Members Kris11111 Posted May 22, 2021 Members Share Posted May 22, 2021 I recently bought the Martin D-18. Great guitar, but I have problems recording it in a dense mix. It has a withdrawn midrange, quite large bass. I've tried different mono / stereo microphone setups and the effects are not satisfactory. Most of the time I need an acoustic guitar to complement the mix. The music is country-rock-pop so it's typical chord playing. In my opinion, the D-18 is cool if you record music with less arrangement of instruments in the mix, so I have a question for you: I would like to buy another acoustic guitar, but only for recording, one that has a very clear midrange and treble, with a withdrawn bass, which will break through in the mix. I would like to find a guitar like this with a preamp for up to £ 400. Can you ask for your opinions and suggestions on which models to pay attention to? Best Regards,Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mikeo Posted May 25, 2021 Members Share Posted May 25, 2021 The Martin D 18 is a very fine guitar. It does have a lot of bass end and cut mids, as is the characteristic of a Dreadnaught. I don't know how you mic-ed the guitar or what mics you have used, but adjust the mics and properly, eq as needed. Back off on the sound hole, like this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators daddymack Posted May 25, 2021 Moderators Share Posted May 25, 2021 Kris, from what you are asking...have you tried 'Nashville tuning'? It will cost you a lot less than £ 400... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mikeo Posted May 25, 2021 Members Share Posted May 25, 2021 3 hours ago, daddymack said: Kris, from what you are asking...have you tried 'Nashville tuning'? It will cost you a lot less than £ 400... yes, that might be just what the doctor ordered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gardo Posted May 28, 2021 Members Share Posted May 28, 2021 On 5/25/2021 at 10:38 AM, daddymack said: Kris, from what you are asking...have you tried 'Nashville tuning'? It will cost you a lot less than £ 400... I’ve tried Nashville tuning. It may give the desired result for recording but makes the guitar rather useless for anything else. I would recommend using a less expensive guitar if you’re going this route Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators daddymack Posted May 28, 2021 Moderators Share Posted May 28, 2021 £ 400 31 minutes ago, gardo said: I’ve tried Nashville tuning. It may give the desired result for recording but makes the guitar rather useless for anything else. I would recommend using a less expensive guitar if you’re going this route It depends on how frequently he records. I used to [when I only had one acoustic] record all the regular guitar parts, and then restring, do the N-T parts, and then restring again...a set of 12strings costs ~$12 [you can buy a lot of 12 string sets for $565/£400]. Because the guitar was restrung just for 'cowboy chords', for the most part, I didn't bother adjusting the truss, etc. For me it was a simple and inexpensive solution that really didn't cost much in $, time or labor. If the OP wants to get a second guitar to keep in N-T, that is his decision. I always felt, similar to your comment, that a guitar dedicated to N-T was a one trick pony of little value except recording. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gardo Posted May 28, 2021 Members Share Posted May 28, 2021 This is probably stating the obvious but the first thing I would try is using a thin pick or playing closer to the bridge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Gigmeister-8YMGf Posted May 28, 2021 Members Share Posted May 28, 2021 Let's talk about your recording method. There are many great records with a D-18 that sound incredible! What's your recording setup and how are you EQ'ing it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators daddymack Posted May 30, 2021 Moderators Share Posted May 30, 2021 well...the OP has been back....and not commented on any of our suggestions....so fine, buy a Yamaha or a Harley Benton... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Grant Harding Posted May 31, 2021 Members Share Posted May 31, 2021 It sounds to me like you just need a high pass filter to knock the very bottom off it so you can raise the level and not boom up the mix. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Grant Harding Posted May 31, 2021 Members Share Posted May 31, 2021 11 hours ago, daddymack said: well...the OP has been back....and not commented on any of our suggestions....so fine, buy a Yamaha or a Harley Benton... That was going to be my next suggestion after a simple and normal EQ treatment. Buy a new guitar. 😀 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted June 1, 2021 Members Share Posted June 1, 2021 If changing your recording/micing setup doesn't improve things, find a smaller guitar in your price range, a Yamaha, Alvarez, Takamine, or other reputable brand. The X Series Martins can be found fairly cheap used. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators daddymack Posted June 2, 2021 Moderators Share Posted June 2, 2021 another option is to find something like a Little Martin or a Baby Taylor. These tend to be brighter, mid-range punchy, minimal [but adequate] bass response...if you can handle the shorter scale... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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