Drums - bas/overhead(s)

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fuquam

New member
Hopefully we're not sick of drum recording questions. I'm not a drummer but I can play and have one in my home studio. Its an old 60's Pearl kit. Here are my questions.

1. The bass drum front head is solid so no sound hole. I'm used to micing bass drums in the sound hole with a Beta 52. So do I need to buy a new head with a sound hole? Could I just remove the head? Is it safe to put a hole in the existing head?

2. Overheads - why does everyone use two. I do because thats ho I learned but I never questioned why. Two overheads in mono are like stereo but in an X or Y pattern the mics are so close together does it really make a difference?
 
1. I have recorded with no front head with good results, i have cut a hole in the front head myself (use a razor blade and a coffee/soup can as a guide) and I have bought a head with the hole precut.. also, I have recorded with a full front head, no holes...

2. I only use one over head, but thats due to funds :-) ideally the stereo mix of two overheads is preferred. positioned a few inches apart pointing at opposite sides of the kit will add dimension to your mix... its subtle for sure, but you can tell the difference.
 
Hi,

Kick - I would personally experiment with how your recorded sound with head as is first, as you may find it usefull in certain applications (jazz).
There is no problems with removing the head - experiment tracking with no head (insert jokes here), this will no doubt give you more attack (beater slap) the closer your Beta52 is to the beater head inside the drum (metal, rock).
Cutting a sound hole is common, and a quick google search will yeild some 'how to's'.

OH's -

Not everyone uses 2, but it is common. XY is ONE way to go, and depending on how 'narrow' or 'wide' they are angled should be more for defining the kick and snare in the center of the image, while still balancing the rest of the kit around them. Bringing this back into your DAW and panning each mic accordingly (I never go beyond L 75 R 75) gives you a nice stereo image of your kit.

There are many ways to mic a kit, but the more common ones are:

XY
M/S
Spaced pair
Modified spaced pair ('recorderman' drum recording)


The more mics you use to record drums, the more you introduce phase issues.

Best to experiment with what sounds good to you. It may just be one O/H, and one Kick mic..

Hope this helps a bit..

-LIMiT
 
1. Totally depends on the sound you want. A hole will give you some different options and the ability to capture more beater click. No hole will generally give you more "oomph" and a rounder sound. Some mics may like certain positions better, too.

2. XY overheads, with cardioid mics will definitely give you a stereo image of the kit according to how you pan them. It is certainly acceptable to use a single mono overhead, though.
 
fuquam said:
Hopefully we're not sick of drum recording questions. I'm not a drummer but I can play and have one in my home studio. Its an old 60's Pearl kit. Here are my questions.

1. The bass drum front head is solid so no sound hole. I'm used to micing bass drums in the sound hole with a Beta 52. So do I need to buy a new head with a sound hole? Could I just remove the head? Is it safe to put a hole in the existing head?

2. Overheads - why does everyone use two. I do because thats ho I learned but I never questioned why. Two overheads in mono are like stereo but in an X or Y pattern the mics are so close together does it really make a difference?
Click to expand...

Personally I wouldn't cut a hole in the head, then you're stuck with it. Taking microphones totally out the equation, drums sound better with two heads. But anywho, most of the time, the head is removed in the studio anyway. Like people said, experiment. Try removing the head, sticking the mic inside, and then covering up the opening with a blanket.

Not everyone uses two overheads. There is a difference between dual mono and stereo, but like others have said, you do get a stereo spread with an XY pattern. Maybe not as wide as a spaced array, but it's still there. Not all overheads are done in XY anyway.
 
Thanks for the input. I guess I'll try taking the head off and blanketing it. If I stick the mic inside the bass drum I'm afradi it'll fall over. As for the overheads I've always used two and panned them all the way right/left. Phasing has alway been an issue and I don't know how to deal with it properly. My sound board doesn't have a reverse phase button(s).
 
fuquam said:
Thanks for the input. I guess I'll try taking the head off and blanketing it. If I stick the mic inside the bass drum I'm afradi it'll fall over. As for the overheads I've always used two and panned them all the way right/left. Phasing has alway been an issue and I don't know how to deal with it properly. My sound board doesn't have a reverse phase button(s).
Click to expand...

Check out the giganticly (sp?) long and old (but always resurrected) thread on the 3-mic drum technique. That'll give you some good tips on a spaced OH pair that helps avoid phasing issues. I learned it here, love it, use it a lot now.

http://www.homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=39030&page=1&pp=25
 
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