How to mic a Rivera Sedona 55?

[mattlim]

Dear AGFers,

On the recommendation of some of the AGFers a while back to solve my Taylor ES woes, I bought a Rivera Sedona 55. And my is she a beauty. I had a huge gig last week and we had to mic the amp - having struggled so long to finally get the sound I wanted, I really wanted it mic-ed rather than DI-ed.

However, the sound engineers who were a professional crew used to doing big stuff rather than the usual PA guy who doubles up as a barman that you get in small clubs, couldn't find a decent mic to put to the amp. That was primarily because it is hard to get a sweet spot between the tweeter and the cone. And we tried everything from large to small condensers to dynamic mics (including SM57s) finally ending up (to my shame) with a kick drum mic which sounded the best (I have absolutely no idea why?!)

This forum is great because I know there are guitarists on here that are much more accomplished than myself having faced and overcome similar problems. So I was wondering how you guys mic your amps? Especially those with tweeters.

Any advice much appreciated.

Matt

[JimLin]

I am certainly not an expert in this area, but would think you would almost be better off using two separate mics ... one for the 12" speaker and another for the tweeter. I've never done this with an acoustic amp, but have used two mics with my THD 2x12 amp and my Flexi with an electric setup. The cabinet has 2 speakers each tuned differently so ... upon occasion (bigger gigs with pro sound man) I have used 2 mics. I usually use sennheiser e609's -- they sound good and are easy to use w/o a stand and have never had a problem with feedback ... a definite plus for me. I just wrap the cable around the cabinet handle and hang the mic slightly off center of the speaker cone.

http://pro-audio.musiciansfriend.com...one?sku=276668

I'm sure you could find better mics for an acoustic set up ... but for micing my amp, these little mics are ideal.

[riorider]

Hi Mattlim. I'm not that knowledgeable -- I have the Sedona Lite, but haven't had to mic it in the few small venues. BUT I have tried to find out all I could. I remember seeing a long video of Dykes playing one of his acoustics through the 55, mic'd, but haven't found that video yet.

Here's one of him playing with his son Caleb, with the 55 mic'd in the background. I can't make out the model of mic, but you can see the placement:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHH1J...eature=related


I'd also suggest you contact Rivera directly. You may have to chase them a bit, but they will respond with knowledge!

You may also actually get a response from Doyle's website. Since Rivera made the Sedona in collaboration with Doyle, there's a good history there and they may tell you current gear and placement.

Phil

[riorider]

Well, from Holli, his daughter anyway!

Here's what she said:

Here's how Doyle does it:
"I always come out of the direct first and foremost. Mics are sometimes according to the engineer. Sure SM 57s are the most common on stage, but in the studio the Neumman U87 is good. There are others along the same line as the Neumman which are not as expensive. The Royer is also good. The Sure is still the best for the money of course."
Best...
Holli Brown

I had neglected to mention coming out the direct -- if you have a line level input into the house or PA, you can have full control over that output as well as discrete control over the signal out the speaker.

Again, hope this helps.

rr

[mattlim]

Thanks riorider for all the hard work! I knew that it had a DI but didn't know how it sounded through it. But hey, if it's good enough for Doyle it's good enough for me! I most definitely can't afford a U87!

Matt