Channel Recording, Recording a Grand Piano

PRACTICAL

GUIDE TO THE

EDIROL R-44

4-channel Recording

Since you can record on 4 channels simultaneously, you can try setting microphones in different locations around the instrument.

For example, you can record near the instrument (on-mic) and far from the instrument to record echoes (off-mic) at the same time. You can then adjust the volume for each to create a mixed sound.

Recording a Grand Piano

Unlike smaller instruments, the piano produces sound throughout the instrument and emits sound in different directions. So, it can be difficult to record a piano. But, you can use the 4-channel simultaneous recording feature to record sound from different directions and distances. Then, you can mix-down to create a piano recording that matches the genre of the performed song. Also, it is important to balance the “sound of the string,”“sound from the body,”“sound reflected from the sound board,” and “sound of the hammer hitting the strings” when recording a piano. In other words, the trick to recording a piano is to set microphones in different locations to compare different sounds.

An example of setting the microphones is shown here.

As shown in the illustration, set a total of four microphones (use condenser microphones): two to record the string sound and two to record the sound reflected from the sound board. In particular, test changing the position and angle of the microphones recording the string sounds to adjust the range of the recording and the balance of the sound from the strings and sound board and also try changing the distance to adjust the balance between the sound of attack and reverberations to get the cleanest recording.

R-44 Setting : Rec. Mode in STEREO X 2

1 Use

Sound reflected from the sound board

Sound of the string

Adjust the spacing between the microphones to get the range you want to record

Sound of the string

Regulate the sound quality by changing the height

and angle of the microphones

Sound reflected from the sound board

Regulate the sound vibrations with the distance and position of the microphones

Situation Practical Technique2

Recording Drums

The drum is an instrument that plays sound in several different directions. We recommend using simultaneous recording with four channels.

Start by placing two microphones above the drum (condenser microphones) and one microphone each on the bass drum and snare (dynamic microphones), for a total of four recording locations. You should use microphone stands above the drum and place the microphones at a height of about 2 meters. At this height, the sound from the entire drum set can be recorded. For the bass drum, place the microphone in front aimed at the place where the beater hits. For the snare, you should place the microphone about 10 cm above the snare so you can cleanly record only the sound of the snare. You’ll be able to easily emphasize just the bass drum sound by adjusting the volume of each channel if you use this setup.

R-44 Setting : Rec. Mode in STEREO X 4

About	About
2 meters	2 meters

About 10 cm

Where the beater hits

Edirol R-44 manual Channel Recording, Recording a Grand Piano, Recording Drums