's far from perfect, but you see, I'm just starting. I think it comes with a crappy preamp built-in.