What mic do I use to record spaceship noises?

[MoreSpaceEcho]

well before you start to worry about which mics to use on the spaceship, you need to ask yourself: is this song i am recording the spaceship for Any Good?

because, you know, chances are it isn't. i mean, maybe it could be "good enough" to put up on your myspace page and get a couple funny comments from your friends. maybe.

but is it really any better than that? the honest truth, and i tell you this as both an industry professional and someone who has never actually heard the song, the honest truth is that it's not.

if you could take a step back from your delusions of grandeur and look at the song in an objective light, which, of course, you can't, you would see that this song is not the sort of song that will ever, ever end up on a professionally mastered, replicated cd with a barcode.

a funny novelty? sure. maybe. an Actual Product with which to service AAA Radio? don't kid yourself.

if you want to spend your life recording spaceships in an effort to put some futuristic lipstick on that pig of a song, i guess go ahead, but just realize that many focus groups have already expressed their disinterest in Songs With Spaceship Sounds In Them.

[scott macdonald]

I think you just hurt the spaceship's feelings.

[MoreSpaceEcho]

trying to write like jeff was a lot harder than i thought it'd be.

[scott macdonald]

A job well done! But watch out for photon torpedoes.

[0-it-hz]

Just try a Space-Woofer wired up to an XLR... they work fine in reverse.

[The Scum]

So someone's recording yet another cover of Telstar?

[RefD]

So someone's recording yet another cover of Telstar?

[JGriffin]

I used to bullseye womprats in my T-16 back home; they're not much bigger than a threaded mike stand adaptor.

[tony_tomlinson]

Everyone is so checked out over gear. What mic should I use? What preamps are the best for under $45? Should I used tape or DAW? I think everyone is getting a little ahead of themselves... Clearly you should focus on capturing the best performance possible. Make the Spaceship comfortable. Have something cold to drink on hand. If all else fails, ask yourself what would Johnny Guitar Watson do?

[MoreSpaceEcho]

Make the Spaceship comfortable.

awesome.

*brews a good cup of coffee for spaceship*

[Nick Sevilla]

Everyone is so checked out over gear. What mic should I use? What preamps are the best for under $45? Should I used tape or DAW? I think everyone is getting a little ahead of themselves... Clearly you should focus on capturing the best performance possible. Make the Spaceship comfortable. Have something cold to drink on hand. If all else fails, ask yourself what would Johnny Guitar Watson do?

Yeah, but then they can hold of all those important decisions until mix time, or if they are REALLY good at it, until mastering time.

'Can I bring my multitrack to the mastering house?"

[MoreSpaceEcho]

*docks spaceship on roof of Sterling Sound*

[Spindrift]

It really depends on the context. Where in the mix do you want the spaceship to fall? Is it going to be the main focus of the song or is it a background part that needs to fill a very specific space in the sonic field?

Remember, avoid the temptation to make everything sound big. Sometimes, a spaceship can sound big, lush and beautiful when soloed, but doesn't work with everything else. A small trashy spaceship, while sounding terrible on its own, might sit better in the mix

Having said all that, the last time I recorded a spaceship, I got great results running it through a Roger Mayer Classic Fuzz into an RE-201 and miced it with a Lomo 19A19 into a Blue Robbie.

Adam

[MoreSpaceEcho]

a spaceship through an re-201 might actually be TooMuchSpaceEcho.

[armanbohn]

I gave up on recording my spaceship years ago ... Russian POS that I picked up at a blowout sale at S.C.

Then I had the analog mod done (all caps and op amps, metal film res...).

Sounds great now, no matter what I use.