String section
Violin · Viola · Cello · Double bass
- Range
- E1–A7
- Peaks up close
- up to 128.9 dB SPL
- Sources
- 75 independent: not from a mic maker
What it is
The bowed strings of an orchestra, or a string orchestra on its own: first and second violins, violas, cellos, double basses. It is made of existing instruments (violin, viola, cello, doublebass) with a count for each and a layout.13
Range
E1 to about A741.2 Hz – 3.52 kHz
from the double bass and violin entries; derived, not a source figure
Where the sound goes
Each instrument radiates mainly from its front plate with a beam that varies with frequency (see violin, cello); the section is many such sources arranged in depth. Sound On Sound: because the sound integrates over distance, a string orchestra needs "a relatively large environment, ideally with lots of reflective wooden surfaces" and relatively distant miking. Players' positions are part of the mix: with omnis, move a section back to adjust balance (Richard King).3,5
Layout
Parts and sizes (for `parts: [{instrument, count}]`): the size is written as numbers of first violins, second violins, violas, cellos, basses, for example 10-10-8-10-6; Wagner's Die Walkure asks for 16-16-12-12-8. The Studio session in Sound On Sound had 22 players: 7 first violins, 6 second violins, 4 violas, 4 cellos, 3 basses (7-6-4-4-3). Players sit in pairs at desks, the leader on the outside (nearest the audience).
Layout: most common in the 21st century: first violins, second violins, violas and cellos arrayed clockwise around the conductor, basses behind the cellos on the right. Pits often put cellos and basses in the middle, violins and violas on the left, winds on the right. In the 19th century the violins sat on opposite sides (violin I, cello, viola, violin II); with limited space the cellos and basses may swap. For the recording the players were placed across the short axis of a room, slightly biased to one end. When some sections were not needed, the chairs and mics were moved in to keep a sensible stereo image.13,3
About the range
From the double bass E1 (41 Hz) to the violin soft limit around A7, from the September entries; the section as a whole spans about six octaves (derived, not a source figure).
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 | |
|---|---|
| 114.7–128.9 dB(C) | dosimeter on the shoulder; strings group, Portuguese orchestra, all rehearsals8 |
| Player's exposure (dosimeter) | |
| 77.5 dB(A) | violins in a ballet pit, 360 h basis9 |
| 78.7 dB(A) | violas and cellos in a ballet pit, 360 h basis9 |
| 81.8–91.9 dB(A) | dosimeter on the shoulder opposite the instrument; strings group (violins, violas, cellos, basses) in a Portuguese orchestra, repertoire A, rehearsals (Rodrigues et al.)8 |
| 88.3–89.4 dB(A) | dosimeter on the shoulder opposite the instrument; strings group, repertoire B (Rodrigues et al.)8 |
| 88–89 dB(A) | player's shoulder; Finnish National Opera orchestra, dosimeter on the shoulder opposite the instrument (Laitinen et al. 2003); 1st and 2nd violins, 4 players10 |
| 83.9 dB(A) | 0.1-0.5 m from the ear; 1 opera and 3 symphony orchestras in Poland, meters on tripods 0.1-0.5 m from the players' ears, group rehearsals, concerts, performances (Pawlaczyk-Luszczynska et al. 2011); violins, 57 samples11 |
| 84.2–84.7 dB(A) | player's ear (dosimeter); Queensland Symphony Orchestra dosimetry 2004-2007, mean LAeq per session (O'Brien data, tabulated by Skalevik); 1st violins 84.2 (26 sessions), 2nd violins 84.7 (62)12 |
For a single violin 45-80 dB SPL at six metres, a double bass about 3 dB louder (SOS). No section level found. Player exposure in a ballet pit (A-weighted, 360 h basis): violins 77.5, viola and cello 78.7 dBA.4,9
Recording it
- Main array (picks the overall sound), then spots. Three standard main arrays: coincident (X-Y, M&S), near-coincident ORTF (cardioids at 110 degrees, 17 cm apart), and spaced omnis or the Decca tree (three omnis in a 1.2 m triangle, the centre one forward, about 3 m above the floor and behind the conductor). Sound On Sound tried M&S (MKH 40/30), ORTF (Microtech Gefell M930) and spaced omnis (MKH 20) on 22 players and chose the ORTF pair, adding a Neumann TLM 103 spot in front of the basses; the spaced pair was "a little too vague and wide", the M&S "a little too narrow".
- Richard King: a spaced omni pair about four or five feet apart (DPA 4006TL) as the main array, omni outriggers (Schoeps MK 2S) tighter and lower for string support, and many spots. Puremix (August 2026): a Decca-tree variant of three omnis above and slightly inside the front of the orchestra, one small-diaphragm spot per stand (Schoeps MK 4) and one Neumann M 49 per bass; extra cello mics were added when the violins buried the cellos.
- Spots, multi-miking: one mic per two rows of violins and violas and one per pair of cellos and basses, or bugs (miniature omnis clipped on) for live use; figure-of-eight mics can "look down" on the section and reject side spill. Match each spot's pan to the main pair.
- Mic choice: smooth top end, no presence peak, controlled off-axis (small-diaphragm or omni); ribbons are the other option; Royer suggests an R-121 slightly above a large section, angled down, 3-4 ft away.3,5,1,4,2,14
Mics
- 16 setups from 7 sources, 5 of them independent of any mic maker.
- On top: the mics more than one source names for this instrument, in any role, the most named first. That is a count of sources, not our verdict.
- In the full list, each mic shows how many sources name it for that role, and how many of those come from a mic maker.
- Neumann TLM 103 2 sourcesSpot ·
Each pair of cellos shared a Neumann TLM103.
All the mics sources name, by setting and role (22)
Studio
Spot
- Neumann M 491 source
- Neumann TLM 1031 source
- Schoeps MK 41 source
Main pair or array
- DPA 4006TL1 source
- Microtech Gefell M 9301 source
- Royer R-1211 source from its own maker
- Schoeps MK 2S1 source
- Sennheiser MKH 201 source
- Sennheiser MKH 40 + MKH 301 source
Decca treeORTFM/SSpaced pair
Named, no placement given
- AEA R841 source
- Neumann U 471 source
The 12 setups behind this: placement and quotes
- Spot Schoeps MK 4spot, one per stand, slightly in front and fairly high
Small diaphragm condensers, in this case Schoeps MK4s and Clarions, one per stand across violin, viola and cello sections.
1 - Spot Neumann M 49spot, one per double bass
"A Neumann M49 on each bass, a choice Fab attributes to Al Schmitt."
1 - Main pair or array 3 × omni x3, Decca tree variation (three omnis in a Decca tree-like triangle)main array, above and slightly inside the front of the orchestra
Main array "a variation on the Decca tree"; "Use omnis"; align the back of the array with the front edge of the orchestra.
1 - Main pair or array Royer R-121section, slightly above and angled down, 3-4 ft
For larger string sections, place the mic slightly above the instrumentalists and angled down, 3 or 4 feet (paraphrase).
2 - Main pair or array 2 × Microtech Gefell M 930main pair, above and behind the conductor, 22-piece string orchestra (ORTF pair)
Engineer preferred the ORTF pair over M&S and spaced omnis for spaciousness, definition and presence (paraphrase).
3 - Main pair or array 2 × Sennheiser MKH 40 + MKH 30main pair, above and behind the conductor (M&S pair)
M&S "a little too narrow and precise" but "perfectly usable" against ORTF and spaced omnis (paraphrase).
3 - Main pair or array 2 × Sennheiser MKH 20main pair, halfway between centre and back rows (spaced pair)
Spaced omnis "a little too vague and wide", but usable; moved closer to cure a hole in the middle (paraphrase).
3 - Spot Neumann TLM 103spot, in front of the basses
A TLM103 spot in front of the double basses reinforced the low end of the ORTF pair (paraphrase).
3 - Named, no placement given AEA R84section, suited to upper strings
Ribbons such as the AEA R84 suit upper strings: smooth, resonance-free high end (paraphrase).
3 - Named, no placement given Neumann U 47section, larger studios
Larger studios typically opt for large-diaphragm mics on string sections: Sony C800G, Neumann U47 and U87, AKG C414ULS (paraphrase).
4 - Main pair or array 2 × DPA 4006TLmain pair, orchestra (Richard King) (spaced pair)
Main stereo array a spaced pair of DPA 4006TL omnis, about four or five feet apart for larger groups (paraphrase).
5 - Main pair or array Schoeps MK 2Soutriggers, close in, lower than the mains, for string support (outriggers)
Outriggers: omni Schoeps MK2Ss placed fairly close in "to support the string sound".
5
On stage
Named, no placement given
- Shure KSM1091 source from its own maker
- Shure KSM1371 source from its own maker
- Shure KSM1411 source from its own maker
- Shure KSM271 source from its own maker
- Shure KSM321 source from its own maker
- Shure KSM441 source from its own maker
- Shure PG811 source from its own maker
- Shure SM811 source from its own maker
- Shure SM941 source from its own maker
The 1 setup behind this: placement and quotes
- Named, no placement given Shure KSM141 or Shure KSM137 or Shure KSM109 or Shure KSM44 or Shure KSM32 or Shure KSM27 or Shure SM81 or Shure SM94 or Shure PG81listed for orchestra and strings
Listed under "Orchestra" and "Strings" in the Shure Microphone Selection Guide (no argument given).
6
Studio and stage
The 3 setups behind this: placement and quotes
- Spot Neumann KM 184spot, four on the first and second violins (light orchestra, about 60 players)
"The first and second violins were covered using four Neumann KM184s."
7 - Spot 2 × Neumann TLM 103spot, one per pair of cellos
"Each pair of cellos shared a Neumann TLM103."
7 - Spot AKG C414 B-ULSspot, centre, favouring the violas
A centrally positioned AKG C414 B-ULS was intended to favour the violas, which were just in front.
7
On stage
Close spots are the norm: four KM 184 on the first and second violins and a TLM 103 per cello pair on a 60-player light orchestra; spill from everything poured into the string mics, so high- and low-cut EQ was needed.7
Problems to watch
Spill from brass and drums; a hole in the middle with widely spaced omnis; a viola or cello section lost in the texture; unbalanced pan of spots.3,1,7
Sources
- Puremix: How to Mic a String Orchestra, Main Array Plus Spot Mics (Aug 2026)
- Royer Labs: Royer R-121 Ribbon Microphone (Russ Long review)
- Sound On Sound: Recording A String Section
- Sound On Sound: Recording Strings
- Sound On Sound: Richard King, How To Record Acoustic Ensembles
- Shure: Microphone Techniques for Live Sound Reinforcement
- Sound On Sound: Recording A Light Orchestra
- IPP repository: Rodrigues et al., Musicians noise exposure in a Portuguese orchestra - a case study
- Noise & Health 20(93): Noise Exposure and Hearing Loss in Classical Orchestra Musicians, a Five-Year Follow-Up
- Applied Occupational and Environmental Hygiene: Laitinen et al., Sound exposure among the Finnish National Opera personnel (2003), Aalto repository preprint
- JOSE: Evaluation of Sound Exposure and Risk of Hearing Impairment in Orchestral Musicians (Pawlaczyk-Luszczynska, Dudarewicz, Zamojska, Sliwinska-Kowalska)
- AKUTEK (BNAM paper): Skalevik, Sound levels in symphony orchestra musicians (with O'Brien's Queensland dosimetry table)
- Wikipedia, String section
- Royer Labs: Recording Acoustic Guitar, Violin, Ukulele, Cello & Other Stringed Instruments