Need help changing sound of snare

S

schwim

New member
Hi there everyone,

I'm a complete novice at playing and completely lacking in any knowledge of recording, so go easy on me. I don't know what to call anything and I may give you tons of info you don't need :)

I have attached a snippet of some drums I just recorded. I'm using CAD mic setup with an independent mic for bass, snare and the high hat and cymbal are sharing one mic. I don't mind the sound of the brass and bass, but I very much dislike the "ringing" of the snare. It's a Pearl steel snare with the steel spring band across the bottom.

Is there a way to make this sound more like a traditional snare? I'm trying to get rid of the echo that sounds after the hit. I have a tom that a previous owner taped a square of a folded paper towel onto the bottom of that seems to get rid of the ringing quite well, but I haven't tried that yet.

I appreciate any suggestions you can provide and thank you in advance.
 

Attachments

  • drum_levels.mp3
    238 KB · Views: 15
Tune the snare tighter. Make sure the top and bottom heads are at a different pitch, but in tune. Adjust the tension on the snare wires so they don't buzz, but don't choke the drum. That's pretty much it.

Also, the majority of the ring you seem to despise is what gives drums a musical quality. Most of that ringing is inauduble in a full mix, but it makes the drums sound more pleasant. A music-less drum clip tells you pretty much nothing. You need to get instruments in there to see how the drums are really gonna interact with everything else. Don't go overdampening your toms or snare.
 
Thank you very much for your help, Greg. In your opinion, is the snare in the clip something that's not out of the ordinary? It's not that I despise the sound, it's just that to my untrained ear, it doesn't sound what I'm used to hearing in the music I listen to. I never considered that the sound I'm hearing blends in with the rest of the elements of the music.
 
It sounds like a snare tuned on the looser side. It's not bad or good. It is what it is. Would it sound good in speed metal or punk? Probably not. It would be right at home in something indie-ish or more bluesy though.
 
I'm with Greg on this. The snare head needs to be pretty tight, and it sounds to me like both heads are loose. That creates extra resonance, and not just ring, which is usually heard to be the top head, but you've got both heads resonating for a while. I've found that if you tune the bottom head pretty tight, and adjust the snares just past the "buzz" point, you can adjust the top head to suit the genre of music. If you do this, you may not have to muffle the top head at all. If you do need a little muffling, try to do so in moderation, maybe with one piece of Moongel near the rim. Maybe just switching heads on top will help if you're not using a coated head. I defer to Greg and the others who can help you with the recording end of the situation since I am a newbie to digital recording. But in my years of experience playing drums, I know you usually don't need to muffle heads as much as you think; the music hides a lot of the ring and resonance, and too much muffling will leave you with the end result being a dead sounding snare. Nobody wants that (unless that is the sound you're looking for). :eek:

What kind of music are you playing?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top