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So after a few years of using and recording with various Zoom products (h4, H4n and H2) I thought I would share some tips and strategies that I have found to be useful when doing home recordings of my acoustic guitars. Some of these may seem a little simplistic, but so many times I have heard amateur sounding recordings that could've sounded a lot better with just a little bit of care.
- First and foremost: TUNE YOUR GUITAR! If you are at all unsure of how to tune or maybe your just a little on the lazy side when it comes to this please get a tuner and use one. There are some great ones available for iPhone now too!
- Change those strings! Now this one is a little more tricky, and depends on personal taste. When recording nylon string guitars it can be better to change the strings 5 or 6 days before a recording session and give the strings a little time to "break in". This will help to reduce string noise (like when you slide on the neck) and give the bass strings a slightly more mellow vibe which a lot of classical/nylon guitar enthusiasts enjoy. It will also give them time to stretch out and improve your tuning stability. When it comes to steel string recordings, especially if you are doing them in a band setting, I say change them as often as possible, they take very little time to stretch out and that bright characteristic of the new strings lends itself well to steel string acoustic recordings. In both instances: nylon or steel string however, dead strings will not record well, will not tune properly and will ruin what could otherwise be a very good recording!
- Whats in a pick? Now I realize that we all have our preferred pick that we are comfortable with and enjoy the tone it produces, and in a live setting this is absolutely fine (crucial in fact!). However, when you are recording keep in mind that you have the ability to capture a certain tone exactly how you wish and this setting is the perfect time to experiment with different gauges of pick. Maybe your regular pick allows you to produce a beautiful fat singing lead tone but might fall a little short when it comes to strumming. Experiment here and you can really up the ante! It's little details like this that make all the difference in the world!
- Placement, placement, placement! It's so easy to get into a rut when it comes to microphone placement, especially if you are a bedroom recorder or live in a smaller apartment. We tend to "set it and forget" always recording in the exact same place. You would be amazed at the differences in tone color just by sitting back a few more feet away from the mic than you usually do! How about recording in the bathroom? On your balcony? Go back to your childhood and build a fort out of blankets and couch cushions! the opportunities are really endless if you use your imagination and again a great recording is all about these little details! I have read scientific articles that claim that the human brain recognizes the timbre (quality of sound) of a recording more than it actually recognizes the music itself!! So spend some time!
- Make, model and quality of your instrument. Have you ever heard the saying "you can't polish a tird?" well it some ways this is very true, you're never going to make your 100 dollar Yamaha sound like a 6,000 dollar custom build. But play to your instruments strengths, sometimes the cheaper guitars have a very nice throaty/midrangy sound and you could easily use this to your advantage. Also try and meet as many other guitar players as you can and TRADE your instruments. Having a variety of different guitars available makes a huge difference in what you can capture with your recording gear and is also very inspiring!
I hope some of these tips will be of help, remember recording anything is a journey and you have to be willing to experiment as much as possible to find a great sound, whatever that may be!
Rob Reid is a graduate from the Dalhousie University Classical Guitar Program with a concentration in performance. He is a teacher, performer and composer working out of Halifax, NS Canada. He currently maintains a blog on portable digital recorders and recording ideas at Portable Digital Recorders Site Please check it out and leave a comment!
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