yea, what jeff said.



i mic at the edge of the cone, almost never in the center.

i also rotate the mic off axis, about .75" away from the edge of the cone, at about a 30 degree angle, with the element towards the center of the speaker..
then, slowly, i shift the mic, locked into it's angle, a little bit closer to the center of the speaker.

i may do this 10 times or more, before i find the sweet spot.
the EQ i want, for that particular track.


making miniscule changes in the location of the mic, is all you should ever need to dial in your tone.

the trick is, to have the patience, and be able to shift that sucker as many times as it takes.

it really helps, and in fact, is absolutely necessary, to have someone else shift the mic for you, and to be in a completely different room/location than the cabinet (ultimatly, a real studio with a sound-treated control room, and you are hearing what the mic is hearing thru your monitors.

anything less than that, is a compromise, and you are just guessing at what you are getting.

Since you are using a Koko Boost (BTW I want one) and a Mesa and 4x12 cab, I assume you are going for heavier tones?

I thought this video was interesting (and long) http://video.google.com/v...id=3176975091479283638

Good luck!

Try blending with a room mix too. That room mic might capture the full sound better, then blend with your close mic. Also consider multiple close mics and blend to taste. A few different mics can capture different parts of the sound you want and when you combine, they total the complete sound.

Further more, try backing off the distortion. For recording, you almost always require less distortion for it to sound distorted.

Consider layering multiple takes.

Understand this takes TIME and lots of TIME to nail it.

Finally, read this:

http://www.badmuckingfastard.com/sound/slipperman.html

Highly popular thread on getting the perfect recorded guitar sound. It's long, but it's good.

I position the mic close to the cone edge, rotated perpendicular to the cone angle.  I've also achieved better results switching from an SM57 to a 58.

What Jeff and Batbrew have described are pretty dead on to what I do while possitioning the mic on my 4-10 cabinet.  I have settled into a particular speaker and about mid way between the center and edge of the cone, at a slight angle, 30 degrees sounds about right.  I almost always revert back to the SM57,  I guess it is just what I am used to hearing for a mic.

It took a lot of trial and error to find the sweet spot and is really hard to do while tracking in the same room with the amp.  The loudness of the amp can over power what you are hearing in the headphones.  I spent a hole day one time tracking each speaker until I found the speaker that sounded the best to me.  I would track each speaker and make notes as to which one it was.  Take a break and come back later to listen to them with fresh ears.  From the notes and the soloed track, I would determine which speaker gave me more the sound I was looking for.  Once settled in on that, I went throught the same exercise with mic position.  It is funny how the littlest movement from side to side, front to back, and angle can actually make a lot of difference.  Once you find it, you can get there again relatively quickly knowing about where to start from. 

I agree with using a 57 but I go just outside the edge of the cone about an inch and about 4 inches away from the grill.  I do not use a second mic but instead would use digital reverb for spacial enhancement if needed. 

Rimshot

maximumpower


Since you are using a Koko Boost (BTW I want one) and a Mesa and 4x12 cab, I assume you are going for heavier tones?

I thought this video was interesting (and long) http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3176975091479283638

Good luck!

No, not really going for heavier tones actually.  The MESA Lonestar is a pretty low gain amp...that's why I got the Koko Boost (I love it).  I'm more into Andy Timmons and Stephen Schackinger tones.
 
Yep, I have seen that video before as well as read the artile your second link points to.

Just for the record, I'm not new to this.  I've been trying to get a great recorded guitar tone for years.  My recorded tones are not too bad but I always think I can do better.
 
Having read some of the replies here has reminded me of some of the techniques I've tried in the past.  I've since changed mics, amps, rooms, guitars ... etc.  It's time to go back and revisit some of the techniques I left behind...they may work now.
 
In fact, I tried aiming an SM57 directly at the cone, 1" off the grill and about 1/4 of the way from the center of the speaker to the edge.  I've also placed the Senn 421 at the same position, however, I'm angling it toward the center of the speaker to pick up some of the highs.  The combination of the 57 and the angled 421 sounds ... not too bad.
 
Thanks for reminding me that trial and error over and over again will pay off.  I will continue my life long pursuit of great tone.

amiller


My current recording rig and recording signal path is as follows: LP -> Suhr Koko Boost ->  MESA Lonestar -> Marshall 4x12 cab loaded with two Greenbacks and two Alnico Golds -> SM57 and Senn 421 on the Golds (of course) -> MOTU MKII -> Sonar. 
 

Why "of course"?  When you're playing live you hear both the golds AND the greenbacks, so why only record the golds?
 
There are cheap speakers and expensive speakers, but there is no such thing as a good or bad speaker (excluding broken speakers...). Different speakers have different uses and have different sounds.  If your live sound uses both, then you need to record both.

You may find the mids you're missing from the recorded sound are being produced by the greenbacks...

Karyn

amiller


My current recording rig and recording signal path is as follows: LP -> Suhr Koko Boost ->  MESA Lonestar -> Marshall 4x12 cab loaded with two Greenbacks and two Alnico Golds -> SM57 and Senn 421 on the Golds (of course) -> MOTU MKII -> Sonar. 
 

Why "of course"?  When you're playing live you hear both the golds AND the greenbacks, so why only record the golds?....

Yes, you're right, I should not have used the pharse "of course."  I have tried mic combinations that also included the Greenbacks as well as other cabs.  I have a Legacy cab with v30s and a Bogner with v30s.  But, of all the combinations, the recorded sound of the Golds sound the best to my ears.