Acoustic guitar is one of the most nuanced instruments to record well. A steel-string acoustic produces a complex sound that changes substantially depending on where you point a microphone. Too close to the sound hole and you capture a boomy, overpowering low end. Too close to the nut and you get a thin, brittle sound with excess pick and fret noise. Getting the positioning right makes the difference between a professional result and a recording that requires extensive processing to save.

The good news is that recording acoustic guitar at home does not require a professional recording studio. A single quality condenser microphone, a good audio interface, and thoughtful positioning will produce results that hold up next to commercially released recordings. This guide explains exactly how to do it.

What You Will Learn

The best microphone positions for acoustic guitar
Single mic versus stereo miking techniques
Room positioning and reflection management
Signal chain and recording level settings
Post-recording processing for a finished acoustic guitar sound

The Right Microphone for Acoustic Guitar

Condenser microphones are the standard choice for acoustic guitar. Small-diaphragm condensers (also called pencil condensers) are often preferred because they have a more neutral frequency response and more consistent off-axis behavior than large-diaphragm condensers. They capture the pick attack and string detail accurately without the proximity effect coloration that large-diaphragm mics can introduce.

Good options for acoustic guitar:

Rode NT5: Small-diaphragm condenser, widely regarded as one of the best small condensers under $400 (available as a matched stereo pair)
Audio-Technica AT2020: Large-diaphragm condenser, accurate and affordable at $99
Neumann KM 184: Professional small-diaphragm condenser, $700, exceptional detail and transparency
AKG C414: Multi-pattern large-diaphragm condenser, highly versatile for acoustic instruments

If you only have a dynamic microphone available, it will work but requires careful positioning close to the instrument (8 to 12 inches) to capture enough high-frequency detail. See our microphone guide for a full comparison.

The Best Single Microphone Position: The 12th Fret Technique

If you are recording with a single microphone, start here: position the microphone aimed at the point where the neck meets the body of the guitar, approximately at the 12th fret. Place the microphone 6 to 12 inches from the guitar, angled toward the sound hole.

Why this position works: The 12th fret position captures a balanced blend of the guitar's different sound sources. The sound hole produces the low-mid body and resonance. The fretboard produces the higher-frequency string and pick attack. The 12th fret position sits between these two sources and captures both in a natural balance.

Pointing the microphone directly at the sound hole from this distance produces a boomy, overpowering low end because the sound hole is a bass resonator. Many producers make this mistake initially.

Refining the position:

Move the microphone slightly toward the sound hole to increase warmth and body
Move the microphone slightly toward the fretboard to increase brightness and attack
Angle the microphone slightly off-axis to reduce harshness in the upper midrange
Move closer for a more intimate, detailed sound; farther back for a more "room" quality

Stereo Miking Techniques

Recording acoustic guitar in stereo adds width, depth, and dimension that a single microphone cannot capture. For fingerpicking, solo instrumental work, and anything that will sit prominently in a mix, stereo recording is worth the extra microphone.

XY Stereo (Coincident Pair)

Two microphones are positioned with their capsules as close together as possible, angled outward at 90 to 135 degrees from each other (typically 90 degrees for guitar). Both microphones are at the same distance from the source, typically aimed at the 12th fret area.

Because the capsules are in the same position, there is no time delay between the two signals, which produces a stable stereo image with no phase issues. The stereo width is created purely by the angle between the mics.

Practical setup: Both microphones at the 12th fret, capsules as close together as possible, one angled toward the sound hole, one angled toward the upper body or headstock. Pan them hard left and right. This produces a wide, stable image.

Spaced Pair (AB Stereo)

Two microphones are placed at a distance from each other (typically 12 to 18 inches apart) with both pointing at the guitar from a similar angle. One mic is positioned over the sound hole, one over the upper body or neck area.

The distance between the microphones creates a time difference between the left and right signals that produces a wide, spacious stereo image. It also creates some phase relationship between the signals, which you should check by summing to mono and listening for comb filtering artifacts.

Practical setup: Place one mic aimed at the 12th fret at 8 to 10 inches, place the second mic aimed at the body/bridge area at 8 to 10 inches, 12 to 18 inches apart. Pan them left and right. Check in mono for phase cancellation.

Mid-Side (MS) Stereo

MS stereo uses a cardioid microphone (the "mid") pointed directly at the guitar and a figure-eight microphone (the "side") positioned at the same point with its two lobes pointing left and right. The signals are decoded through a simple matrix to produce a stereo result.

The advantage of MS over XY and spaced pair is that the stereo width is adjustable after recording by changing the ratio of mid to side signal. MS also sums to perfect mono without phase issues. It is technically more demanding to set up but offers the most post-recording flexibility.

Room Positioning

The room you record in affects the acoustic guitar recording as much as microphone position. Hard walls produce reflections that the microphone captures alongside the direct instrument sound. These reflections make recordings sound small and cluttered in a way that is difficult to remove in post.

Practical room strategies:

Record in the most acoustically dead room available. A bedroom with a carpet, curtains, and soft furnishings works better than a kitchen with hard tile floors.
Position yourself in a corner with some soft material behind you. The corner placement reduces reflections from behind; the soft material absorbs them.
Record during quiet hours to reduce external noise pickup. An acoustic guitar is a quiet instrument and any room noise becomes audible between phrases.
If your room has significant reflections, place a thick blanket or duvet behind you and over nearby hard surfaces to absorb early reflections.

For a full treatment of room acoustics, see our room treatment guide.

Signal Chain and Recording Levels

Gain setting: Set your interface gain so that the loudest moments of the guitar recording peak at around -12dBFS to -6dBFS. This leaves adequate headroom for dynamic range while keeping the signal well above the noise floor. Acoustic guitar has significant dynamic range between a gentle fingerpicked passage and a strummed chord.

Monitor in headphones while recording. Studio monitors in the same room as the microphone create feedback risk and also bleed into the recording. Use closed-back headphones for monitoring during tracking.

Check for phase. If recording in stereo, sum the two tracks to mono and listen. Significant level reduction in mono compared to stereo indicates a phase issue. Adjust microphone positions or flip the phase on one channel to correct it.

Post-Recording Processing

High-Pass Filter

Apply a high-pass filter at 80 to 100Hz to remove low-frequency rumble and handling noise. Even with good positioning, some low-end clutter is common.

Corrective EQ

Common acoustic guitar EQ moves:

Cut 200 to 300Hz if the guitar sounds muddy or boomy
Cut 600 to 800Hz if the guitar sounds "boxy"
Boost 5 to 8kHz gently if the pick attack and string detail need more presence
Boost 10kHz for air and shimmer on fingerpicking

Compression

Acoustic guitar benefits from gentle, transparent compression: 2:1 to 3:1 ratio, moderate attack (20 to 40ms to preserve the pick attack transient), and about 3 to 6dB of gain reduction. More aggressive compression on acoustic guitar produces a pumping quality that draws attention to itself.

Reverb

A small room or plate reverb with a short decay (0.6 to 1.2 seconds) adds space without washing out the pick detail. Applied as a send/return, you can blend the reverb to taste in the mix.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Should I record acoustic guitar direct (DI) with a pickup instead of a microphone?

A: A microphone recording generally sounds more natural and full than a DI recording from an undersaddle pickup. The pickup captures what the transducer under the bridge experiences, not what the instrument actually sounds like acoustically. For live performance, a pickup is practical. For recording, a microphone is almost always preferable.

Q: Does the quality of the acoustic guitar affect the recording significantly?

A: Yes. A well-made acoustic guitar with a solid top (as opposed to laminate) responds more dynamically and produces more complex overtones. However, a skilled player with good technique and good microphone placement can produce impressive recordings from a modestly priced instrument.

Q: How do I reduce fret noise and finger squeaks?

A: Use coated strings (Elixir Optiweb or Nanoweb are popular choices for their reduced squeaking). Practice smoother position shifts. Record in shorter takes so you can replace sections with squeaky transitions. Some fret noise is acceptable and natural; excessive squeaking is a playing issue before it is a recording issue.

Q: Can I record acoustic guitar and vocals simultaneously with one microphone?

A: Yes, but the results are harder to process because the guitar and vocal are mixed together in a single signal. A better approach is to record them separately if at all possible, or to use two microphones with different positions. Simultaneous recording is fine for reference takes and demos.

What to Do Next

Once you have a clean acoustic guitar recording, the production process continues with fitting it into the arrangement alongside other instruments. Our Music Production 101 guide covers arrangement and mix fundamentals in depth. For producers recording multiple musicians simultaneously, our guide to recording a full band on a budget covers the multi-source recording workflow.