Mic Archive

Mallet percussion

Xylophone

Mallet percussion: Marimba, xylophone, vibraphone and glockenspiel: tuned bars spread over a wide frame, so one mic rarely covers them evenly. Mallet type changes the spectrum and the attack.

Part of the Mallet percussion family; that family's advice shows here too.

Range
F4–C8
Overtones to
about 5.9 kHz
Peaks up close
up to 138 dB SPL
Sources
4 (3 independent)

Recommended mics

Mics sources recommend

5 setups from 4 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

Main pair or array

  • Neumann KM 841 independent source
  • condenser, small diaphragm (Schoeps, model not named)1 independent source
The 2 setups behind this: placement and quotes
  • Main pair or array Mallet percussion advice 2 × Neumann KM 84
    stereo pair, room and image; large concert rosewood marimba
    Smaller-diaphragm mics like the Schoeps, B&Ks and the KM84s capture the room and give a nice stereo image (Narell, paraphrase)1
  • Main pair or array Mallet percussion advice 2 × condenser, small diaphragm (Schoeps, model not named)
    stereo pair, room and image
    Smaller-diaphragm mics like the Schoeps, B&Ks and the KM84s capture the room and give a nice stereo image (Narell, paraphrase)1

On stage

Distant

  • AKG C451 (earlier version of the AKG C451 B)1 independent source

Close

The 2 setups behind this: placement and quotes
  • Distant Mallet percussion advice AKG C451 (earlier version of the AKG C451 B)
    live (orchestra pops); about 7 ft above, over the low end, aimed toward the high end; one per pitched instrument
    I mike from above, at about seven feet, over the low end of the instrument and aimed toward the high end (Colby)2
  • Close Mallet percussion advice 2 × Shure KSM44 or Shure KSM32 or Shure KSM27 or Shure KSM141 or Shure KSM137 or Shure KSM109 or Shure SM81 or Shure SM94
    pair 1.5 ft above, 2 ft apart, aiming down (mallets list)
    Two microphones aiming down toward instrument, about 1 1/2 feet above it, spaced 2 feet apart3

Studio and stage

Bottom

  • Condenser pair (unnamed)1 independent source
The 1 setup behind this: placement and quotes
  • Bottom Mallet percussion advice 2 × Condenser pair (unnamed)
    12 in under the resonator tubes, spaced between high and low bars
    evenly spaced between the high and low bars, about 12 inches under the resonator tubes4

Range

F4 to C85349 Hz – 4.19 kHz

3.5-octave instrument, sounding an octave above written; 3-octave C5-C8 and 4-octave C4-C8 also exist (VSL).

Whole rangeF4–C8hard, bright, short; hardly changes across the range

Tuning: Second mode tuned to about 3x the fundamental (quint tuning; Adams also offers octave-tuned bars).6

Overtones reach about 5.9 kHz (the highest harmonic within 40 dB of the strongest, at a moderate level; louder playing reaches higher).

The sound

The bars are tuned so the second mode is 3x the fundamental (an octave and a fifth), which gives the bright, hollow ring; the short sustain comes from the hard rosewood or synthetic bars.

Recording it

A forum reply to a glockenspiel player (who also plays xylophone) says to change the mallets if the strike is too loud.9

Playing techniques

How loud

Sound pressure level measurements as published. Different kinds of figure (a playing level, a peak, a dose at the player's ear) can't be compared with each other, and neither can figures at different distances.

Peaks
126.2 dBat the player's head position; Xylophone (Musser Kelon 51), plastic sticks, played by a percussion student in an individual practice session in a practice room of the F. Chopin Academy of Music, Warsaw; 1/4-in B&K 4135 mic on a tripod at the position of the musician's head; 120 s music selection7
126 dBat the player's head position; Xylophone (Musser Kelon 51), wooden sticks, played by a percussion student in an individual practice session in a practice room of the F. Chopin Academy of Music, Warsaw; 1/4-in B&K 4135 mic on a tripod at the position of the musician's head; 120 s music selection7
130.4–138 dB(C)close to the teacher; same percussion classes (snare drum, xylophone, timpani), untreated room8
Player's exposure (dosimeter)
97.3 dBat the player's head position (tripod mic near the instrument); Xylophone (Musser Kelon 51), plastic sticks, played by a percussion student in an individual practice session in a practice room of the F. Chopin Academy of Music, Warsaw; 1/4-in B&K 4135 mic on a tripod at the position of the musician's head; 120 s music selection7
96.8 dBat the player's head position (tripod mic near the instrument); Xylophone (Musser Kelon 51), wooden sticks, played by a percussion student in an individual practice session in a practice room of the F. Chopin Academy of Music, Warsaw; 1/4-in B&K 4135 mic on a tripod at the position of the musician's head; 120 s music selection7
88.5–89.6 dB(A)close to the teacher (SVAN 948 meter); Percussion teacher in a Polish music school percussion class using snare drum, xylophone and timpani, untreated room (RT about 0.8 s at 250 Hz); three measurements8

Nothing specific found; the radiation of the bars and resonators is as for the marimba.

Sources

  1. Mix (1997) Recording Jazz Combos (Andy Narell on recording Dave Samuels' marimba and vibes)magazine · mixonline.com
  2. Mix: Sound Reinforcement for the Boston Pops: Miking the Orchestra (BSO live mix engineer Steve Colby)magazine · mixonline.com
  3. Shure: Microphone Techniques for Live Sound Reinforcementmanufacturer · 2007 · music.arts.uci.edu
  4. Hogan, J. & T. (2016) Accordions & Didgeridoos: Mic Techniques For 'Exotic' Instruments, Pro Sound Webmagazine · prosoundweb.com
  5. Vienna Symphonic Library Academy: Xylophoneeducational · vsl.co.at
  6. Adams: Concert series xylophone (specifications)manufacturer · adams-music.com
  7. Archives of Acoustics: Jaroszewski, Rogowski, Rakowski, Sound pressure levels in emission of percussion instruments during training sessions (25(3), 283-289)A. Jaroszewski, P. Rogowski, A. Rakowski · academic · 2000 · acoustics.ippt.gov.pl
  8. Archives of Acoustics: Kozlowski, Mlynski, Effects of Acoustic Treatment on Music Teachers' Exposure to Sound (39(2), 159-163)E. Kozlowski, R. Mlynski · academic · 2014 · acoustics.ippt.pan.pl
  9. HomeRecording.com forum: Recording Glockenspiel and Uke (2014)forum · homerecording.com