I've heard about the idea in general, but not a lot of as far as specifics. I'd like to start trying it, but I'd also be interested in hearing other folks experiences with the whole "mic in a tube" thing.
Thanks.
Mechanical Filters
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Jay Reynolds
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Mechanical Filters
Prog out with your cog out.
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JGriffin
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Cool. This came up in the "trying stupid things" thread, but it's more appropriate here.
Here's what I wrote there:
? On the first DWLB CD we recorded a few drum tracks through PVC pipes. As in, each pipe pointed at a different drum with a mic at the other end. Different lengths/widths of pipe for each drum. On one track I also ran the tom pipe-mics through a Boss flanger and played with the knobs as the drums were going to 'tape' to get some nice bizarre resonances. I also have tracked bass through a radiator hose from time to time.
? On another song I co-produced for a local songwriter I aimed a 3' length of ceramic standpipe at the bottom of a grand piano, stuck a mic in the other end and compressed the hell out of it with an 1176.
? For my brother's record he wanted a drum breakdown to sound strange, so we did some PVC-tube phasey reamping:
1) aim PVC pipe at monitor speaker, mic at close end sitting on a sock. Play back drum break. Pull mic through tube away from speaker slowly over the course of the break. Record this to a new track.
2) place mic at far end of pipe (again, on a sock), tie string to it. Play back drum break. Pull mic through tube towards speaker slowly over the course of the break. Record this to a new track.
3) Play both tracks simultaneously. Weird, phasey. Cool. Mixing engineer says "how the hell did you do that?"
? (not as directly related) I've also "reamped" (I generally use the film term "worldize" instead) vocals and guitars in a small cedar chest, which gives a nice creepy "trapped in a wooden coffin" ambience.
Here's what I wrote there:
? On the first DWLB CD we recorded a few drum tracks through PVC pipes. As in, each pipe pointed at a different drum with a mic at the other end. Different lengths/widths of pipe for each drum. On one track I also ran the tom pipe-mics through a Boss flanger and played with the knobs as the drums were going to 'tape' to get some nice bizarre resonances. I also have tracked bass through a radiator hose from time to time.
? On another song I co-produced for a local songwriter I aimed a 3' length of ceramic standpipe at the bottom of a grand piano, stuck a mic in the other end and compressed the hell out of it with an 1176.
? For my brother's record he wanted a drum breakdown to sound strange, so we did some PVC-tube phasey reamping:
1) aim PVC pipe at monitor speaker, mic at close end sitting on a sock. Play back drum break. Pull mic through tube away from speaker slowly over the course of the break. Record this to a new track.
2) place mic at far end of pipe (again, on a sock), tie string to it. Play back drum break. Pull mic through tube towards speaker slowly over the course of the break. Record this to a new track.
3) Play both tracks simultaneously. Weird, phasey. Cool. Mixing engineer says "how the hell did you do that?"
? (not as directly related) I've also "reamped" (I generally use the film term "worldize" instead) vocals and guitars in a small cedar chest, which gives a nice creepy "trapped in a wooden coffin" ambience.
"Jeweller, you've failed. Jeweller."
"Lots of people are nostalgic for analog. I suspect they're people who never had to work with it." ? Brian Eno
All the DWLB music is at http://dwlb.bandcamp.com/
"Lots of people are nostalgic for analog. I suspect they're people who never had to work with it." ? Brian Eno
All the DWLB music is at http://dwlb.bandcamp.com/
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cgarges
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"Mechanical filters" would pretty much mean any physical object that affects the sound a microphone is picking up. The tube thing is popular because it works well and Tchad Blake has made massive use of the technique with fantastic results. I had never heard anyone use the term before Blake, but it seems to have worked its way into the lingo in recent years.
Just about anything you can put a microphone into can be effective in some way: boxes, cases, cans, tubes, drums, pipes, barrels, whatever. I've been having fun with this stuff for years. To me, the most interesting stuff happens when you can create motion with the filters, like using a corrugated plastic tube and putting the mic in one end and having someone else move the other end around the sound source. Or maybe taping the other end to the sound source and having the player move. Or moving some object between the mic and the sound source to simulate doppler-type stuff.
It can be a real limitless world of fun.
Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC
Just about anything you can put a microphone into can be effective in some way: boxes, cases, cans, tubes, drums, pipes, barrels, whatever. I've been having fun with this stuff for years. To me, the most interesting stuff happens when you can create motion with the filters, like using a corrugated plastic tube and putting the mic in one end and having someone else move the other end around the sound source. Or maybe taping the other end to the sound source and having the player move. Or moving some object between the mic and the sound source to simulate doppler-type stuff.
It can be a real limitless world of fun.
Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC
I discovered this effect for myself while recording some avant-feedback - the mic was 6 ft in front of the amp, and i was in between with the guitar. I was doing my feedback ecstasy thing, which I thought sounded very interesting. I listened back later, and found all kinds of filtering effects from my body passing through and moving within the sound field. It added another dynamic dimension, along with another element of unintendedness, and was a pleasant surprise.
Of course using gobo's is a very general way of mechanically filtering sound, and I've enjoyed shaping the soundfield, not to totally block sound, but to shape it, like a sonic sculptor. Or is it "sculpteur" in this context of lofty verbiage?
Of course using gobo's is a very general way of mechanically filtering sound, and I've enjoyed shaping the soundfield, not to totally block sound, but to shape it, like a sonic sculptor. Or is it "sculpteur" in this context of lofty verbiage?
"Artists to my mind are the real architects of change, and not the political legislators who implement change after the fact." William S Burroughs
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SpencerBenjamin
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drumsound
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Re: Mechanical Filters
It's fun and easy. Put the mic or the sound source into something--record the produces sound and either build a production around it or hope it works in the one you're doing.superaction80 wrote:I've heard about the idea in general, but not a lot of as far as specifics. I'd like to start trying it, but I'd also be interested in hearing other folks experiences with the whole "mic in a tube" thing.
Thanks.
On of my favorites was setting up an MS pair and feeding the sides from flexible Mylar tubing. I tracked guitar through my glorious aluminium tube this afternoon!
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blackdiscoball
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CraigS63
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This might be obvious to everyone my age...
You can use a cheap dynamic mic (think 1970's tape recorder) as a talk-box or rotating speaker. Plugging the 1/8" plug to an earphone jack (heh, I mean headphone jack) makes the microphone act as a speaker. This can be modulated by either pointing at/in your mouth, or spinning the mic around, Daltrey-style.
You can use a cheap dynamic mic (think 1970's tape recorder) as a talk-box or rotating speaker. Plugging the 1/8" plug to an earphone jack (heh, I mean headphone jack) makes the microphone act as a speaker. This can be modulated by either pointing at/in your mouth, or spinning the mic around, Daltrey-style.
In the realm of psuedo-talkbox effects...
Once, while screwing around to no intentional end, I taped a contact mic to the inside of my mouth and held one of those pocket amps in front of me as if it was a mic, with a friend playing a fuzzy riff... got some really gross/weird filtering going on as I moved my mouth around. I've been looking for the right place to use that sound for a while now.
Once, while screwing around to no intentional end, I taped a contact mic to the inside of my mouth and held one of those pocket amps in front of me as if it was a mic, with a friend playing a fuzzy riff... got some really gross/weird filtering going on as I moved my mouth around. I've been looking for the right place to use that sound for a while now.
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JGriffin
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Speaking of swinging mics around, the movement sounds for the light sabers in Star Wars is a result of moving a mic around in relation to a static tone coming out of a speaker.
Ben Burtt explains it better himself. And there's a brief shot of him doing it right at the end.
Ben Burtt explains it better himself. And there's a brief shot of him doing it right at the end.
"Jeweller, you've failed. Jeweller."
"Lots of people are nostalgic for analog. I suspect they're people who never had to work with it." ? Brian Eno
All the DWLB music is at http://dwlb.bandcamp.com/
"Lots of people are nostalgic for analog. I suspect they're people who never had to work with it." ? Brian Eno
All the DWLB music is at http://dwlb.bandcamp.com/
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stereopathetic_banjo
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Just a few days ago while tracking drums, I put a mic just slightly down the hallway between the live room and control room. I have an isolation door between the rooms at the end of the hall, and so I experimented with leaving the door open to various degrees. It worked out that maybe 30 deg. open resulted in a great combo of blown out room sound and controlled reverb. Worked great with the track, and it's always nice to have a new trick in the bag.
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