Best microphones for recording acoustic

[R32]

Good afternoon everyone,

As per the title really, I’m looking for recommendations for recording acoustic guitar.

ideally I’d rather not put any pickups on my new guitar but rather just record the natural sound, I’ve had a look into condenser mics and they seem to be what I’m looking for but don’t have much experience recording.

any advice is appreciated!

 

cheers,

 

Richard

[Dad3353]

Depending on the degree of sophistication required (it's a very deep rabbit hole...), I would suggest that excellent results can be obtained with a large-diaphragm condenser mic. Budget determines the choice, really; there are fine mics available for £30-40 which do the job very well indeed. I'd assume that these would be used in conjunction with an audio interface, such as the ubiquitous Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 (around £125...) or similar, to adapt the signal to the PC running the DAW, and to provide the 'phantom' powering that these mics require. That particular interface has two mic inputs, so the option of a second mic becomes useful (the large-diaphragm for the body of the recording, a small-diaphragm mic oriented rather towards the neck for some detailed sound; other mic placements are available...). A similar cost, starting at £30, gives a wide range of possibilities.
Which models, in particular..? We have successfully used Superlux mics (Superlux E205; Superlux HI10...) for this kind of recording, and, for home/semi-pro work, would look no further for value for money. Spending more may provide other options, such as built-in filtering, or adjustable recording 'lobes'; I tend to a rather minimalist approach. It's worth looking into, and experimenting, with both mic placing and room choice, as these have a wide effect on the results.
Disclaimer : Subject to completion, correction and/or contradiction from others. Hope this helps. 

Edited August 7, 2022 by Dad3353

[R32]

Wow, thanks! I hadn’t looked at interfacing options yet, I’ve not really recorded anything before apart from a few iPhones clips to help friends out with a particular technique. My plan is not yet professional level sound yet as I’m basically going to use youtube as a repository/portfolio to store to recordings for the time being so they’ll ultimately be compressed to low quality anyway. I’m looking for some entry level gear to get used to how it all works and then maybe upgrade if I’m any good / have enough time to dedicate.

thanks very much for the suggestions, I’ll order some components tonight and hopefully have something setup by mid-week.

i’ll report back on my results, either good or bad!

cheers,

richard

[Dad3353]

Worth a look..?

 

 

[R32]

24 minutes ago, Dad3353 said:

Worth a look..?

 

 

Certainly is! Once the kids are in bed I’ll do a little more research but am still hoping to get some stuff ordered this week! Cheers

[john29400]

Sorry for the late reply, but here are my two cents. Choosing the perfect microphone can indeed be a bit tricky due to the wide range of options out there. Testing some or reading customer reviews is an excellent idea to find the right fit for your acoustic guitar recording needs. While I'm not an expert in recording acoustic guitar, I’ve discovered great advantages of ASMR microphones. These little wonders offer excellent audio quality, and I've personally used them for creating videos. Perhaps, you might find an ASMR microphone that covers all your recording needs, delivering that natural sound you're after. It might just be the versatile solution you're looking for. 

Edited October 10, 2023 by john29400