ceiling and things

[rightbrainnow]

When recording drums, how much does the height of the ceiling matter? I know taller ceilings are better than lower. I rely on my o/h's to pick up the toms and cymbals. Ceilings are just 8 feet tall, and when i was experimenting with o/h placement, I realized that the lower the o/h's the more the toms lost their tone...when i moved them up higher, I could start to hear the tone of the toms more. Does that have anything to do with the height of the ceiling? The room has horrible acoustics, and im trying to think of some basic room treatment to do for drums. Those drums shields go for 400 bucks at guitar center, would it be that hard to make one? Is my 8 foot ceiling going to get in the way of getting a decent drum recording?

 

[Gamelan]

To reduce reflection, I would mute the ceiling with some foam, fiberglass, acoustic tile (anything).

Ceiling height is mostly about standing resonance. Generally, the higher the ceiling, the lower the pitch of the room. As the ceiling is raised the resonant pitch is lowered and becomes less of a problem. Bass traps can correct for the dreaded 8' ceiling.

Drums will often sound fuller with a more distant placement because the wave needs some space to fully develop. You can get a similar depth with closer placement but it takes some experimentation to find the sweet spots. If the room isn't good, you're going to need to get close anyway.