Mono overhead?

[BRIEFCASEMANX]

I keep hearing of people using one mic as an overhead. They do this at the sacrifice of stereo image??? Wouldn't this not only sacrifice stereo image but also make things pretty crowded down the center of the mix? Why is this done?

[Track Rat]

I've been doing that a lot layely. Fuck the stereo image. I think it SOUNDS pretty good to me. If someone insists on stereo overheads I'll put up a pair but I'm digging the mono overhead for now.

[HangDawg]

Originally Posted by Track Rat

I've been doing that a lot layely. Fuck the stereo image. I think it SOUNDS pretty good to me. If someone insists on stereo overheads I'll put up a pair but I'm digging the mono overhead for now.

Ditto.....

[treymonfauntre]

one of my first times recording drums with something besides $10 mics in my bedroom was with a mono ldc as an overhead. it ended up not working whatsoever and i don't plan on doing it again

[Track Rat]

A lot depends on the drummer and the kit itself. Mics only pick up what they hear. Not that the mic and preamp don't factor in. I've been havinf good results with a single KM-184 overhead.

[sweetnubs]

mono overheads rule. I love recording with 3 mics if i can but you need a good drummer that mixes themselves well. Stereo overheads sound unatural to me but most drummers feel uncomfortable without 10 mics on their kit. I like mono mixes also although I have no problem with well done stereo. I also like 12" vinyl at 45 rpm or 78 rpm. I also like micing an entire band in one room with a couple of room mics. I am old but my ears don't lie.

[xfinsterx]

It dosent sound bad to go mono IMO.

Im pretty hooked on hearing a china on the left and a nice crash on the right etc though.

So its stereo plus a hi hat mic all the way for me.

I think if i had a really simple setup...like a kick, snare, floor tom, crash, ride, hh setup ( or even smaller ) id try mono.

We will see.

-Finster

[ecktronic]

I prefer to go for stereo, but yeah mono could be ok in a simple set up. Just sounds nicer to have a kinda natural spread of the drums as if youa re the drummer playing them when listening, or the opposite as you are watching the drummer while listening.
I pan the hats a bit to the left when i actually use the hat track in the mix.

[My Name]

You'll probably find, when recording a mono overhead, that the other drum mics will pull the different elements of the OH into a stereo image. As long as the rest of the kit is not mixed into mono that is.

[fiveyearslater]

How do you guys usually pan your drumtracks using a mono overhead? I recently did snare 20L and mono overhead 50R.

[Alexbt]

I don't 'get' panning the set from a drummer's perspective. The listening audience is not the drummer...

[RAMI]

Originally Posted by Alexbt

I don't 'get' panning the set from a drummer's perspective. The listening audience is not the drummer...

I'm a left handed drummer. So panning from my perspective would actually make sense to the "audience".

[treymonfauntre]

yea i guess i was talking about all mono drums with a mono overhead. having the hihat in the middle of the image is really really annoying, thats all i know

[RawDepth]

I'm sorry, you have to use the right tools for the job. In my opinion, skimping on overhead mics is a cop-out.

What if one or two cymbals are much louder than the others? Which way would you point that mono mic? You can't ask the drummer to move his/her cymbals closer to accommodate a single mic. The whole point of using two or more overheads is not just to create stereo imaging but also to capture all of the cymbal activity at usable levels. All cymbals play at different volumes. How will that little splash cymbal ever be heard over the ringing of an 18" crash? What if that ride doesn’t have much "ping" to it? Can you bring it out without making the other crashes sound harsher?

Sometimes, it seems like not enough attention is being paid to finding the "sweet spot" of cymbals. If you really took the time to sit and analyze the sound of the cymbals you've recorded, would you be completely satisfied? Ask that drummer if they are happy with the cymbals you've recorded. Do they sound the way they expected them to sound?

Yes, you've made it easier on yourself but, have you made it better for your client? Where is the quality in your workmanship?

Do what's right,
RawDepth

[SouthSIDE Glen]

If the drums sound good to a person standing in front of the band with nothing but his own ears, there is no reason why it should be necessary to have a jillion mics on the drum kit for it to sound good as well.

I happen to like stereo overheads, and use either those or a frontal X/Y for stereo on the kit most of the time. But I personally have no problem with a good mono OH for room fill or for a quality mono track. I'll take a well-selected, well-placed mono mic recording of a drum kit over the average quality stereo overhead treatment any day of the week.

If one cymbal is too loud there are two choices; move the mic a bit closer to the weak one while still keeping it pointed on axis to the center of the kit, or, go with the natural dynamics because that is exactly how the drums actually sound. You still have to have the right mic choice and placement, though. But then again, where is that *not* true?

G.

[My Name]

Originally Posted by Alexbt

I don't 'get' panning the set from a drummer's perspective. The listening audience is not the drummer...

it all depends on what youv'e got to mix it with.

If you have a stereo piano for eg. they are usually panned bass in the left and high in the right. The high notes would then get in the way of the hats. So... you may then want to pan the kit from the drummers perspective.

[tourettes5139]

Originally Posted by Alexbt

I don't 'get' panning the set from a drummer's perspective. The listening audience is not the drummer...

Well (and this is just me...) Because I play the drums as well as record them, I want to hear the instruments how they sound when I play them. Therefore when I hear the mix, I want them from my (the drummers) perspective. But again, I think this is all a matter of personal preference.

Adios.

[Drummer4Life05]

Remember guys, there are no rules to recording!
Pan the drums however you'd like! Whatever fits the song, do it.

[FALKEN]

white stripes do mono; kick, snare, and an LDC, and their drums kick ass. but then he goes and layers guitars and vocals to get a stereo image, and they're also using reverb, which might be stereo as well. they used a 1" 8-track on elephant so it was bass drum on track 1 and the o/h and snare bounced live to track 2. the sound is stellar.

I always go stereo though....I like the cymbals to move around and come from different directions.

[Light]

Originally Posted by BRIEFCASEMANX

I keep hearing of people using one mic as an overhead. They do this at the sacrifice of stereo image??? Wouldn't this not only sacrifice stereo image but also make things pretty crowded down the center of the mix? Why is this done?

I do it all the time. It eliminates mono translation problems (a truly great thing, if it will be on the radio).

As to crowding the center of the mix, well, only if you pan it down the middle.

Myself, I rarely do. I usually pan all the drums to the same general area. I will sometimes give them a little spread, but not much. The trick is to think of a drum kit as ONE instrument, and to pan it with that in mind.

I have never felt the drums were crowding themselves.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi

[SouthSIDE Glen]

Originally Posted by Light

The trick is to think of a drum kit as ONE instrument

Bingo!!!

G.

[RAMI]

Originally Posted by Light

I do it all the time. It eliminates mono translation problems (a truly great thing, if it will be on the radio).

I'm not disputing what you're saying in general, especially after reading the "think of drums as one instrument" statement...but...I don't know what mono has to do with radio. Are there still AM Radio stations playing music??? Seems to me that if you get your song played on the radio, there's still more of a chance it will be in stereo anyway.