How Would You Record Upright Bass?

I like ribbons combined with a small diaphragm so I would rec. the AEA R44CXE they have. Usually I like a km84 pointed at the place the bassist pulls the strings about 8 to 10 inches out and the ribbon is lower approx in line with the bridge sometimes not pointed directly at the body but angled slightly in either axis, but that position can vary a lot depending on the bass, setup, and the player. I also like a dpa 4060 clip on mic instead of using the di. Is there isolation or is everyone in the same room? The null of the ribbons can of course be very useful.Good luck, Mike

also like beyer m160 in the finger position and if its all in one room this will be better for isolation but not sure they have one

I always use an sdc condenser as one of the mics. Sometimes along with an R44 type mic or other great mic for deep bass. It does not hurt to record the pickup along with it. Even if it is three tracks total, you do not have to use all three tracks.
My 2 cents.
I am not the expert. When I hire an upright bass player for my projects, who is often a guy who actually won a Grammy and has been playing jazz bass and folk for many decades, and he usually tell me what they have done in other studios! I have found that I am grateful I have that sdc condenser to mix in.

I am sure Jackpot knows more than me along with others on this board!

Enjoy! Sounds like fun!

I used an SDC near the bridge pointing upward-ish toward wherever the player was plucking about 8 to 12 inches back to get as much detail as I could (distance depending on movement - this is a full body instrument so it's probably going to dance around a bit) and an LDC a little further back aiming to get more warmth and bump.

Take the DI. I've never regretted it. Whether an acoustic guitar, an electric guitar, or an upright bass the DI always finds a way to be useful or at least a great backup to ensure no magic performances are lost to too enthusiastic a performance with too much movement.

With a high energy drummer like Elvin Jones playing in the same room you need to put that SDC (84 or whatever) wrapped in foam or hanging in rubber bands in the bridge of the bass, pointing upwards, this to avoid too much bleed of course. It works swell! I've tried SM57 in this position too as it picks up less of the room, and the result is jaw dropping. Needs a bit more eq but works surprisingly well! But if the bass is isolated my go to is a large condenser 4" in front of the bridge. If you need more detail raise it towards the players hand. I'm a fan of using only one mic and finding a sweet spot, for phase reasons. Some like it, but I usually avoid the f-holes. Many basses have a bit of extra resonance around the low C-C#-D-D# region, and in my experience that resonance is even more present around the f-holes.

I’ve used RE20 right at the F hole, with di pickup as backup. The DI helped for sub bass. The RE20 had a dynamic tone I expected, it was usable. The pitch intonation on fretless was the biggest hurdle. So if I had to go back, I’d work hard to get awesome monitor feed so they have the best chance at playing up to their ability

I used a Gefell M930 about 2ft from the floor and maybe 2ft back from the bass, facing up towards the place between the plucking and the fretboard. Seemed to get the most balanced tone from this particular bass. I suspect your mic will need to be around this area too, balancing the tone between the plucking, the soundholes and the fretboard.

I want to try the m930 on bass..Have thought of it many times but those bass players are always so busy working theres not a lot of time to try stuff. Just the other day I was plotting to invite a neighbor bassist over to try some mics I haven't before and I know what they like to drink so thanks for the reminder-the 930 was one on the list.Also just got a samar mg20 I want to try

This lineup, you don't really need separation, you just need multiple takes to edit between. The classic 47 M7/K47 does always sound good here. Omni SDC also wins for lack of proximity effect problems, best actual low end. Need iso with a drummer? Only thing I've ever used that worked acceptably has been the Lauten LS-308. It's tricky regardless. I've tried double omni's spaced so I could use one for RX de-bleed, etc. Can get good results but not as no-brainer as the LS-308 has been. I've done a lot of rockabilly bass/drums with 2 omni's on the bass, some baffling to kill cymbal highs. Works OK. The weirder the mic pattern (LDC's....), the weirder drum bleed will be.

Hmmm.

I have several Gefell 930s and Beyer 930s
Both entirely different mics. Next time I have to record a ‘canoe’ I’ll try them if time permits.

Here’s an old photo of a Flea 47 Classic and a Neumann KM84.
Ribbons combined with SDC’s also work.
Just check the phase.
Another great upright bass mic is the Neumann U77 (hard to find) but that is great on just about anything.

I’ve really come across two different bass tones: the bluegrass “thump” (Barry Bales, Dennis Crouch, Mike Bub) which is usually heavily dampened (pillow in the bridge to mute resonance/cut sustain) and/or gut strings. The other is what I call “lead bass” like Edgar Meyer, Paul Kowart, or Todd Phillips. More open, more throaty, usually steel string.

The thump is comes from down on the F hole/around the bridge and the “detail” I find is above the F hole on the part of the bass near the high strings. Over the neck is usually just clacking/more noise than you’ll want, too close to the right hand fingers and it might have too much “pluck” or the sound of the strings being pulled…but that upper bout that’s exposed usually sounds great.

So, that’s usually where I put the mics. Omni is great. I usually like to use a multi pattern because sometimes cardioid is better. Maybe try a pair of their U47 style microphones so you can easily A/B Omni and cardioid.

But it really is all about the instrument and the player if it sounds good. Have the player move around the room and play and find a place where the instruments speaks and sounds even. Some instruments as mentioned have really loud “woof” tones and some have notes that are just totally dead.