Anyone out there mic their bass cab?

[davio]

Good call.

[Graham Jacobs]

I always keep two Shure SM-57's handy in case I have DI problems, or in case anyone else in the band has. They not only work well for bass, but also for virtually anything else including vocals (provided you put a foam sock on top, of course).

 

Mine are now more than 15 years old and work as well as the day I first used them (even then, they were second-hand).

 

Great, highly versatile mikes and virtually indestructible too!

[bottomend]

You shouldn't hang a 421 or a 57 from the amp. These two mics address sound from the front and you'll not get an accurate representation of the sound if they are allowed to pick up sound from the side of thier diaphrams. Go with a stand.

[dsanders]

I usually prefer DI only. As for pre. and post signals the amp I am using right now has the ability to do both. If an amp doesn't have this option you could plug into a DI before your amp, and then send a post signal from you amp's DI.

 

There have been times when I have gotten a great sound out of a mic. but usually it is more convienent and cleaner for me to use a DI.

[Mr. X]

For what it's worth, I read an interview somewhere,(can't recall the source) where Geoff Emerick said he ALWAYS miced McCartney's bass on Beatles records and very explicitly stated that they never went direct even once.

 

And I once spoke with Tom Peterssen of Cheap Trick, and asked him how they recorded his 12 string bass, and he said they miced up a cabinet-he was like "NEVER go direct!" It kills your tone to the max! You've got to move some air!"

 

Once of the best bass tones I ever got was three way blend between direct, a miced SWR 15" and a miced guitar cabinet. A hassle to set up, but it sounded great.

 

Of course, at least at the clubs I've played, getting the sound man to mic your cab and blend in a DI more often than not gets you a bunch of back talk and "sound theory" on why direct is superior, and you should skip the mic (or they don't have enough mics or board channels to do it).

 

But bottom line-mic it up! And experiment with placing the mic a little away from the cab--not right up against the grill cloth like a guitar. Need a little room for the waves to spread out!That will get you a nice full round sound and you can get your attack and definition from the DI.

[rooster6550]

Good point, bro. . .

 

Some techs don't want to mess with miking a bass cab. I've worked with some very good ones over the years, and they each have their preferences and theories, just like us "musicians" do. In the end, I usually feel 'em out a little, and if they're opposed to miking a bass cab, I defer to them and go DI. I'd rather not have an otherwise good sound tech on my bad side, if you know what I mean.

 

Our sound tech moonlights with us, actually -- works for one of the major sound companies in the ND/MN area and does big shows with some big names. He said a lot of the "big guys" mic and DI, and he had no problem with me trying it. He, like myself, likes to experiment, though. . .

 

One thing I *was* worried about in trying miking again was more "bleed" into the PA from surrounding amps and drums. Actally, it hasn't been a problem. My mic sits about 2 1/2" to 3" from the grille of my SWR -- to get some "air" on it -- and there's no significant bump in extraneous noise from having yet another mic onstage. Even though my cab (and therefore, my mic) are usually way too close, for my taste, to our rythm guitarist/singer's small but blastingly loud amp. . .

 

But, I digress. . .