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Post subject: How do you mic your bass cabinet?
Posted: Sun Nov 20, 2011 2:17 pm
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How do you mic your bass cabinet? whats right whats wrong?


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Post subject: Re: How do you mic your bass cabinet?
Posted: Sun Nov 20, 2011 2:27 pm
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I usually go direct when the amp is not enough by it self, but the times I have miked my amp, I used a Shure SM-57 at the tiniest angle from the speaker.

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Post subject: Re: How do you mic your bass cabinet?
Posted: Mon Nov 21, 2011 10:09 pm
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I think it is much better to always go direct. You CAN mic a bass cab but the sound pressure really punches a mic - not so good. Plus the bass mic can pic up the bass drum and other stage sounds.

Many others may have a diff opinion but I have always gone direct. Our soundmand gets me a killer tone so I just go with it.


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Post subject: Re: How do you mic your bass cabinet?
Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2011 4:17 am
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stroker vance wrote:
I think it is much better to always go direct. You CAN mic a bass cab but the sound pressure really punches a mic - not so good. Plus the bass mic can pic up the bass drum and other stage sounds.

Many others may have a diff opinion but I have always gone direct. Our soundman gets me a killer tone so I just go with it.


Right on the money - Mic'ing a bass cabinet is a last resort procedure - It has no real value because of the frequency response issues and fine-tuning time involved in the setup. I once saw a 4X10 cabinet sound output pressure blow over a 16 inch tall ProLine mic and mic stand. Having a mic rolling around on a stage is not a good thing. Just run your line out into the sound system for the venue and the results will be much better.


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Post subject: Re: How do you mic your bass cabinet?
Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2011 12:10 pm
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Direct out whenever possible live. Sometimes for recording electric bass you will want to use both a direct out on one channel and a cab mic on the other. Then in mix down you can blend the two channels to come up with the best sound. Bass often sounds better in recordings when given some "air" so the mic can be placed farther away than in a live setting where it is usually right against the cab grill.

When recording you will almost always benefit from miking the cab and doing a simultaneous direct out and recording each on individual channels whenever possible. Sometimes when playing live it may be impossible to direct out. When playing live you should mike a bass cab ONLY if the PA has both adequate power and capable subwoofers.

To mike a bass cab, especially live, you need to use a microphone with a high sound pressure level tolerance, preferably mounted on a shock mounted desk type stand or very short boom. It needs to be several inches off center from the center cap of one of the speakers. Moving it an inch or two left or right, closer or further away makes a huge difference and it takes a bit of trial and error to find the "sweet spot." The "sweet spot" will be different indoors from outdoors and can even vary based on room acoustics in a studio or indoor environment A Shure SM57 might be too easily overdriven, especially if you really crank your amp in a live situation but may work ok in recording. I'd prefer just about any kickdrum mic over the 57. Other good dynamic mics to try are a Shure SM7B, Sennheiser MDU421, EV RE20/27ND type. Many condenser mics are not up to it, but a few are and usually these will have a sensitivity switch that pads down the output usually by 20db to 30db. Of all the dynamics, only the Shure SM7B has a built in shock mount which makes it my first choice. A shock mount reduces sympathetic vibration of the stand from being transferred to the microphone coloring the sound and making it extra boomy.


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Post subject: Re: How do you mic your bass cabinet?
Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2011 1:10 pm
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+1 on using the direct out, if available.

But +1 on using a kick mic if no direct out is available.


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Post subject: Re: How do you mic your bass cabinet?
Posted: Wed Nov 23, 2011 6:02 pm
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SKcoppertele wrote:
I use a speaker cab for a mic when recording and an audix i5 live.I don't necessarily play live but my dad does.I set him up the i5 because the people he plays with are idiots.1 dude( the lead guitar player) goes out and buys a condenser mic.My dad used to go direct all the time but now he can't because of the phantom power.And the cheap $@! behringer mixer is all on or all off,so I cant just choose what channel has phantom and witch doesn't. :roll:
idiots......

I'm gonna tell your Dad that you said all this! :lol:
Eventually, you're going to find out he was a bit wiser and more experienced than you thought, but probably not until you have kids of your own. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

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Post subject: Re: How do you mic your bass cabinet?
Posted: Thu Dec 01, 2011 11:49 am
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Thanks guys but what is the best way to hook it up? into the direct box and is their a wrong way to hook it up? Thanks


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Post subject: Re: How do you mic your bass cabinet?
Posted: Fri Dec 02, 2011 8:33 pm
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Hi Good In Bed,

When i say "Direct Out" I'm referring to an XLR output on your bass amp which was put there by the designer for recording/PA feeds. Patch from it to a microphone input on the microphone mixer. Again you can only do this on a decent PA with subwoofers, mains and a crossover to manage the speaker array.

You can use a standard direct box, but I think you'd find the tone flat and lifeless and also you won't be able to hear yourself clearly in a live situation with a band. If your bass amp does not have an XLR out, instead of a standard direct box, I'd suggest something like a Tech 21 Sans Amp Bass Driver or a Tech 21 Bass Pod. Both those devices have an XLR microphone level output and will sound MUCH better than a typical standard direct box for either live or recording situations.


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