Mic stereo bars

[TBman]

I just bought and received this one. Is it overpriced? Probably, but it doesn't wobble like all the others I have, so there's that. Is it as big as I wanted it to be? No, but its longer than what I have by an inch or so. It's well made and the mics can be locked into position easily.

Post your stereo bars if you got them.

[AcousticDreams]

Here is an unusual adaptation I created using a Microphone stereo Bar and two boom arms. It actually solves some space issues. I don't use this set up any more as I am using SDC's, and separate lighter, smaller stands do well enough. And truth be told...two separate stands are easier to get into position.

I have not heard or seen anyone else using such a wild set up as this. Ha...probably for good reason. Although an recording engineer friend of mine, with some recognition in the field liked it enough to forward it on to another friend of his.

While it did work, I would not recommend this. Especially with the possibility of A.I taking over the world...this looks to much like a robot going crazy.

[b1j]

Originally Posted by TBman

I just bought and received this one. Is it overpriced? Probably, but it doesn't wobble like all the others I have, so there's that. Is it as big as I wanted it to be? No, but its longer than what I have by an inch or so. It's well made and the mics can be locked into position easily.

Post your stereo bars if you got them.

Only 7.5 inches long? That should be fine for XY. Seems sturdy and handy for two SCDs.

It looks like the one that came with my matched pair of sE8 SDCs. Mine's about 11" center to center. I nabbed this image off the internet:

https://vintageking.com/media/catalo...canvas=600:600

I don't know. I'm wary of XY for the proximity effect with close micing. Even at 11", the bar's not long enough for spaced pair, so I haven't been using it lately. I've been enjoying having an open space for the laptop directly in front of the guitar, with mics on the side. So this means two mic stands. (Unless you walk in AD's shoes...)

[rick-slo]

Have something similar I used years back ORTF style with a matched set of Gefell M300s.

[Doug Young]

I've tried a bunch, but the coolest ones I've come across are the ones by Shapeways. Not "bars" exactly, but mounts for multiple mics in standard placements. They have a ton of them for various mics, and will even do custom ones. This one:

https://www.shapeways.com/product/8E...80007&li=shops

is one I ask them to make for the vertical/reverse ORTF placement that Bob Womack recommends. They made me one, and then put in in their catalog.

I have XY, ORTF and a few others, and are nice because they hold the mics exactly in the intended position. Fairly inexpensive given that they replace both a "bar" and the mic holders themselves.

[Rudy4]

Well, I'm "frugal", so I'm prone to sneak out to the workshop if I'm looking for something to hold mics.

[TBman]

Originally Posted by Rudy4

Well, I'm "frugal", so I'm prone to sneak out to the workshop if I'm looking for something to hold mics.

You saved yourself about $400.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...30-cm-spacebar

[KevWind]

Now Days $30 doesn't seem all that expensive

I have the Rode one I got from Sweewater about 4 years ago and they are now $49

Neither seem overly expensive . Especially compared to say Triad Orbit which is arguable one of the best and most versatile but will likely run about $200 said and done

I do space pair and have tried it several different configs

Opposing horizontal


Upright



And lately parallel up and down. Which I have found helps significantly with not getting the sound shifting right and left (because I stand and not particularly still )

[Feste]

Originally Posted by Doug Young

I've tried a bunch, but the coolest ones I've come across are the ones by Shapeways. Not "bars" exactly, but mounts for multiple mics in standard placements. They have a ton of them for various mics, and will even do custom ones. This one:

https://www.shapeways.com/product/8E...80007&li=shops

is one I ask them to make for the vertical/reverse ORTF placement that Bob Womack recommends. They made me one, and then put in in their catalog.

I have XY, ORTF and a few others, and are nice because they hold the mics exactly in the intended position. Fairly inexpensive given that they replace both a "bar" and the mic holders themselves.

Doug, that is brilliant! What distance to you recommend from the guitar with that bar?

[fitness1]

I've had a couple of these in the past and thought they were just fine

I like the added adjustment offered by the "wings"

https://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-...BoC6HgQAvD_BwE

[TBman]

Originally Posted by fitness1

I've had a couple of these in the past and thought they were just fine

I like the added adjustment offered by the "wings"

https://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-...BoC6HgQAvD_BwE

How long is this one? Nvm, I found it on On Stage's website. Good one, thanks.

[AcousticDreams]

Originally Posted by KevWind

Now Days $30 doesn't seem all that expensive

I have the Rode one I got from Sweewater about 4 years ago and they are now $49

Wow....you certainly have gotten a lot of different set ups with that Rode bar. It looks like one of the sturdiest built, compared to the other I have seen and used.

[AcousticDreams]

Originally Posted by Doug Young

I've tried a bunch, but the coolest ones I've come across are the ones by Shapeways. Not "bars" exactly, but mounts for multiple mics in standard placements. They have a ton of them for various mics, and will even do custom ones. This one:

https://www.shapeways.com/product/8E...80007&li=shops

is one I ask them to make for the vertical/reverse ORTF placement that Bob Womack recommends. They made me one, and then put in in their catalog.

I have XY, ORTF and a few others, and are nice because they hold the mics exactly in the intended position. Fairly inexpensive given that they replace both a "bar" and the mic holders themselves.

I may just have to get this Shapeways bar. No messing around with angle finders and distances. I like that.

Doug, are the capsules still 17 cm apart with this reverse ORTF bar?

I Just read up a bit on the discovery of ORTF. Looks like it is not based on ear distances, but was found through experimentation.
? Scientifically speaking...What is it that makes the 110 degree angle & the 17 Cm work then?

* Can a Reverse ORTF be use at a 30 to 45 degree angle(still keeping the 110 degree angles to each other) like this drawing I just made? Instead of straight up and down. For a little more stereo imaging.
** If 17 cm has some scientific reasoning, then can multiples of 17cm be used as well? Such as 34 cm.

[Doug Young]

Originally Posted by Feste

Doug, that is brilliant! What distance to you recommend from the guitar with that bar?

I generally start with 8-10 inches from the guitar with any micing technique, but that can vary according to your taste, guitar, room, etc. This setup is meant to be vertical - there are a number of threads here with Bob Womack discussing this mic arrangement.

[Doug Young]

Originally Posted by AcousticDreams

Doug, are the capsules still 17 cm apart with this reverse ORTF bar?

Yes, 17 cm, 110 degrees, just inward instead of out.

* Can a Reverse ORTF be use at a 30 to 45 degree angle(still keeping the 110 degree angles to each other) like this drawing I just made? Instead of straight up and down. For a little more stereo imaging.
** If 17 cm has some scientific reasoning, then can multiples of 17cm be used as well? Such as 34 cm.

The thing I try to keep in mind with these standard mic placements, XY, ORTF, NOS, Blumelein, etc, is that none of them were developed for close micing an acoustic guitar. They probably all started as a way to mic ensembles, small orchestras, jazz groups, and so on, probably at relatively long distances - many feet at least. For whatever reason, acoustic guitarists seem to have latched onto these for close micing, and while some of the characteristics remain, I think once you're talking inches from the guitar rather than 10 or 20 feet away, it seems to me that things are a bit different. Kind of like taking binoculars that are designed to see things in the distance and using them as a microscope for a few inches away! I could be wrong, but I don't seem to notice much discussion of these techniques for other instruments that get close stereo-mic'd, like pianos or drum sets, for example.

So anyway, long-winded way to say, I think you can put the mics anywhere that sound good, and that often depends on the guitar, the room, your personal taste, and how the guitar is being used (like in a mix, for example). For whatever reason, these standard techniques just often work, but they're just starting points. Even with things like XY, there's no magic to 90 degrees - some people use less, some use more. Also no hard rule about 17cm. A limitation to these Shapeways mounts is that they're not flexible, unlike a general-purpose bar, or even 2 mic stands, where you can put the mics anywhere, any angle, any distance apart. But they're handy, and make it easy to achieve the default standards if that's what you want.

I'd keep in mind, tho that with this specific "vertical ORTF" setup, my understanding is that one its main benefits is that both sides sound pretty similar. This produces a more centered, focused, less wide stereo image, but does mean that if you use the guitar in a mix with other instruments and decide to pan it one way or another, the sound won't change much if at all. You have to decide if less dramatic stereo is a good tradeoff for having a more consistent sound in both speakers, which it could be. One thing that has always bothered me about spaced pairs is that neither side tends to sound very good on its own - it's the overall effect that works. This vertical placement flips that around, the stereo image is a bit less "interesting", but both sides sound equally good.