Cheap mics that give a drum kit definition when recording

M

MatthewH

New member
Ive been recording drums a fair bit recently and im getting a fairly nice sound, I've been unhappy with my OHs (definitely the mic's fault not mine ive tried everything... how many times have you heard that? ;) ) so im upgrading to some SE1a's, i wanted a nice open sound with good clarity, and looking at frequency responses the SE's will do that for me.

My next project is recording a bigger drum kit (4 toms, 6/7 cymbals, percussion plus all the standard), ill get the best possible balance and quality out of the OH but i cant help but feel i might need to use an extra mic or two to fill in areas i feel aren't been given justice on the day if you see what i mean?

I've seen a lot of good stuff from the Behringer ECM8000, but also heard the noise floor on it is really high, is it worth just grabbing one of these when i order my OH's too?
any others? Not really looking for anything over £80, under £60 preferably, it just has to help give me that added control when recording many sound sources!

BTW i use a Tascam US-1800 so i have 14 audio ins.

Thanks
 
Hi Matthew,
What overhead mics are you currently using?

Have you considered that the weak results could be down to the room? That would explain why it's the overheads specifically and not the close mics.

Does the kit sound good to you standing in the room listening to it?
 
i have Behringer c-4s i know that it could have been the room, but i've recorded drums in 3 varying sized rooms now, and the drums sound nice and open in the room, but i get a nasty low middle 'bad room' boost around 400, but being getting the same result from 3 different sounding rooms, I've come to the conclusion an upgrade is definitely a good idea!
 
Ok, fair enough, but keep in mind that most normal rooms in houses or whatever have parallel walls and untreated surfaces so there's always going to be something bad going on there.
Unless the room is specially treated or designed, you're taking a gamble.

With your budget I'd discourage an upgrade. I'm not sure you'll see any massive difference.
Would it be worth holding out until you can afford to step up to sm81s, mk012s or c451s, for example?

Also, I know the overheads mics are there to capture the whole kit, not just the cymbals, but have you tried eq to help you along?
You might be able to use a broad subtle cut to reduce that area.
It shouldn't sound like there's a big hole left there because you have the other close mics supporting the sound.

If the room is a contributing factor then more mics = bad and miking closer to the kit with lower gain = good.
 
Yeah im aware, which is why i tried recording in a fairly large hall, really clear sounding with some 'ridges' (cant really thing of how to explain, like a chimney is behind it almost) that i thought should break up any standing waves or frequency build up, and im still getting the same boost, dont get my wrong yeah i cut the frequency anywhere from moderately to relentlessly and i can get an OK sound, but you know you gotta get it right at the source as much as you can, so any improvement will help out greatly so im looking to find other OHs (and a spot mic or two)
You dont think the SE1a's will make much difference? I can get them for £155ish on Thomann and it seems like a great deal, are those other mics really going make £400 worth of difference?
 
MatthewH said:
But you know you gotta get it right at the source as much as you can, so any improvement will help out greatly so im looking to find other OHs (and a spot mic or two)
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Hey fair enough. That's a solid approach. :)

MatthewH said:
You dont think the SE1a's will make much difference? I can get them for £155ish on Thomann and it seems like a great deal, are those other mics really going make £400 worth of difference?
Click to expand...

To be honest I haven't used those mics and can't really comment on them.
I just know I've used the 3 pair I listed and really like each of them.

Hopefully someone with direct experience of the SE mics can help you out. :)
Did your C4s come with a frequency response graph? I can't find one online.
 
I'm hoping it pays off!
The mic's you've listed are obviously quality mic's i know they are gonna give me another level above the SE's but my income isn't consistent and theres a few other things im looking to buy, i can safely drop around £250 but not £500 sadly.
I use a SE2200a for vocals, again cheap, but it has a real nice clarity in the high end (for my in-experienced ears) and looking at SE's specs almost all their mics have some sort of boost in the top end, and little to no trailing off when it gets towards the 20khz region, so i think the SE1a would do what i want.
It sounds likes im sold on the mic (the original question wasn't about the OH's remember) and i am to some extent but im obviously open to listening to other peoples opinions if my thought process has mislead me!


EDIT: Seems i've been a bit hasty, are these the Oktava Mk012's you meant? http://www.thomann.de/gb/oktava_mk_01201_black_msp2_matched_p.htm

I originally only found the 02s and not the 01s, if these are a great set of mics i could probably put the extra money forward if its a worthwhile investment?
 
MatthewH said:
I'm hoping it pays off!
The mic's you've listed are obviously quality mic's i know they are gonna give me another level above the SE's but my income isn't consistent and theres a few other things im looking to buy, i can safely drop around £250 but not £500 sadly.
I use a SE2200a for vocals, again cheap, but it has a real nice clarity in the high end (for my in-experienced ears) and looking at SE's specs almost all their mics have some sort of boost in the top end, and little to no trailing off when it gets towards the 20khz region, so i think the SE1a would do what i want.
It sounds likes im sold on the mic (the original question wasn't about the OH's remember) and i am to some extent but im obviously open to listening to other peoples opinions if my thought process has mislead me!
Click to expand...

Apologies. I took your budget to be for OH mics only. My mistake.
 
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