Condenser overheads getting too much snare...

[Conrad Josepi]

Hello,

I need some secrets on micing.

I am using two radio-shack condenser mics (not the best, but they work) as my drum overheads. I'm routing them thru my mixer to preamp them and give them a low-end cut.

My problem is, that I'm getting too much snare in the O'heads.

I've tried different mic placement. I think the reason its coming thru so much is the fact that i tune my snare pretty high and it's frequencies mingle in the same realm as the frequencies that the condenser is picking up.

Is there a way to reduce this unwanted bleed-thru w/o tuning my snare down?

Thank you for any responses! Especially from the scaly one.

Conrad Josepi

[tmcbrinn]

How about getting one of those wind screens for your mic? If it doesn't help, you've only wasted a dollar.

[Conrad Josepi]

i guess I could try that, but I dont have too much problem with BOOMING B's and POPPING P's coming from my drumset.

(c:

Conrad Josepi

[Dragon]

I'm not really a micing guru, as I've said about a million times here, so I'd mess with the EQ, or if you really want to get fancy, run EQ on the sidechain of a compressor and compress only those frequencies to de-emphasize them.

[Conrad Josepi]

Hmmmmmm, Now THAT's interesting. I hadn't thought of that.

Thanks for the suggestion, I will look into how I'd do that with Cakewalk.

Thank you, oh scaly one!

Conrad Josepi

[SN]

That backward smiley face with a nose is Awsome!

(c:

Wow!!

About the hi-hat

What about moving the mics away from the hi hat slightly and angling them so they pick up less. They are directional mics right?

If this does not work. Try reversing your philosophy. You tune your hi-hats high for a reason. It gives you a sound you want. This sound involves mixing the hi-hat with the cymbals. Everything is going the two track eventually. Forget about isolating the hi-hat and record the whole drum set with the two overheads and a bass drum mic.

[Conrad Josepi]

Hey SN! (c:

If I could tune my hi-hats I would!

But, alas, I haven't found a way.

i'd like to tune my ride too......

Conrad Josepi

[Dom Franco]

You can tune your high hats! and any other part of your drum set....... Duct tape will deaden and lower the pitch! Try a little
Scotch tape on the inside of the top cymbal to get more "TIC" and less "ZZZ"

When recording drums anything goes...Iv'e seen blankets, towels, tinfoil and of course tape used in studios.

Dom Franco

[klugel]

Tape on cymbals? yuck! I think Billy Joel did that, as did the Eagles, along with stuffing a corpse w/in the bass drum. Go open...no cardboard- audio verite!! Dontcha think that drums/cymbals should sing?
Anyways- I had the snare too loud problem too going into the overheads (2 c1000's). One thing that helped was NOT using a carpet under the drums (hardwood floor, or concrete!) Doing this made the drums sound louder and brighter, including the bass drum, rack tom and floor tom. . Also play your snare flat if you can. By playing the snare flat, the overheads picked up less snare for some reason (maybe reflections were absorbed?) - also tried putting a small carpet under the snare stand to absorb its sound from reflecting. You could also tune up your toms if you desire. Mine seem to sound louder the higher the pitch.
I think using regular coated 1 ply tom heads (emperors and ambassadors) help too in making them loud , and maybe using a CS dot on the snare. Aquarian heads are the quietest heads I have used for drums.. so throw one on the snare and get loud heads on the other drums.
Toms also will scientifically project more volume upward if the bottom head is tuned almost a miniscule bit tighter than the top head..it may not not sound the best to the player, but it may help your volume problem.
Hey, didn't mean to crack on muffling drums /taping cymbals...just an opinion.

[Dragon]

I just remembered a trick from the Mixmasters list, though it might have been tongue-in-cheek: gaffer-tape a wallet to the snare. Goofy-sounding, but you never know...

[klugel]

plus, you could make little gaffer tape inchworms and apply to the top and bottom heads of the snare. this will cut ring, and make the snare a little quieter.

or felt...or an o ring...or a wallet.