[E_di_e]

Hi,

I was searching where to put the clip mic on my straight soprano and find way different answers. Do you use a single clipped mic on your soprano? If yes, where do you prefer to put it? On the bell or over the keys?

Here is Marv Hixson showing where to put the mic

But live recording I found are always on a stand

I have the shure beta 98H, btw

Thanks.

 

[whamptoncourt]

Having the microphone picking up from anywhere near the bell will give you a lot of high harmonics, which can be OK if that's the sound you want. The problem is when you play low notes (B & Bb) which can make it "boom". If you're not playing those low notes no problem.

I NEVER put a microphone anywhere near the bell because I play the bottom of the horn a lot, and I want a mellower sound. My microphone is about 30cm distance and pointed towards G. Some bell clips can still work by pointing it towards the G, but I prefer a microphone stand.

If you're in a good acoustic space and you want more of the "room sound" then back the microphone away further. I generally don't do that as I'm usually recording and trying to mix with an existing track, so want the sax recorded dry and to then add the appropriate reverb and delay to match the rest of the recording.

The video above doesn't really demonstrate the point well as the microphone is too far away and its a VERY live room, so you're hearing the room reverb more than just the sound from the horn.

 

[hakukani]

I clip it on the bell, but the element above the bell, but not pointed at the b and Bb vents.

It's best to experiment and see what works on your setup.

 

[Pete Thomas]

I clip it on the bell, but the element above the bell, but not pointed at the b and Bb vents.

It's best to experiment and see what works on your setup.

Yes, experiment is what the best engineers do - different horns, different rooms.

I would put the clipon on a mic stand, put your headphones on and move around the mic taking a note of the best position while playing a gamut of notes. Then replicate that position with the mic clipped on.

Soprano (and clarinet) can be tricky - in my experience often two mics work best if at all possible (watch out for out of phase issues!)

If you find that just one is picking up too much of one range, then if possible try to adapt the clipon to be further away. Or, for recording, just put it on a stand and move off a bit.

 

[Grumps]

AMT has a specially designed clip-on for straight soprano saxophones:

https://www.wwbw.com/Applied-Microp...no-Saxophone-Microphone-with-BP45-271098.wwbw

 

[E_di_e]

@Pete thanks for the advice on testing the mic with a stand. Great idea!
@Grumps yes, and SD system has another https://store.sdsystems.com/lcm80-for-soprano-sax.html

 

[turf3]

End of the bell, but not eating the bell.

The cone and bell will adequately reflect sound down the bore.

Stick your ear right up to a soprano sax bell sometime and have the player play high notes. Are you unable to hear them, or does it just about blow your eardrums out?