I utilised the UAL music studios and booked them out for me to test out different microphones for Laiara’s voice to start the practical side of the project. These sessions were for me to test the different microphones for the live show recording and the EP recording for vocals and different instruments.
For the first studio session that I booked for Laiara, I wanted to test out microphones that would suit her voice the most to record for the EP as well as microphones for the acoustic guitar that would be played during the live show. First, for her vocals, I tried the U87, since that is my classic go-to mic when recording vocals. After asking the music production technician, Alba, for a recommendation on what mics I could try out, I stated that Laiara’s voice is quite chesty and similar to Amy Winehouse’s style, and Alba suggested I try out the U47 which could capture and highlight her middle range well. In addition, out of curiosity from flipping through the binder of available mics in the studios, I was curious about the Chandler Redd microphone, since its sound is described to be “vintage”, so I asked to also try that out for her voice and also included this in my project when testing the microphones.
Here are demos of what I recorded during this session (we recorded her singing the same song with the three different mics to hear the differences):
For the acoustic guitar, I tried out the M160 and the DPA 4099, where I set up each mic separately and recorded her playing random chords. The DPA 4099 is a commonly used microphone for live music, described as small and flimsy, but effective. I was also able to book out a whole touring kit of the DPA 4099 with different clips that can be used for different instruments, which I tested out with my own acoustic guitar at home. The M160 is what Alba recommended when I asked for a microphone that would be good for an acoustic guitar, which I found was a good mic in capturing the sound of the guitar. The difference between the two microphones is just the setup, with the DPA just needing a clip onto the guitar and an XLR cable to connect it to the interface, whilst I needed to put the M160 on a mic stand and place it so that it was facing where the guitarist would strum the guitar. From doing this, I wasn’t sure if it was my setup or it was the mic itself, however the M160 seemed sturdier since it was on the stand and in place, whereas the DPA 4099 would be on the guitar that would be moved around while playing and is very easily moveable.
Here are demos of these acoustic guitar recordings:
For the next booked studio session with Laiara, she wanted to try out the keys that were in the live room, so I wired those up to the control room with DI boxes to send direct signals straight onto a Logic project. I used two DI boxes to record this in stereo, being one left signal and one right signal.
Here was the setup of the DI boxes:
At the same time, since I knew that the U47 was good for her voice from the first studio session, I also wired this to the control room so that she could sing at the same time as playing the keys.
Having done these sessions, I know which mics to set up when recording her for the EP, so I would be saving time for that when doing the “real” recordings and can get on with using the time effectively with less time figuring out set ups and equipment. Though, next I would need to try the SM57 to hear how that sounds for her live vocals, since this would be the mic available for me to book and use for the gig.