micing up a tom cat

[Guest Mr Blastcap]

whats the best way to mic up a tom cat- i've heard those little clip on lapel mic's will do the trick but might prove to noisy. maybe i should use a matched pair of condensers ? what do the tech-heads of aberdeen think?

[Guest Tam o' Shantie]

it depends what you are looking for - if it just meowing etc i suggest you use triggers, there are some really realistic samples out there and they often sound a lot clearer than the real thing (no noise or fur spillage etc) however for if you are kicking the cat use a kick drum mic, you'll get a much deeper thud and they look cool as well. also try DI, but you have to plug it in at the right point or the whole thing can blow up (the cat i mean)

[Guest Electric Tibet]

I heard Steve Albini uses a pair of ribbon mics placed 15-20 feet away at floor level. Unfortunately you get phasing problems if the tomcat starts moving about.

[Guest Zeenat Aman]

This recording is a combination of clip on mic's and Mr Tibet's/Albini ribbon mic method:

03/04/05

I found it tricky avoiding picking up the sound of the cat moving, but staples and cellotape proved to be suitable for keeping them in place.

[Guest Mr Blastcap]

thanks chaps. i asume the same ideas will work well on a tractor?

[Guest Electric Tibet]

Depends on the room you record it in.

[soundian]

Tractors are tricky.

Undermic it with a kick drum mic (AKG D112 works surprisingly well, I knew they had a use) and place a condensor above the engine casing (remembering to reverse the polarity of one of these mics).

If you want a more ambient sound you could try the ribbon method outlined above but I find they're too sensitive and tend to pick up the rustle of lumberjack shirts too easily.

Here's a little trick I picked up in Turrif: Put vaseline on the tractor operators wellies, you know what it's like when you think you've got the perfect take only to discover a stray squeak in the middle eight.

I'm currently experimenting with micing up the exhaust with an old biro, with mixed results.

Red ink and about 3/4 empty seems to be the best on massie fergies but john deers do better with a half full black one. Go figure.

[Compuphonic]

For tractors I suggest the BBC Sound effect library Volume 36 Farm Machinery..

For cats try BBC Sound Effects Library Volume 6 Animals and Birds

Probably not as much fun though...

[threeornothing]

Take it from a pro in this field (haha scuse the pun!) Best bet for a tractor is a Sennheiser 416.....works on emmerdale

[Compuphonic]

Take it from a pro in this field (haha scuse the pun!) Best bet for a tractor is a Sennheiser 416.....works on emmerdale

The 416 is definately a good choice' date=' but you're likely to loose a lot of the 'field' ambience..

A lot of folks complain that it produces too clinical a tractror sound

Good source of mic info here:

[url']http://members.aol.com/mihartkopf/index.htm

[threeornothing]

What on earth are you planning on recording mr blastcap? The sound a cat makes when you crush one to death with a Ferguson!!!??!!!

[Guest Mr Blastcap]

the project shrouded in secrecy!

its fairly secret, but its going to be great! it will rock the aberdeen scene to the core. forget about 10ew, mmw,gggr, soodit, and dlmfssss. !

[ghost]

my cat wants a signed contract before miaowing anywhere near a mic. is this normal and if so, will it be placated with a few beers like the rest of the musicians in this town?