Micing ride cymbal with sm57?

[mjm620]

I have a million sm57s lying around...and I just bought a 2002 paiste ride. I love how it sounds and I would like to make it a little louder in certain songs. Search my posts for "little one"(mp3) for an example. I would like songs like this to have louder ride cymbal. WOuld an sm57 be good for micing this ride? Or any ride? What about micing highhats?

[tourettes5139]

No, no and no. I've tried, and it sounded like crap.

[LeeRosario]

you could try, but the sm57 is better designed for percussive stuff. It won't capture the frequencies responsible for making a cymbal sound like, well, a cymbal. Plus it's tailored, which adds to the problem.

But hey, if you got em, then you're the master of your own destiny.

[giraffe]

the real answer is, try it and see.
but......
probably it will make the ride sound harsh.

[travelin travis]

I'd think that you would get a "swoosh" kind of sound as the ride moved, seeing that the 57 has a cardioid pattern. also, the 57 has a pretty limited frequency range which would'nt pickup the details of a cymbal very well.

[jaykeMURD]

I agree with everyone else, the 57 won't do much for your ride. However, if you have a modded 57 (without the capacitor or resistor, whatever it is) it might do better. Otherwise, a cheap SDC would do the job.

[msblaze]

Originally Posted by mjm620

I have a million sm57s lying around...and I just bought a 2002 paiste ride. I love how it sounds and I would like to make it a little louder in certain songs. Search my posts for "little one"(mp3) for an example. I would like songs like this to have louder ride cymbal. WOuld an sm57 be good for micing this ride? Or any ride? What about micing highhats?

well first of all i would send about 5 of those sm57's over my way, since you have a million lol ;] and second of all i would jsut buy some extra overheads to do the job properly.

my $0.02

[PhilGood]

Suprizingly, I have just noticed that the 57 on my 16" floor tom picks up my 22" ride a great deal...and sounds pretty good at it! It's close proximity and was just going through the channels when I notice that mic had all the volume for the ride! So long as you still have condensers for overheads, you should be fine.

[Cult_Status02]

Originally Posted by PhilGood

Suprizingly, I have just noticed that the 57 on my 16" floor tom picks up my 22" ride a great deal...and sounds pretty good at it! It's close proximity and was just going through the channels when I notice that mic had all the volume for the ride! So long as you still have condensers for overheads, you should be fine.

I agree, it seems the off-axis coloration of the 57 makes the ride sound pretty good. Just mic your floor with it and bring it back a bit, I think you'll be happy with the sound. If you mic it directly with a 57...or any dynamic in that range of mics, I find it usually sounds too dark and dull. An SDC is your best bet in the end though.

[cubanorocker316]

I would say no, an sm57 wouldn't catch the vibrance or echo of the ride. It just wouldn't sound good.

[Drummer706]

in the original post he also asked about micing hi-hats with the sm57. next week sunday im going to play at a small club and was in fact thinking of micing just the hi-hat with sm57 what do you guys think? i havent seen the place but obviously if its small i just wont mic it. what do you guys think?

[Cult_Status02]

Don't directly mic cymbals with an sm57, or any dynamic I can think of. They just don't have that vibrant hi-end you'll find in an sdc.

[sloom]

A hi-hat is a pretty percussive item. I should think you'd get something there. And don't you see hi-hat/snare groupings for a 57 all over the place anyway?

[Drummer706]

Originally Posted by sloom

A hi-hat is a pretty percussive item. I should think you'd get something there. And don't you see hi-hat/snare groupings for a 57 all over the place anyway?

so you think it'll work?

[sloom]

For hi-hat, sure. You're probably not talking about the same subtlety as with a nice ride cymbal, or crash, etc., where you're getting a lot of overtones. It tends to be more of a defined, attack-oriented sound, and often of shorter duration than other cymbals.

Tic-tic-tic..., or swash/swash/swash...; and maybe it opens and shuts- a very defined, consistent kind of thing. In rock music, it's kind of an accessory to the snare drum.