What to buy to record an acoustic drumset

Sax2

Sax2

Punk
Hey all, first post.

I want to record my drum set. Right now, I've got a Shure X2U and an SM57 that I've just been putting above and behind the throne to make rough recordings, but when I add in guitar and bass tracks the snare and kick get really buried and lost in the mix, so I'm thinking getting some more mics is a good idea.

I'm thinking I need a snare mic and kick mic at the minimum. I looked through some of the posts in the drum forum, and they usually suggest getting two overheads, but I think I could scrape by with just my SM57 for now, and get another one later if need be.

I also need an interface with more inputs/preamps, as the X2U only has one. I'm thinking at least four, keeping with the kick-snare-two overheads idea. Eight would also be fine, then I could use it to make less awful recordings with my band. It should be compatible with ProTools, as I hope to learn how to use that.

My budget is around $1000, could go a little over if it's worth it.

I guess I also need to buy a ton of cables, too, to connect everything.
 
Definitely get yourself an interface with 8 (or more) mic inputs - if you get 4 now, you'll be wanting to upgrade eventually.
Depending on your recording space, you might get away with a 3 mic set up (kick, snare and overhead).

For the interface, maybe this Presonus? Or for just $200 this Tascam.

Consider this Shure drum mic kit, then you could use your SM57 as the room mic. And still have money left for cables and a boom stand or 2.
 
I actually was looking at that very mic kit, but I've seen people on here say it's a better idea to buy mics individually and work up a nice set rather than buy a bunch that I'd eventually replace. The kit does have a lot of mics for the price, which is why it appealed to me in the first place, but I didn't know whether the Beta D2A was a good kick mic or not, so I thought I'd drop by here and get some opinions.

I notice that the PreSonus you linked makes a distinction between Mic Instrument and Mic Line inputs, but it looks like both of them have the same input slots, and I can't find anything in the specs or description stating they use different preamps, or anything. is there actually a difference?

And just to make sure I understand the differences between those interfaces... The Tascam has 8 preamps, and four audio outputs. If I were to mic up my drumset with 4 mics, use one mic for guitar, one mic for bass, and one mic for vocals, then I could have all the drums output to one track, with one track for all the other mics, correct? And then the PreSonus also has 8 preamps, but 8 audio outputs, so if I miced up my drumset with 4 mics, I'd have all four of those tracks separately, and then still have another four I could use? And then of course the preamps in each interface would colour the signal differently.

Or is it the digital outputs which determine the amount of tracks you have at the end?
 
None of the outputs determine how many tracks you can record simultaneously. It's not related.

You'd use analog outputs to feed monitor speakers, or headphone amps, or summing mixers, or whatever,

but if you have 8 xlr inputs on a tascam or a presonus. you can be sure your daw will see 8 discreet channels.




I agree with the 'don't by a drum mics kit' mentality, but I think this kit is an exception. I mean, a 57 is a 57. If you want three of them, go nuts. :)
Generally I'd recommend that people bypass stuff like cad/samson kits, where the individual mics don't have a 'name' for themselves.
 
Sax2 said:
Hey all, first post.

I want to record my drum set. Right now, I've got a Shure X2U and an SM57 that I've just been putting above and behind the throne to make rough recordings, but when I add in guitar and bass tracks the snare and kick get really buried and lost in the mix, so I'm thinking getting some more mics is a good idea.

I'm thinking I need a snare mic and kick mic at the minimum. I looked through some of the posts in the drum forum, and they usually suggest getting two overheads, but I think I could scrape by with just my SM57 for now, and get another one later if need be.

I also need an interface with more inputs/preamps, as the X2U only has one. I'm thinking at least four, keeping with the kick-snare-two overheads idea. Eight would also be fine, then I could use it to make less awful recordings with my band. It should be compatible with ProTools, as I hope to learn how to use that.

My budget is around $1000, could go a little over if it's worth it.

I guess I also need to buy a ton of cables, too, to connect everything.
Click to expand...

I would look into the presonus interfaces as they have 8 usable pres @ relatively low cost. Also think a 4 mic setup is probably the way to go. It's going to take you a while to master that anyway. The results can be shockingly good once you figure out what you are doing. The guys I think you want to weigh in, in no particular order are the Gerg, RAMI, Heatmiser and Macle. Go search out their stuff. Macle doesn't come around very often but he get's really good results with a very simple setup. Hell all these guys get great results. The thing you will hear over and over is - get the kit set up and tuned right with good heads, in a good room with a good player and the shit practically records itself. There are SO many good tutorials out there about the johns method, and the recorderman method, etc.. If you cover those other bases, the recording part is going to be the least of your worries. There are many other guys in here who do a great job, and I'm not slighting anyone by not calling them out by name :-)
 
Hey - I appreciate the endorsement chuck, but I'm still pretty new to recording drums and wouldn't recommend the mic combination I use. I've pieced together a 5 mic set-up that works ok for my homegrown sound, but it is based on price and necessity, more than intent.

You might consider posting in the drum forum if you don't get the info you need here. I've gotten great advice there.

I have a standalone multitracker with 8 inputs, and although I know nothing about interfaces, I recommend you get one with 8 if the price difference isn't prohibitive.

$1000 is a great budget for this. Personally, I see no reason to skimp on overheads with that kind of budget. The OHs shape the overall tone and sound of the kit and are very important imo. If I were you, I would use the 57 to close mic the snare, get an Audi D6 or similar dedicated kick mic ($150-$200 range) and then split the remainder of the budget between the interface and the best OHs you can afford.

The 57 is not really sensitive and would not make the best room mic or overhead imo. Having only one OH will really hinder your ability to get a wide, spacious and full sound. Get two decent LDCs or SDCs and set them up equidistant from the snare in any number of acceptable positions.

Just my thoughts of course. I don't know what sort of sound you're going for or how high your expectations are for the finished product. I believe Greg is banned for now, which is a shame, as he is a great resource for these very questions. I think he actually uses a CAD drum mic package though (with a better kick mic). I'm not sure what set up Rami uses, but I think it is somewhat humble from what I remember...?
 
I forgot about cables and stands...yes, you will need one xlr cable of sufficient length for each mic (price can vary a lot), plus at least 3 boom stands ($25 each?) for the OHs and snare. I made mic stands out of wood for the kick myself. It's easy as they're so close to the ground, and I'm cheap, but I can't imagine a genuine kick mic apparatus would set you back too much?
 
I have had good luck with Samson CO2's as overhead mics. $140 for the pair. Cant really beat that price for a decent matched pair of condensers.

Personally, I don't even bother with spending money on a kick mic. I use a D112, but almost always replace it with SS Trigger. I could use a $7 piezo mic, and have the same results.

This is based on the heavy rock genre that I work with the most. For me, the cost of Steven Slate Trigger was a better investment than spending time tweaking a kick drum sound. I'm sure I will get some s**t for this. :)
 
Steenamaroo said:
Generally I'd recommend that people bypass stuff like cad/samson kits, where the individual mics don't have a 'name' for themselves.
Click to expand...


jimmys69 said:
I have had good luck with Samson CO2's as overhead mics. $140 for the pair.
Click to expand...

Damn, I knew that would happen. :p
C02s aren't bad at all. I was aiming more at the tom mics, snare mic and kick mic that as far as I know are identical inside.
They're the kind of thing you'd totally outgrow and replace.
 
Regarding mic stands for overhead mics; if you have the ability to mount to ceiling, you can get two of these and two of these. A more ghetto approach (which I have done) would be PVC pipe mounted to ceiling, and a couple of these
 
heatmiser said:
Hey - I appreciate the endorsement chuck, but I'm still pretty new to recording drums and wouldn't recommend the mic combination I use. I've pieced together a 5 mic set-up that works ok for my homegrown sound, but it is based on price and necessity, more than intent.
Click to expand...

I mentioned you because I know you have a really modest setup overall, IIRC only started playing and recording acoustic drums over the past year or so and get great results. I think that is the essence of 'homerecording'. You can let someone compliment you and survive with your humility intact, I swear it's possible :-)
 
Cool, thanks chuck.

I think $1000 is a pretty healthy budget for what this guy needs to do. I'm pretty sure my kit, mics, cables and stands don't add up to that. He should be able to get a really good set-up for that kind of money.

I myself use a matched pair of behringer SDCs that cost like $60 for overheads. Pretty pathetic, harsh and almost metallic sounding, but still a steal for $60! No reason the OP should skimp there though.
 
Alright, here's my prospective plan, taking all this info into account:

Interface: Presonus AudioBox 1818VSL - $425 if I get one used from Musician's Friend, which I probably will, as I don't need the bundled software.
Kick: Audix D6 - $180 (I'd prefer cardiod over supercardiod to get less of the room sound, as I don't think my room has a great sound.)
Overheads: Oktava MK-012 - I found a guy on Craigslist selling one for $130, so if I could get that a pair would only cost me about $340.

And then I'd use the SM57 I already have to mic the snare.

Total cost: $945~

And then I have some extra money I could use for cables and stuff like that. Look like a good plan?
 
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