Acoustic Guitar Size in a Bass Heavy Mix

[Mustang Martigan]

If I want to record an Acoustic and the rhythm section is already quite bass heavy, would a smaller sized guitar be a better choice? Or will EQ allow any size to work just as well?

Hopefully I'm not being too vague for a proper answer.

Thanks.

[vvv]

One option is Nashville-strung guitar, where you use lighter strings on the E, A, D, and G so that you can tune them an octave higher - it's based on the idear of a 12-string with the lower octave strings removed.

Or you can shelf off a lot of the lows, boost some highs - I like a parametric and a shelf for this but a graphic or a tilt can also work.

A smaller guitar might be easier to work with, but mic'ing is important whatever the size of the guitar - pointing at the neck is brighter vs. at the sound hole, from above rather than straight on, a little farther away, etc.

I have found that a chorus on the acoustic can also brighten it to cut better, or sometimes a small and tight plate reverb.

[Nick Sevilla]

The correct answer is:

Or will EQ allow any size to work just as well?

[A.David.MacKinnon]

The missing equation here is whether the acoustic is acting as part of the rhythm section or if it's a featured instrument. How big and prominent does it need to be in the mix?
If it's acting like a percussion instrument then you can pick a bright mic and roll off the lows until it fits the way it should. If it's a featured instrument you may need to follow a similar path but also use eq to carve some space out of the rest of the rhythm section so it has room to shine.

[digitaldrummer]

arrangement is the other thing I haven't seen anyone say yet - by that I mean, if it's a strumming part, don't play the same chords. play different voicings, maybe higher up the neck, or a harmony, or capo it (or like VVV said, alternate tuning). If it's a picked/plucked part, then again something higher up the neck so it's not sitting in the same frequency range. A smaller guitar won't necessarily change that since it's still tuned the same. and I agree with using a brighter mic, if that's what sounds good (that usually works good for a strummed guitar but may not be best for an arpeggiated thing...)

[drumsound]

In addition to the great advice above, I'd think a lot about mic choice. I smooth, even, extended mic is not actually what you want. A mic with rolled off bottom and a presence peak is going to be much better. I love AT Pro37s for stuff like this, but a lot of things can work, including dynamic mics. A Beyer M201 could work, and to get a little space around it an EV 635A might be the ticket. Placement is often based on tone desired, and the function of the part.

[vvv]

And then there's the nuclear option ...


... sub in a banjo.

[frans_13]

What role does the guitar play in that song/at that part of the arrangement? What kinda frequency range does it need to occupy to do the job? Does it still work when i cut the lows? Do it get away with just an SM57, mono? Is the guitar played well enough to contribute low frequencies to the rhythm?

[joninc]

i like sdc for nice clear top end but not as much lows - akg 460 is my fave for this.

[vernier]

I'm thinking mic placement and rolling off some lows should work with about any acoustic.