 Recording
For Recording and Mixing Guitar - ElectricTips
By Tony Olegro
The electric guitar is an incredibly popular instrument and
very often an essential part of a song. Whether clean or
distorted, it can provide the rhythm, texture, a riff, melody,
or a solo. In most cases, the electric guitar is one of many
instruments in a song. If you're including electric guitar in
your song, it is important to know proper recording and mixing
guitar techniques so that it doesn't get lost in the mix and
unwanted peaks and frequencies don't distract from the
song.
Whether your guitar isn't sounding as big or full as you
want, or you're having trouble making it stand out in the mix,
our tips for recording and mixing guitar will help make your
electric guitar sound its best...
Layering the Guitar
While recording and mixing guitar, you can have the best
possible performance captured, but what if it's getting lost or
not standing out in the mix? Or what if you just want it to
have a stronger solo presence? Well, an easy way to beef up the
sound of your electric guitar is to layer multiple recorded
takes of the same part. Because it's impossible to play
something exactly the same way twice, minor variations will
prevent any phasing.
For a stronger mono presence, you can just leave two or more
takes on top of each other. For a larger and wider sound, pan
one of the takes left and the other right (experiment with how
hard left and right you pan each take for a wider or narrower
sound that's appropriate for the mix). Another trick is to play
the same part but use chord inversions, which, when layered,
will give an even fuller sound. To give a high-end sheen to
your electric guitar, add a layer of the same part played an
octave higher.
Rhythm Guitar
Rhythm guitar benefits from similar tips for recording and
mixing guitar as used in layering. For a clean rhythm guitar,
record the same part twice, then pan each track left and right.
For a distorted rhythm guitar, however, record the same part
four times, then pan two tracks left and two right; this is to
make the distorted rhythm guitar sound stronger. Also, use
different sounds, settings and/or tones for each track, as this
will help to fill out and better define the rhythm guitar
section (experiment to varying degrees to find what's best for
your song).
If you want to improve the sound of your rhythm guitar, you
can use an equalizer on each of the tracks. Boost around 200 Hz
to really fill out the sound and boost around 1 kHz to add some
edge. Since it's multiple takes playing at the same time, if
you're having a problem with excess hum or other unwanted
noises, try cutting around 2.5 kHz to minimize or remove them.
Finally, if you want some added clarity to your rhythm guitar,
boost around 6-10 kHz.
While on the topic of clarity, make sure not to use any
reverb or delay effects as it will make your rhythm guitar
messy and not as defined. Applying compression and using your
equalizers is also essential if you want your tracks to
shine.
Visit our site to find to find how to do this and to read
our full Tips for Recording and Mixing Guitar -
Electric article.
Article Source: Tony Olegro - Ezine Articles
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