How to create an impulse response of an acoustic guitar?

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How to create an impulse response of an acoustic guitar?

Post by stormymondays »

I’ve been doing a lot of searching about how to create an IR of my acoustic guitar. It seems that people are running a match EQ, comparing mic and DI and creating an impulse response out of that. But I think there should be a way of skipping the match EQ, right?

I suppose I could stick a monitor in front of the sound hole and record a sweep, but that wouldn’t do a whole lot for the pickup. So, there must be a way to do it simply by playing for a long time, like the Tonedexter pedal.

I’m thinking: first I record the mic and the pickup and the same time, and then I time-align the recording so the pickup is not early.

Now if I flip the phase of one of those channels I can hear the “difference” result of the recordings.

And that’s as far as I can go before my mind explodes.

What’s next? Can this be done in the computer?
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Re: How to create an impulse response of an acoustic guitar?

Post by shufflebeat »

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Re: How to create an impulse response of an acoustic guitar?

Post by Tomás Mulcahy »

Oh wow, that's very cool. I cannot even remember what brand of pickup is in mine. It was cheaper than the Fishman it replaced, and better sounding. Any idea what brands were cheap in the music shops around 1997?
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Re: How to create an impulse response of an acoustic guitar?

Post by shufflebeat »

Tomás Mulcahy wrote:Any idea what brands were cheap in the music shops around 1997?

Are we deffo talking under saddle pickups?

Shadow
Schaller (not UST, in my experience)
Baggs (not cheap, in my experience)

There is one more that escapes me for now but it'll come back.
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Re: How to create an impulse response of an acoustic guitar?

Post by Wonks »

Dean Markley soundhole
B-Band.
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Re: How to create an impulse response of an acoustic guitar?

Post by Albatross »

Don't know but I know how to do a banjo, and it involves a hammer.
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Re: How to create an impulse response of an acoustic guitar?

Post by Tomás Mulcahy »

Thanks for the answers! Lawd bless your memories :D
shufflebeat wrote: Are we deffo talking under saddle pickups?

Yes deffo.
shufflebeat wrote:There is one more that escapes me for now but it'll come back.

Hopefully that's the one.
Wonks wrote:B-Band.

Good call! I don't think it's this, going by the cable. Mine's not braided.

This guitar, incidentally, is a c.1988 Columbus Crest dreadnought, as best as I can tell it's Sitka Spruce body. Was greatly improved with bone saddle and nut. Later had bridge remade for left handed. It has gotten more even and mellow with age. It's surpisingly nice but it's no Martin.
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Re: How to create an impulse response of an acoustic guitar?

Post by shufflebeat »

The only other one I've come up with is Barcus Berry but they're not the one I'm missing. BB were known for the BB junior "bug" style pickup for buskers (on my radar) and the built in fiddle bridge pickup (it was either that or a Fishman "bent strip if copper that sounds like a bent strip of copper" at the time) but I know BB did a UST, just didn't register in a big way.

When Headway came along they took over the folkie UST market for a while but there's still one missing.

I shall cogitate further.
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Re: How to create an impulse response of an acoustic guitar?

Post by zenguitar »

I wonder if Ashworth were still going then?

Andy :beamup:
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Re: How to create an impulse response of an acoustic guitar?

Post by Tomás Mulcahy »

shufflebeat wrote:I shall cogitate further.

I appreciate that. I can confirm it's not Barcus Berry, because the pre-amp is a Barcus Berry Super Booster I've had forever. It's very good. I'd have noticed if the UST was the same make. IIRC this pickup is a flat grey thing and I think it was a little taller than the previous Fishmann.
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Re: How to create an impulse response of an acoustic guitar?

Post by Wonks »

C-ducer was mentioned in another thread and is another possibility.
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Re: How to create an impulse response of an acoustic guitar?

Post by shufflebeat »

I remember the c-ducer as a big pink waxing strip used to rip the surface off expensive instruments. The quest is for a UST, however.
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