DI for Acoustic guitar??

[Merlin01]

Hello all, (newb here)

I don't know a whole lot about DI's and I've never used one however I want to give one a whirl for recording Acoustic Guitar. I want to experiment with the 1 channel DI'd and 1 channel MIC'd scenario.

From a brief look at retailers I found a lot of what they call "Stomp Boxes", but they seem to be a little extravagant for my needs, I just want something to plug my guitar (acoustic) into and feed that signal (clean) to the desk/DAW.

Could someone please make a recommendation of something simple (preferably not to pricey) and effective (clean)?
Or could I make one, without sacrificing to much quality??

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated,
Thanks.

[brandondrury]

I want to experiment with the 1 channel DI'd and 1 channel MIC'd scenario.

Some people go that route. I never got into it. I never thought the DI sound of an acoustic guitar added anything.

I just want something to plug my guitar (acoustic) into and feed that signal (clean) to the desk/DAW.

You can plug directly into the 1/4" input of a preamp with no problem.

[drago]

The only time I would recommend using a DI box for acoustic guitar is if you are recording a live concert or if you just need a quick solution for scratch guitar and don't feel like setting up a mic.

[GP Systems]

I have used a DTar Mamma Bear Acoustic Preamp with some great results. Typically I will blend this tone with a couple of well placed mics if recording. The live sound from this unit is quite a treat. Lately I have also been experimenting with running the output from the Mamma Bear to a Mashall AS100D Marshall Amps :: AS100D and my live acoustic sound has never been better.

[Merlin01]

I'm still taking a lot in looking at some sample projects included Sonar - One piece called "Back and Forth" uses a MIC'd and Plugged channel for the acoustic guitar.

Looking at diagrams of how to feed signals into my (elcheapo) interface [Yamaha MW10C], it shows a plugged electric guitar going through a DI into the mixer, so that's what made me think I'd need a DI if I were to plug my acoustic directly into the mixer.

Is it safe to say the acoustic pickup is not like the electric pickup? And plugging the acoustic signal directly into the mixer is safe to do??? I'm a little confused... Is it something to do with impedance???
Sorry for the stupid questions.....

[GP Systems]

An acoustic pickup would require a DI or preamp to bring it to line level if feeding directly into the mixer.

There are many great examples of bands that have used acoustic pickups for recording [ Alice in Chains and Days of the New for example ]. Personally I like to feed a DI to one one track and then setup 2 or 3 mics [ pencil mic at 12th fret and LDC near bridge and sometimes an LDC room mic]. Each track then has very different tonal qualities that can offer a great deal of flexibility in the mix.

[brandondrury]

There are many great examples of bands that have used acoustic pickups for recording [ Alice in Chains and Days of the New for example ].

Which songs?

Brandon

[GP Systems]

As for Alice in Chains there are a bunch. The whole Unplugged MTV special they did was quite good and Cantrell was running DI'd off a Guild guitar I believe. A number of tracks on "Jar of Flies" are also appear DI'd.

As for DOTN...I'll have to get back to you on specific tracks but i did read an article regarding some production techniques they incorporated and the blended DI was definately in there.

I hope this helps a bit.

[brandondrury]

I have heard some excellent sounding DI acoustic guitars on the live AOL sessions a few live DVDs, but I'm not sure what DI they are using that actually sounds musical.

Brandon