First try at "recorderman"....

jamesduysen

jamesduysen

New member
Hey guys...this is my first try at the recorderman method for drums...

CAUTION: I AM NOT A DRUMMER.

spare musicallity...I know that I suck at drums.

Tell me what you think, this is a big step up for me as far as drum recording quality, but still not good enough...What do you think I need to do differently?

(EDIT: NEW LINK, reversed phase)
drums

thanks,

-jD

(p.s. I am sorry that I couldn't have a real drummer for this test)
 
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Doesn't sound bad. How many mics did you actually use? Is this raw or have you done any EQ'ing? Sounds like you're capturing the whole kit pretty well. The only thing that seems weird to me is that the hats and ride sound cenetred while the toms and crashes seem to be panned a little. I find its usually the other way around for me.
 
lol...you are right...it sounded odd to me...I have some really awkward phase stuff going on...take a listen to this one...i reversed the phase...and it sounds a little better.

I used 2 oh's two snare(bottom and top) and a kick...I was really impressed with how much this method picked up toms!

new drums
 
Still sounds about the same. Make sure you have your 2 overhead measurments correct. when done right, the recorderman method shouldn't have hardly any phase issues at all.
 
I don't think it's that bad. Any problems in sound at this point are probably more the result of the tuning of the drums. The toms sound really dead, which doesn't allow them to come through like they should. You might also want to de-tune your bass drum a bit. I'm just talking about my own person al preference. I don't know what you're looking for sound-wise, so this might be fine.

Like Greg said, your measurements have to be precise. They can't be "about" the same distance away. Take a measuring tape and measure the exact same distance. You should get a wide field, maybe too wide (I don't pan my OH's 100% L/R) and phasing shouldn't be an issue.

Another thing that I never saw mentioned, but helped me alot is that the mics must also be pointing DIRECTLY at the SAME SPOT on the snare. So don't take your thumb off the measuring tape on your snare when you go from one mic to the other. As far as making sure they're pointing directly at the snare, after measuring and getting it right, take the measuring tape and run it from the BACK of the mic (where the wire goes in) to the snare. The tape should go in a completely straight line or else it means it's not pointing right at the spot.
 
Yea...I killed the toms becuase I was getting some crazy shaking from the kick drum...I will fix that...How far exactly do you pan the oh mics? And how do you guys eq the oh's?

Thanks again,

-jD
 
jamesduysen said:
How far exactly do you pan the oh mics? And how do you guys eq the oh's?
Click to expand...
On a scale of 1 to 100, I pan them about 75-80%.

As far as how I eq them, it's probably irrelevant because my drums, room, style of playing, etc....is going to be different than yours. But I will say that I don't boost anything. I only have a 3-band EQ, I usually cut everything under 200 or 250hz. Cut from anywhere around 350 to 500hz, depending on what's muddy. And usually cut around 4.5 to 5.5k. These are all ballpark, obviously, but just trying to illustrate that I never find a need to boost anything if I tracked properly.
 
I usually cut around 4-5k just on the overheads. When I say "cut", I'm talking 2db...maybe 3, but not a big cut. It might be my cymbals or room, but I find just a touch of harshness in my hi hats and crashes around there.
 
Greg_L said:
Hey RAMI, do you bus your individual drum tracks to a group track?
Click to expand...
No, I don't. I have enough tracks to kepp them seperate and I don't see a reason I would do that. My EQ and compression settings are different on each drum mic, so I'd rather not group them. I might be overlooking a good reason to group them, though, since it's something I never felt a need to try.
 
I use individual settings on each drum track, and then sub them all to a group track where I can fine tune the kit as a whole, if necessary. I usually do some minor EQ tweaks or lay some reverb over the whole kit with this group track. No compression or anything major. Your drums always sound freaking fantastic, so I'm not suggesting you need it. I was just wondering.
 
Greg_L said:
I use individual settings on each drum track, and then sub them all to a group track where I can fine tune the kit as a whole, if necessary. I usually do some minor EQ tweaks or lay some reverb over the whole kit with this group track. No compression or anything major. Your drums always sound freaking fantastic, so I'm not suggesting you need it. I was just wondering.
Click to expand...
Thanx Greg. I can see why it can be useful in that sense. Just never thought of it. :cool:
 
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