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[Jerome Casinger]

Do you guys use any verb/effects, specific types to make it sit better in the mix?

I know I can fig it out, if it really is just a go with it, I have no problem with that, my setup time has just been cut dramatically and its the only instrument I am not familiar with so just looking for a good starting point, or if there is a "norm" for country fiddle players.

Thanks again everyone, can always count on the forum for advice (and a little humor). 

[g'bye, Dick Rees]

Do you guys use any verb/effects, specific types to make it sit better in the mix?

I know I can fig it out, if it really is just a go with it, I have no problem with that, my setup time has just been cut dramatically and its the only instrument I am not familiar with so just looking for a good starting point, or if there is a "norm" for country fiddle players.

Thanks again everyone, can always count on the forum for advice (and a little humor).

If he doesn't have his own FX, you'll probably be told if anything is needed.  And you can always just ask him...but I wouldn't go using anything but EQ unless they ask for it. 

[Tomm Williams]

Unless you've worked with said band a great deal, I would suggest avoiding any FX or EQ tricks. Just get him clear in the mix and let his dynamics do the rest. If there is something obviously lacking address it but otherwise tread lightly. Bluegrass/Acoustic folks are paticularly hostile about playing with their sound..........be careful.

[Jerome Casinger]

I got some insight from him, sounds like he is a good player but doesn't know sound well.  He basically said one gig the sound guy made him sound better than he has ever heard, and the last festival he sounded terrible.  I inquired but not much more info was given.  Lol.  Sounds like it is a go with it kind of instrument, so I will do just that!  Appreciate it!

[DavidTurner]

Most fiddle pickups are really harsh in the three to 4K region so some judicial cuts in that area are usually called for. you won't need anything below about 300 cycles so ta hi pass filter will help there. The body of the violin lives in the 400 800 region so I always try to enhance that to get the warmth of the body. This is from a guy who has mixed lots of fiddles in 30 years of mixing country bands.

[Tim McCulloch]

Most fiddle pickups are really harsh in the three to 4K region so some judicial cuts in that area are usually called for. you won't need anything below about 300 cycles so ta hi pass filter will help there. The body of the violin lives in the 400 800 region so I always try to enhance that to get the warmth of the body. This is from a guy who has mixed lots of fiddles in 30 years of mixing country bands.

Thanks, David, for confirming what my ears tell me.  And sadly a fiddle doesn't require a pickup to sound brittle and screechy around 3kHz.

[Steve M Smith]

And sadly a fiddle doesn't require a pickup to sound brittle and screechy around 3kHz.

No.  A young child learning to play one in the house next door can achieve that without any kind of amplification!


Steve.

[g'bye, Dick Rees]

Most fiddle pickups are really harsh in the three to 4K region so some judicial cuts in that area are usually called for. you won't need anything below about 300 cycles so ta hi pass filter will help there. The body of the violin lives in the 400 800 region so I always try to enhance that to get the warmth of the body. This is from a guy who has mixed lots of fiddles in 30 years of mixing country bands.

The open G string of the fiddle is 196, so I wouldn't toss things out at 300.  You'd be losing almost the whole low octave...

As to the "screech" range of the fiddle:

The rosin used will make a big difference.  I prefer to use Liebenzahler Gold myself.  That alone takes care of the greater part of the more strident overtones.  For really problematic rigs, a light mute will help IF you can get the player to try it.  Being a player yourself sometimes helps.

[Ben Brunskill]

The open G string of the fiddle is 196, so I wouldn't toss things out at 300.  You'd be losing almost the whole low octave...

I agree. Bluegrass players like their instruments to sound very natural, and knocking off the lows won’t make you popular. I find the standard piezo type pickup to be very scratchy and harsh around 3-4K so be prepared with a narrow Q cut.
Sometimes a small amount of short reverb helps to return the ‘air' of the real instrument that those nasty piezo pickups loose.
You could also possible put a mic on the fiddle and use the mic in the house and the pickup in the monitors, but I’d ask first.

I use an AT Pro35 on fiddle/violin.

[DavidTurner]

The open E string on the electric bass guitar is 40 cycles or so, but for decades we routinely hi passed our sound systems at 80 cycles and many of the classic bass amps that are love by bass players and engineers alike won't reproduce 40 cycles. Likewise, low e on an acoustic guitar is around 80 hz, but most often engineers hi pass them around 100 and still apply deep cuts in the 100 to 200 hz range.

Often the most important tonal properties of an instrument are not its fundamental frequencies but its overtone series - especially the first harmonic - on the fiddle the 400 to 800 range.

Yes, fiddles are inherently screechy. Contact pick ups accentuate that.

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