3:1 Rule with mic setup

[ukejon]

These vids got posted in another thread, but I was curious as to whether this mic setup is advisable or would it possibly introduce phase cancellation issues?

[rick-slo]

The three-to-one rule has been widely miss applied to recording a single instrument such as a guitar.

The rule applies to recording multiple sound sources and has to do with volume levels. Take two singers for example - singer A should be at least three times closer to mike A' than singer B, and vice versa. Therefore the volume level at mike A' of singer A is much higher than the volume level of singer B at mike A', and again vice versa. Thus each singer gets their own space, so to speak, and the other singer's voice does not phase cancel with their voice as much.

In the video, for recording a solo guitar, the mike setup is fine. Sounds good, right? On the guitar using the three-to-one rule requires very close mic'ing and/or widely separated mikes. You might get a good recording but often there is a hole in the sound stage right in the center (unfocused sound) - so often the same people who talk about recording three-to-one pan right and left channels towards center - talk about phase cancellation .

[ukejon]

Makes sense, Rick. I've not had much luck with the ORTF mic setup for similar reasons--there seems to be a audible hole in the middle of the recording. Here are two samples:





These both always have sounded to me like something is missing in the recording.

[rick-slo]

Nice playing and recording.

In my hands at least, the sound I get with coincident or near coincident mic'ing is thin and phasey sounding compared to a wider spacing of mikes. More so on a steel string than on a nylon string - I think due to a steel string guitar's greater percentage of high frequency content. I have used the mike position you used in the video on a few recordings and have had good luck with it (depending on the guitar, the tune, and where I am sitting in the room).