Alright, so here's my dilemna. I finally figured out the midi problem for assigning drums written in GP into FL, simply needed to re-assign a few of GPs sounds to FL. Anyways, now that I'm attempting to record the material, its impossible to hear the drums loudly enough so that I can also have my stack loud enough to be picked up by the mic.

So in short, I am running the drum mp3 through the PA, but the problem is, even though I can hear it, i can't hear it as "clearly" as I would like, and that occasionally throws me off during more intense rhythmic sections.

I guess I am asking, what would be the easiest way to crank my amp so that that mic picks up the sound (for some reason, this peavey mic, even when only 6" away, needs to have the amp at half volume...and also be able to hear my drums/bass/rhythm guitar?

Hopefully I'm clear enough.

The best way to track is to wear some headphones, but if you can't do this, another little trick to record and monitor in the same room is:

Place the amp and mic in the middle of the room, and then make sure that the mic is equidistant from each of the monitors. Next, flip the phase on one of the monitors (if you don't have a phase switch on the PA, just swap the red/black leads going to the speaker). What will happen is that at the mic, the in-phase and out-phased signals will meet, and will cancel, so you don't get any pickup in the mic, but you'll be able to hear it in the room If you are just getting a little bleed through, i wouldn't worry about it, as it'll get lost in the mix anyway. Quite often, when recording vocals, you actually pick up the sound from the vocalists' headphones through the mic, but because it's so low, it's lost in the mix.

Best thing would be to use headphones- if you can, get a mix of the drums and your guitar in the headphones, so you can clearly hear it all at the same time.

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Alright, thanks so far, its appreciated more than you'd know, that helped already. One problem still....over my guitar, I still cannot hear the bass drum track clearly (all other drums/cymbals are clear though). Headphones work better than monitoring through the PA, but its hard to hear over the guitar. Are there any headphones out there that could be used for isolating the background tracks from what I am playing since I can't afford an isolation booth or anything? My budget would allow for anything up to $150, though cheaper would be better, still paying for books and tuition.

you could replace the microphone with one that's more sensitive, or record direct in and run it through modeling.

if it's just one track you can't hear, EQ it so it stands out in the mix or turn that one up in the mix. but headphones aren't going to compete when you're standing next to a stack ... it's better to have a sound barrier.

for isolation, you could put your stack in the closet with the mic. shut the door / hang some blankets etc to block it off. it's hard to soundproof though. probably easier to just turn your amp down and get a better mic.

A pair of closed-back headphones should do you fine to block out external noise enough to hear the mix. I'd advise to go and check some out in person, as it's all about how they sit on your head- you don't want a pair thats gonna be loose, but also not too tight, as it'll get uncomfortable if you're tracking for a while

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Alright. So there ARE mics out there that would be sensitive to my amp at lower volumes...at least significantly lower than half volume at 120watts tube? What might be some decent...affordable suggestions? Thanks for the help and suggestions so far, its been appreciated.

What mic are you currently using? I can get acceptable sounding recordings with my SM57 placed off-axis about 2" from the grillcloth, and that's with my 50w JCM900 running in half power mode, and still with the volume only on 3. Positioning is the key with mics, so i'd advise to whack on a pair of headphones, get someone to play your guitar for you, and move the mic around whilst listening to the headphones- you'll have to crank the volume on the headphones a little so you hear the guitar through them, and not through the cab you're in front of. Keep moving the mic around until you get a sound that you like.

Don't forget that one recorded guitar on it's own will sound different when it's in a mix with other instruments.

Edit: As for a mic suggestion, i'd say the SM57, it's versatile and fine for starting out You'll use it loads even if/when you upgrade to other mics.

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btw ... are you using a preamp for the mic? that may be why the level is so low. if you don't have a pre, check the options for your soundcard. sometimes there's a mic gain boost (there's definitely one in windows control panel, if you're using an onboard soundcard).

Not using a preamp at the moment, running my mic through a firewire mixer for recording, not using the mic-in on windows. Thats why I can't figure out how come its so low, and even after having the volume halfway I need to boost the volume of the channel.

Btw, its a peavey mic that I got at the local shop for around $40

if you plug your guitar straight into that same channel on the mixer, do you get a much stronger signal?

if its way louder than the mic, you know the mic is the problem. if it's about the same strength then the problem is elsewhere.

Yeah, its definitely the mic. But just to test it further, I bought a 19.99 mic at radioshack today...same results as the peavey...a barely audible track even when the amp is loud.

When I record even just the guitar direct, it is at least 20x as loud. Is this just saying I need a mic pre-amp...or is it that I need a better mic?

weird. could it be the mic cable? did you use the same one for both mics or are they hardwired...

how about when you record your voice with the mic, does it pick that up at a normal level?

how close do you position the mic to your guitar speaker? with cheap dynamic mics, you usually have to have it an inch or two away from the sound source pointed directly at it ... i think sqol already mentioned that though.

Not the mic cable, used two different XLR's while testing them. And it barely picks up vocals at ALL. Thats the puzzling part. And you have to have it literally right on the speaker grill to pickup any sound...even at 1/2volume.

If you're not running it into a mic-pre, then that's why you're getting such a low signal level. You want to run the mic into a preamp, then the preamp (at line level) into your mixer. What you get if you plug a mic into a line-level input, is impedance mismatching, and you don't get a strong signal, hence the low/no volume

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could he just use a line transformer instead?
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/prod...mer-?sku=272114

Yep, that'd work fine, should prove a simple solution to his problem

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I might invest in a pre...sounds like a worthwhile investment. Does anybody know if the Art Tube pre that musicians friend sells for around $29.99 is any good?

Well i've got the ART Tube PAC, and i'm very happy with it, i'd assume that the tube pre is pretty good too.

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