Mixing advice
 

Hi all

I have been doing more and more recording of late and am keen to learn more about getting the best acoustic sound I can after the recording (assuming the mic placement / room is as good as I can get it)

I am looking for some advice on how to improve my post recording process - EQ/effects.

The below piece was recorded using a spaced pair of AT2020 mics into a Zoom H5 before being imported into Auria (IOS) I then added some EQ - high pass / some mid cut and a small high shelf. Some basic compression using default setting, and lastly some reverb.

I would really appreciate any critique and suggestions as to what you hear on the recording that you either like or thinks needs improving - I am trying to train myself as to what to listen for and what I might not be hearing.

https://soundcloud.com/peter-wright-.../hana-mix-test

As a reference recording - here is the sort of sound I would like to get to in terms of output;

https://youtu.be/t2DE3HqG9Q0

Many thanks

Main differences that I hear:

the two guitars have different tonal qualities
the high shelf you're using is probably not doing you any favors.
there's a lot more noise in your recording but I'm not sure the source

You are getting a pretty good result. I agree with the above comment that the guitars are different, and I'll add that they are so different that it is probably the main difference in the two recordings.

I would bet your target recording has two "advantages" in getting the target sound:

A gate.

Better mic for the target sound.

Your target player is sitting on a big cushy couch, totally eliminating any reflected sound from those directions. Have you contacted the target sound source to find out what they are doing post-recording?

More of recording issues than post recording "mixing". Try to quiet the recording background noise and set up mikes for a recording with more body and warmth.
Try to record to where equalization is not really needed (high pass filter is usually a good idea though). Don't use a reverb that makes the recording sound worse
than without the reverb (the treble especially can get a little harsher and ring out to much).

Thanks - makes sense.

Can you offer any guidance as to how mics could be set up for more body and warmth?

One is helped a lot by a good sounding room. Personally I usually use a spaced pair of mikes separated about a couple of feet and about two feet out from the guitar, one mike pointed towards the neck body joint and the other towards south of the bridge a bit. Wearing headphones I experiment for best sound by turning the a little to the right or left. A warmer sound moving towards the mikes with consideration for too much of a muddy sound starting to occur.
A number of various mike positions can work. I think the main thing is listing back live through good headphones as you are setting up the mikes.

Thanks - will experiment with the high shelf

Got you - thanks. I do tend to do what you describe but I think the problem lies in knowing when it sounds right and not just different..

Thanks - makes sense.

First, nice playing.

All good advice in this thread, but this is the most important IMO:
Like playing guitar, getting a great recording is a lot easier said than done. There is only one way to get good at it: practice, practice, practice.

Get it right in the recording process.

Other than right hand placement and picking technique, mic positioning is the best eq. Experiment with lots of techniques (Spaced Pair, XY, ORTF, etc.), and experiment with mic distance from the guitar (6", 12", 18", 24"). Your room may dictate a closer micing technique.

Record and label each take, and make a lot of takes. Go back a day or two later, a week later, and re-listen to the takes through both monitors and headphones. This is the only way to learn how your guitar sounds in your room with your mics.

Thank you for the kind words :-) I have been working on this piece with some kind help from forum member @joecharter (Mau) who plays it so wonderfully.

Given the unidirectional nature of the AT2020 mics, can I “point” these and control position? (As opposed to simply having them facing forward)

I suspect you are in an untreated room? You may need to mic closer to get rid of the room sound. You might also try different rooms. 24 inches apart is also pretty far, tho that can work. As other's have said, experimenting is the key. You should be able to get a good sound with those mics and recorder, with no EQ or effects.

Thanks Doug - and yes, an untreated carpeted small sized room.

Can you tell me what impact the room is having in terms of sound, so that I can try to be aware of it and look elsewhere for improvement?

Would a larger or smaller room likely be better and what might I look for?

Clap your hands. How loud is sound right after the clap? Are there places in the room where it seems less? A larger room is generally better for recording

It really depends. You may hear an echo or a hollow sound, but a bad room can also show up as just a harsh sound, which is kind of what I'm hearing here. It can be tricky to predict how a room will sound, because mics hear things differently than our ears - we tend to compensate when we're listening and can ignore a bad room sound to some extent, while the mics won't. I don't know how much of your recording sound is due to processing and how much is due to the room - but I suspect the biggest difference between your target and yours is the room. You may be able to partially overcome a bad room by micing closer than you would normally - pretty much how I handle my you tube videos, which are done in a pretty standard untreated bedroom. Try spaced pairs about 15-20 inches apart and maybe 6-8 inches from the guitar. You might also post the raw track before any processing in Auria, which would make it clearer whether it's the room or post-processing that's the problem.