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In this month’s Staff Picks blog, we’re chatting with Vintage King Audio Consultant Kevin Schuck about his go-to gear for tracking guitar.
At an early age, Kevin taught himself how to play guitar and soon after fell in love with recording while working as a studio musician. Inspired by amazing songwriters like Tom Petty, and heartfelt performances like those on Fleetwood Mac’s Rumors, Kevin is an expert at helping people dial in timeless tones.
Read on to learn more about Kevin’s favorite mics, preamps, and pedals for recording guitar.
“If I’m recording a real amp, which is my preference, I always want to get two mics on the cab. Most people know and dig the Shure SM57 and Royer R-121 combo, but I like to use a different set of mics to get a unique sound while still using the traditional dynamic/ribbon approach so that producers know exactly what to do with the guitar stems I send them.
Right now, one of my favorite mics for tracking guitar is the Shure 545SD-LC, which is kinda like a 57 but I find the mids are slightly sweeter and the low-end is tighter. This mic could do it all but having a ribbon in the mix really expands the full frequency spectrum and I love how it captures the high-end without sounding harsh.
The Stager SR-5 does what I want the 121 to do but is about half the price at just $799. I really prefer how natural the midrange is with the SR-5. This mic rules on so many sources – it’s killer on vocals as well!”
“When I need to record DI guitar, either for small studios with no iso options, at my house when the kids are sleeping, or even the need to play a silent stage, I can't get away from the Universal Audio amp boxes. I’ve tried everything under the sun and I keep coming back to UA. It just feels and sounds like a real amp.
The trick I like to use to make it feel and sound even better is to run a really good DI like the Rupert Neve Designs RNDI-S. It adds a three-dimensional quality to the sound that gives the weight of a live amp hitting a mic.
If you haven't tried the RNDI on your direct guitar rig, you must. It truly is the secret sauce for amp modelers like the Kemper PROFILER Player, Neural DSP Quad Cortex, IK Multimedia TONEX, Line 6 Helix, and the aforementioned UA pedals.”
“Whether I’m running amps with mics or going DI, I still find the value in hitting real analog preamps. With the Shure 545, I want it to hit an API 512 to get that classic sound that’s defined American recordings for the past 50 years. It always sounds great and will stand the test of time.
For a flavor option, I like using the Retro Instruments 500PRE tube preamp on the ribbon mic. It has the vibe to really add life, depth, and feel to the track. Just remember to always check your phase while recording. Nothing is worse than tracking two lines and missing out on all the good stuff cause you canceled it out!
For simple use, I really dig a small two-space rack so I can take this sound anywhere with me.”
“Lastly, the new Universal Audio Apollo X Gen 2 interfaces feature a simple update that allows you to bypass the internal preamps, which means the world to this rig. Beforehand, you could never turn off the internal preamps, so if you used any outboard gear, you were essentially stacking multiple preamps.
As always, if it sounds good, it is good. But sometimes, the only color I want is what I'm picking, like that killer Retro/API combo. The other upgrades in the new Gen 2 Apollos are also rad, like the improved conversion and additional headroom.”
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