01/08/2025
I've been doing a lot of amp miking experimentation lately. I always try to approach each project uniquely, but I have to move quick during recording sessions, so the more setups I have in my back pocket, the quicker we can find the right sound for the project. In this case, I'm trying out some different bass amp miking setups on my 100 watt Fender Rumble. When we're working on amp tone, I often step back to hear the bigger picture, so I've been really into placing a distance mic (in this case, a 414) where my ears perk up the most (which, in the case of bass amps, ends up being around 4 feet in front of the amp at varying heights, depending on the sound I'm going for). For close mics, I've always liked D112, 421, and SM7 the most, depending on the sound I'm going for. Paired with the right preamps (and the right tone of the instrument & on the amp), as well as the right placement of the amp (I've been liking it in front of this bunker trap which eats up some 300hz-500hz nastiness), I can usually achieve what I hear in my head with varying combinations of these mics. How will a ribbon mic fare in the distance position? Stay tuned, because now I can't get that pesky idea out of my head...and so the cycle continues...