While interviewing Andrija Tokic for this issue of Tape Op he told me, "Mics are nothing like ears. It's about learning how to get what you like out of a sound." I couldn't agree more. I'm constantly reminding students at schools I visit, as well as attendees of my workshops, that simply placing a mic near a source is not enough. Even if it's a great mic, one recommended by a professional for this very same source and it's running into a high-end mic preamp, it still might be the worst sound ever. Everything on a recording should be tailored by the opinion, taste, and skills of the recording engineer.
Whether one is placing a stereo pair of mics in a room to capture an orchestra, putting a dynamic mic in front of a guitar amp, or setting up a tube mic in front of a vocalist, all these same parameters matter:
Where do we put the mic? How close? What part of the instrument or performer are we mic'ing?
Is this the correct mic to get the sound we need? Does it pick up too much other information?
Does the mic need to be baffled from another source or room sound in any way?