best microphone for guitar cab

[selloutrr]

I love the original black AKG C3000's on strings! the new Silver "B" don't sound anything like the original I haven't heard one yet that didn't sound closed in and lifeless the originals have a very nice smooth 3-D image.

If you look at the AKG C3000B and SM57 both have a wicked high boost around 3-6K more so in the C3000 that extends even higher leading to brittle highs. peaks can be tamed to some point in analog recordings but if using digital consumer grade converters to pro tools or logic. be sure not to over load the signal, Those freq will lend them selves to highlighting the digital clip and shrill bright highs that have given digital it's bad wrap. It's possible to get a nice sound, but I'd be curious to see how much EQ is used.

The reason this matters in the human voice is focused in the 1-4Khz range females up to 7k. the combining of frequencies when creating pockets and lead to problems.

If you ever get a chance try these 6 microphones in a blind listening test

Shure SM57
Sennheiser 409 (not the 609)
AKG 414eb extended bass
Sennheiser 421MD / Telefunken 421
Royer 121
Neumann U87Ai

My greatest guitar tones have come from ribbon mics and the blending of multiple combinations of those microphones.

My secret weapon is an old Neumann Head stereo reference recording microphone through a grace 801 pre. ROOM MIC!

Digital is just so brittle and delicate in the upper freqs I'm very careful picking microphones that don't conflict with the vocals and top end to prevent harshness.

If you pick the right signal chain the only eq you will need on the guitar is a hi and lo pass filter. the more EQ you add the more phase shifts you introduce. possibly a tight cut at 160Hz, or 315Hz.

if you want to practice microphone technique.
Hi Pass to 90Hz
Lo Pass to 7000Hz (7K)
make a tight bell cut (que) at 160Hz or 315Hz -2db

then more the microphone around until it sounds as natural as you can make it. I like to track with seperate heads and cabinets so i can keep the head and controls in the live room and not kill my ears if i need to fine tune the tone. then run the amp hot and load the room to get output tube distortion. Becareful of Max SPL it's a max for a reason!!! I keep an SPL meter on hand. I've blown a few microphones up mostly in kick drums.

just throwing it out .... Great guitar tones don't always equal a great guitar sound in the mix. everything has to work as a whole. That's one of the great things about the Trainwreck it's lack of low bottom makes room for the bass to not get walked on. Soldano's are the same way. on there own they seem a bit thin but in a mix it's butter!