versatile kick mic

willovercome

willovercome

New member
i did a search for info on the D112, Beta 52, ATM 25, and audix d6, but there wasn't much info on the sound differences. my price range is around $200. personally i like the kick to be a little more boomy than most would like, but most of the people i record like the tight heavy-metal sound (double bass etc...). is there a mic in this range that will do both fairly well?
 
Used Sennheiser 441 would be my first choice, a 421 would be my second choice. Tune the drum to taste depending on the kind of music, and a really great analog EQ (I say analog because I have yet to hear a digital EQ that can do what a Daking can do on drums) wouldn't hurt matters either...it definitely helps in shaping the tone where tuning and mics can only take you to a certain point.

Nathan Eldred
atlasproaudio.com
 
Not to belittle the merits of the Sennheiser mics you mentioned, but they are $100.00 above the price ceiling that was mentioned.
Of the kick mics mentioned, I would say that either the AKG D112 or the Audix D6 would be the mics that would fit your needs best. I have worked with the D112 on a number of occassions and it is "the" ultimate kick mic for cross dicipline mic'ing. The Audix is quickly challenging it.
I myself just acquired the ATM25 as my kick mic, but I like a warmer sounding kick drum, so that suited my needs. The Shure mic is a great Rock mic. If all you are doing is heavy rock music, that would probably be a great choice.
The Sennheisers that were mentioned are also warmer sounding and for my ears would be absolutely "killer" on floor toms. The cheapest that I've seen the 421 go for is $299.00 at 8th Street. I you go to Guitar Center, you could probably negotiate a deal on the D112 or the D6 for $150.00-$160.00.
-Jeff
 
I say stick with the Sennheisers and buy used if you have to.
You say versatile... how versatile is a 441? It makes a great kick mic, snare mic, guitar mic, vocal mic, horn mic.. its just plain worth the money. I paid $259 for mine used on ebay. What a steal. More steals to be had, too.

The 421 is also very versatile and well worth the money and can be spread out for pther uses instead of having something that is just a kick-drum mic.
 
Rimshot said:
Not to belittle the merits of the Sennheiser mics you mentioned, but they are $100.00 above the price ceiling that was mentioned.
Click to expand...


Not sure if you caught it, but I said specifically used. Examples from ebay.

Sennheiser 421, $150:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2541419023&category=41465

Sennheiser 441, $175 (reserve not met), there's an ended one that went for $200:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2541766916&category=41465

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2539630192&category=41465

Nathan Eldred
atlasproaudio.com
 
also take a look at the cad e100. super kick mic that you can use for other things as well. it has that "electret" sound, which has its place... i use its bigger brother the e300, which has a real capsule, but similar electronics. both of them have a little op amp stage inside the mic (in my e300 it is powered by two rechargable 9v batteries). burr brown op amp (not 100% sure about this though- i should look inside to confirm). it is my contention that this op amp gives the mics a special bass drum mojo...

for the boomiest bass drum ever look at the beyer m380. oh that mic booms. pretty unusably. but if you stick a 57 inside and a beyer m380 outside you are in business. m380s run anywhere from $100 to $450 depending on how cool people think they are at the time. steve albini made a post to RAP that says it is one of his favorite mics that he uses on almost every recording. i believe that periodically 2 or more people read that in the same week, and it drives the ebay price way up. on an off week, those things will just sit there and get no bids whatsoever.

the current beyer kick mics-- i think the opus 65 or something... are supposed to be pretty good as well.
 
I would heartily recommend the Audix D6. It's a great kick mic with the perfect about of low-end plus a nice presence peak to capture the click. I realize that a lot of folks use the AKG D112, but I've never really liked how this mic handles kick. It always sounds like a basketball bouncing with this mic. That's why I recommend the Audix D6, because you get the boom and the click naturally, with no EQ.

I don't have any experience with the Beta 52 or the ATM 25. So take my comments for what they're worth.
 
D112 is to kicks what the SM57 is to snares my fellow recordist....and as said, it's all about the EQ when you're changing styles.
 
Here's a quote from Harvey Gerst from a thread that is an informative kick drum poll:
http://www.homerecording.com/bbs/sh...38017&perpage=25&highlight=ATM25&pagenumber=2

"I own most of the mics we're discussing. This is the usual order of preference here:

Audio Technica ATM-25
AKG D-112
Audio Technica Pro 25
Sennheiser MD-421
AKG D12E

A band brought in their Shure Beta 52's last week and I tried them on kick, but pulled them after about 5 minutes of screwing around with the eq, trying to make it sound good - too "puffy" for our use. I would never buy one.

If we owned an EV RE-20, it would probably fit in the list between the Sennheiser 421 and the AKG D12E.

When choosing a kick mic, we listen for solid bottom end with good beater definition and try to avoid using eq as much as possible."
 
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