my kick drum hell..cured! I think

jmorris

New member
Well,I've read all of the post as of late about how to get "that" kick sound. I experimented today for 2 hours with the kick in my control room,an ART MPA mic preamp,SureBeta 52 mic. The drum was a 1988 Yamaha power tour custom 20" kick. Instead of reliving what did not work I tell you what did. I'm sure this is not the only way to achive a good sound but it worked for me.First I tried the drum as a previous drummer had it set up..mistake. He's a very fine drummer but I ended up loosening the batter head up quit a bit,not sloppy but with a lot of flex that can be seen upon striking it. I took off the front head and layed a small blanket on the botom. Now...mic placement , I stuck the mic in about 5 or 6 inches away from the batter, at the same height as the pedal striker and slightly off axis. No compression..nothing. If I moved it a little futher away from the batter head I got a little fatter tone but it seems too far away with send you into the boomy zone. You'll have to expereiment. Upon playback I added a little gate to try to eliminate the slight hiss from the preamp and a bit of pedal noise. Presently I'm very happy with the results! So.... in conclusion, I recomend not always going with the kit as the drummer has it set up,don't listen to them tell you "but it sounds great in the clubs" thats a different game all together.Take time to experiment on your own with just the kick alone. It was very much worth it for me,Jim
 
Great advice! I always have to tune a drum kit before recording. Players have their kits tuned to the club! I find that kicks are always too tight on the beater side with live players.
 
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