Instrument
Mountain dulcimer
A fretted zither with 3-6 strings in 3 or 4 courses, a diatonic fretboard and an hourglass or teardrop body, about 70-100 cm long; played flat on the lap with a flatpick, a quill or the fingers, often with a noter. Not the hammered dulcimer, which is a different instrument (the world file has the santur).1,2
Also called Appalachian dulcimer.
- Range
- D3–D6
- Sources
- 3 (3 independent)
Mics sources recommend
6 setups from 3 sources, 3 of them independent of any mic maker. Each mic shows how many sources name it for that role, and how many of those are independent. Listed alphabetically: there is no ranking.
Studio
Close
- Beyerdynamic M 2601 independent source
- Neumann KM 841 independent source
- Oktava MK-0121 independent source
- crossed (XY) pair picking up voice and dulcimer together1 independent source
- flat (boundary) condenser, 6-8 in from sound hole1 independent source
- stereo pair of condensers, one at each end, about 1 ft away; or one condenser out front aimed away from centre1 independent source
The 6 setups behind this: placement and quotes
- Close 2 × stereo pair of condensers, one at each end, about 1 ft away; or one condenser out front aimed away from centrepair, at each end
A stereo pair of condenser mics, one pointed at each end of the dulcimer, about a foot away (search-result text).
3 - Close flat (boundary) condenser, 6-8 in from sound holeclose
Place a flat condenser mic about 6 to 8 inches away from an f-hole or sound hole (mandolin, bouzouki, resonator, lap dulcimer).
4 - Close 2 × Neumann KM 84pair, aimed parallel to body at player's chest, ~1 ft
Aim the mics parallel to the body of the dulcimer, 90 degrees off-axis, a foot or so away, pointing at the player's chest.
2 - Close 2 × Oktava MK-012pair, aimed parallel to body, ~1 ft
Use a KM 84 or MK-012 or a crossed pair of them, but not aimed at the instrument.
2 - Close Beyerdynamic M 260aimed at the instrument, softer sound
One solution is a ribbon mic, the beyerdynamic M 260; its softer sound blunts the harshness of the pick noise.
2 - Close 2 × crossed (XY) pair picking up voice and dulcimer togetherpair, XY, singer-player
A carefully placed crossed (XY) pair will pick up the voice and dulcimer in a nice mix.
2
Range
D3 to D61147 Hz – 1.17 kHz
diatonic; common tuning D3-A3-D4
The sound
Strings over the fretboard drive a thin shallow soundbox (about 5-6 cm deep) with two to four sound holes (hearts or f-holes).1
Where the sound goes
Complex. Stamler says aiming a small-diaphragm condenser at the instrument gives a hard, harsh, brassy sound (the radiation pattern) with plectrum noise "like a flapping windowshade".2
Recording it
- Off-axis: Paul Stamler aims a pair of KM 84s or MK-012s (or one) parallel to the dulcimer's body, about a foot away, pointing at the player's chest, using the softer off-axis response as a noise filter; or a beyerdynamic M 260 ribbon aimed at the instrument.
- A tube preamp always sounded better to him than solid state on the mountain dulcimer, because solid-state pre-amps exaggerate pick noise.
- If the player sings, one crossed pair picks up both voice and dulcimer; angle the array up or down to mix; or put the dulcimer mics to the side, pointed at the chest, with a close vocal mic and a pop filter.
- Bartlett: a flat condenser 6-8 in from the sound hole (his entry names a "lap dulcimer").
- Search-result text from BMI: a stereo pair of condensers, one at each end of the dulcimer, about a foot away; or, in mono, one condenser out front aimed slightly away from the centre or toward the tuning pegs; or a pair behind the player, one over each shoulder at ear level.2,4,3
On stage
Nothing found; Bartlett's mini mic near the sound hole is the closest.4
Problems to watch
Harsh, plasticky plectrum noise and a brassy tone from close, on-axis condensers; vocal bleed when the player sings.2
About the range
The common tuning is D3-A3-D4 (lowest to highest course); the typical range is D3-D6, diatonic. Traditional tunings D3-A3-A3 and D3-G3-D4 exist.1