How to Mic Guitar Amplifier for Recording
No matter how realistic amplifier modeling can be, it's hard to beat the sound of a well miked amplifier pushing a serious amount of air. The good news for guitarists is that you can achieve studio quality amp tones i...
No matter how realistic amplifier modeling can be, it's hard to beat the sound of a well-miked amplifier pushing a serious amount of air. The good news for guitarists is that you can achieve studio-quality amp tones in a typical home studio environment --- once you understand the basics of miking a guitar amp. There is a lot of physics and acoustic science going on when it comes to recording guitar amps, but that's what this article is for. Let's go over everything that average guitar player needs to know to record consistently great amp tones, no matter what type of guitar amp you're using or what style of music you're producing.
What Should a Miked Guitar Amp Sound Like, Anyway?
A good mix will balance your instruments appropriately, and it can actually be difficult to tell what each instrument sounds like in isolation. For example, an epic palm-muted rhythm guitar part can sound like it has a ton of low end, but that's likely because it's playing in perfect sync with the bass --- bass guitar usually contributes a lot of the weight that we associate with electric guitars.
The point we're making is that your ideal guitar tone for any given project may sound a little different in isolation than you'd expect it appears to sound in the mix. A great way to train your ears is to do a YouTube search for isolated guitar tracks. Check out Slash's isolated guitar tone on Sweet Child of Mine to hear how much midrange (and how little bass) his guitar contributes.
Also note how well you can hear the difference between a quiet amplifier in the verses compared to the cranked-amp tone for the choruses. Even though they have equal clarity and similar volume in the mix, you can definitely hear the character and intensity of a louder amp coming through. You may not have the option to turn up your amp that loud, but it's important to understand the added intensity and character that amp volume adds beyond basic signal strength.
It's All About Mic (and Amp) Position
No matter what guitar amp and microphone combination you're using, the two variables that will affect your recordings the most are the position of the amp in the room, and the position of the mic relative to the amp. Yes, it's true that your choice of microphone, guitar amp, mic preamp, and other variables will play a role too --- but it all starts at the microphone. Where you place it is key, and the same goes for where you place the guitar amp in the room. We're going to give you an easy guide to get started even if you've never miked a guitar amp before: we'll make it easy to approach, but you should definitely look deeper into these topics if you're serious about recording great amp tones.
Tips for positioning your amplifier:
Put your amp on an amp stand like the Ultimate Support AMP-150 Ultra Compact Amp Stand or the Gator Frameworks Combo Amp Stand your amp sounds tighter and more focused when you de-couple it from the floor. You may not have much freedom where to position the amp, so just remember that bass builds up in the corners of your room. And in this case, where the floor meets the wall can be considered a corner. The thing to remember is that if your amp sounds boomy, move it away from the nearest corner. If your amp sounds thin or wimpy, move it closer to a corner.
Tips for positioning your microphone:
Once you're satisfied that your amplifier is in a good position, it's time to choose the position for your microphone. These general tips will apply whether you're using an expensive studio microphone or simply using your smartphone as a microphone to record your amp. The two main things to consider are the mic's distance from the amp, and whether the mic is facing the amp directly or angled off-axis.
To start, take a look at the speaker you'll actually be miking --- if the combo amp has a grille cloth, you may be able to easily remove it to expose the speaker. If not, shining a flashlight can help you identify the center of the speaker through the grille cloth. To place your mic, aim the mic directly at the speaker and place it about six inches away. Position the mic so that it's aimed at a point halfway between the center of the speaker and the edge of the speaker.
This is a great starting point to mic any amplifier with any microphone, as long as you keep in mind what comes next. The only things you'll really need to adjust to record a great tone are the distance between the mic and the amp, and where on the speaker it's aimed at. The edge of the speaker will deliver more of a bassy/scooped sound, while the center of the speaker is mostly midrange. If you're keeping your mic close (1-6 inches), aiming the mic at different parts of the speaker will make noticeable differences. The farther the mic gets from the speaker, the less it applies.
Adjusting the mic distance from the amp allows you to balance the direct sound from the speaker (closer) with the ambient sound of the amp in your room (farther). When things sound too tight and focused, move the mic away, and vice versa. If you have a good-sounding acoustic space to record in, you're free to back the mic away and capture more of the room sound. If you're in a typical residential space, your room probably won't be adding sonic appeal --- you'll probably have better results if you keep the mic close (6 inches or closer).
Choose Your Mic --- and Listen to It
The tips above about positioning will be a huge help to you, but only if you take the time to move the mic around to try different positions before committing to one. You could be using world-class mics and amps in a studio, and when you set everything up, it probably won't sound perfect right at the start. Moving the mic even a few inches, or changing the angle a few degrees, will make an impact on your sound. Try different things, make recordings and take notes when you find positions that sound better than others.
For the purposes of this article, we're offering a basic overview that you can apply to practically any microphone. You may be using the only microphone you have available to you --- that's totally fine. Maybe you're going with a time-proven mic like the Shure SM57 dynamic microphone, or a vintage-modern ribbon mic like the Warm Audio Fen-Tone. The tips above will help you approach recording your amp with your mic, but ultimately you will need to decide what works best for your room, amp, and creative goals.
Take the time to record multiple takes as you move your mic around, and make notes so that you can put the mic in the same place the next time you want to record. Once you find positions that sound better than others, you'll soon create a consistent and repeatable recording process you can apply anytime you want to record.
Check Your Mic's User Guide!
The user guide for any microphone will provide crucial info, including the mic's polar pattern (more on that below) and a frequency graph. Regarding the frequency graph or chart, what you'll want to look for is any type of resonant peak across the entire frequency range. It's not uncommon for mics to have a slight dip or peak of a few decibels at a certain frequency. It's not a problem, but you should be aware of it, especially if you're recording lots of tracks that will be combined in a mix.
A mic's frequency chart certainly won't tell you how a mic will actually sound, but it's valuable to know if a mic is emphasizing certain frequencies. If your mic has a subtle resonant peak, you'll notice it more as you mix more tracks recorded with the same microphone. If you're aware of your microphone's peak, you can choose EQ frequencies more effectively when it's time to mix.
Polar Patterns Explained in Practical Terms
There's a lot to understand about microphones, and one of the most important things to know about any mic is its polar pattern. A mic's polar pattern describes how directional the microphone is --- in other words, how well the microphone picks up sounds from its back and sides compared to the direct sound reaching the front of the microphone. Here are the polar patterns you'll encounter most often, and what they mean for your recordings.
Omnidirectional
an "omni" mic picks up sound equally from all directions, whether directly in front of the mic, off to the side, or even directly behind it. If your room sounds good, an omni mic will probably sound good. If your room sounds unbalanced (too boomy, congested, or bright), an omni mic isn't a great choice.
Cardioid
this pattern mostly captures sound from the front and sides, while rejecting much of the sound from the rear. This is useful for minimizing the amount of unwanted ambient room sound being captured in the microphone.
Supercardioid/Hypercardioid
more directional than cardioid, these patterns capture more sound directly in front of the mic than from the sides, helping you focus on a single sound source while rejecting adjacent sounds (think of miking each tom drum on a drum kit). While super- and hyper-cardioid patterns reject more sound from the sides than a cardioid pattern, they also reject less sound from the rear.
Figure-8
an extremely directional pattern that captures sound directly in front and behind the microphone, while almost completely rejecting sounds from the sides.
So which polar pattern is best for miking a guitar amp? The good news is that if you're recording a solo guitar amp, you aren't worried about leakage from other instruments. However, you do need to consider the sound in your room: if you like the sound in your room, you could use pretty much any polar pattern, even omnidirectional. If you want to minimize room sound for a more focused tone, use a directional mic like a cardioid pattern.
Should I Use Multiple Mics to Record My Amp?
It's common studio practice to use multiple mics on a guitar amp and combine them in the mix. For example, the famous Shure SM57 dynamic microphone is a staple for recording amps with its midrange-focused character. To achieve a more full-range sound, engineers will often add a condenser microphone like the AKG C414 XLS to capture bass and highs that the SM57 does not.
You can get great tones from a single mic, but using two different mics can get you closer to a polished studio sound much faster in many cases --- as long as the microphones are in phase with each other. Phase issues are another deep topic that's outside the scope of this article: the important thing to know is that when you're using multiple microphones, you can avoid phase issues if you make sure your mics are equal distance from the sound source. The easiest way to do this for a guitar amp is with a stereo mic mount like the Rode Stereo Bar Microphone Mount --- this allows you to mount two mics to the same stand equidistant from the amp.
You can also get in-phase multi-miked guitar tones easily with a dual-element microphone like the Audio-Technica AE2500. It's equipped with one dynamic capsule and one condenser capsule, both in perfect phase alignment in the same housing. The included cable breaks out to separate XLR connectors for each mic capsule, effectively giving you two distinct microphones in one. Dual-element microphones are a great way to create multi-mic amp tones without juggling multiple microphones and mic stands.
Choosing Microphone Stands for Amp Recording
It's easy to overlook the importance of a good microphone stand even if you're only ever recording your guitar amp. We highly recommend a tripod-based mic stand for stability, compared to those flat-based desktop/bass drum stands you may see. They're tempting because they appear to be the perfect height for guitar amps, but they're not very stable unless you weigh them down with a sandbag as intended.
Get a sturdy tripod-based mic stand like the Gator Frameworks Amp Mic Stand and you'll be well-equipped to record any amp with any mic. Alternatively, you could combine your amp stand and mic stand into one convenient system with something like the On-Stage Tilt-Back Amp Stand with Mic Boom Arm. And if you would like to save floor space and remove the need for a mic stand completely, something like the Audix CabGrabber mic mount is your best solution --- it attaches directly to your combo amp or cabinet, no need for a separate mic stand.
One extremely helpful studio accessory when it comes to recording with any microphone is an orbital microphone mount like the Triad-Orbit Micro 2/M2-R Retrofittable Short-stem Orbital Mic Adapter. This solves the issue of making the final fine-tuning adjustments to microphone position and angle --- most mic stands and mounts can be a bit clumsy when it comes to making micro-adjustments, and having an orbital mic mount is a simple solution that makes a huge difference.
Improve Your Room Acoustics Creatively
The room you're recording in is impacting the sound of your recordings in a big way. Room acoustics are another deep topic worth looking into if you're serious about recording, but for our purposes we'll talk about some basic tips for recording amps in a typical home studio. Namely, how to absorb excessive frequencies for clearer, detailed recordings.
You may be familiar with acoustic absorption panels like Auralex Studiofoam panels, which are generally intended to be permanently attached to your walls --- but you don't need to do that. If you can't or don't want to fully treat your walls with acoustic panels, just buy a couple of them and suspend them from mic stands with fishing line. Position them behind your microphone to absorb sound that would otherwise pass by the mic and be reflected around the room, eventually returning to the mic and causing phase smearing. Likewise, you could place a panel or two a foot or so behind the amp, to absorb sound that would otherwise add to the ambient room noise. In other words, build a mini isolation booth around your amp and mic.
For a more professional-looking approach, you can look into purpose-built mic isolation tools like the On-Stage Isolation Shield. Attach it to your mic stand, then attach your mic of choice to the Isolation Shield's mic mount. Whether you use acoustic panels or an isolation shield, you'll be surprised at how much more focused and detailed your amp recordings become when you absorb sound directly behind the microphone.
Summing It Up --- You Can Consistently Record Great Amp Tones
Recording guitar amps (and recording in general) is a very deep topic that you can spend decades trying to master. But that doesn't mean you can't capture album-worthy guitar tones in a home studio. Let's sum up how to approach recording any amp with any microphone, even if it's just your smartphone:
- Place the amp somewhere that it sounds good in the room by itself --- move closer to a corner for richer bass, away from corners/walls to reduce boominess.
- Start with the microphone about 6-inches away from the amp, pointed directly at the speaker, aimed at a point halfway between the center of the speaker and the edge of the speaker.
- Record some playing and listen back.
- If it sounds thin/weak, move the mic closer to the edge of the speaker. If it sounds scooped or hollow, move closer to the center of the speaker.
- If it needs to sound tighter or more focused, move the mic closer. If you want a bit more "air" and room ambience, back the mic away farther.
- Make small adjusts (1-2 inches at a time), record a sample, and make notes about your mic position when it sounds right. Once you've found a good-sounding position, use your notes to repeat it every time you want to record.
LOOKING FOR A BETTER MICROPHONE TO RECORD YOUR GUITAR AMP?
Check out our in-depth look at the Warm Audio WA-FT Fen-Tone Ribbon Microphone!
- Introduction
- What Should a Miked Guitar Amp Sound Like, Anyway?
- It's All About Mic (and Amp) Position
- Tips for positioning your amplifier:
- Tips for positioning your microphone:
- Choose Your Mic --- and Listen to It
- Check Your Mic's User Guide!
- Polar Patterns Explained in Practical Terms
- Should I Use Multiple Mics to Record My Amp?
- Choosing Microphone Stands for Amp Recording
- Improve Your Room Acoustics Creatively
- Summing It Up --- You Can Consistently Record Great Amp Tones
