Kick Drum mic Poll

which Kick Drum mic would/did you buy?

  • ATM 25

    Votes: 50 15.2%

  • AKG D112

    Votes: 134 40.9%

  • Sennheiser e602

    Votes: 36 11.0%

  • Shure Beta52

    Votes: 108 32.9%
  • Total voters
    328
Great thread! Trying to decide on a kick mic under $300 at the moment.. Anyone have any updates seeing as the thread goes back to 2003?

Any newer mics on the market now to take on the D112 or ATM25? Any thoughts on the shure PG52s?
 
The one mic mentioned in the thread 100 times but not in the poll and very worthy of looking at is the Audix D6.
 
The D6 is certainly a great mic. I own/have owned a D6, D112, MD421, PRO25, and an E100. The D6 is one of my favs. I would love to try an RE20/27 one of these days. The Blue Kickball seems pretty interesting as well. Does anyone have any feedback on that one?
 
I'm not sure if this mic was already mentioned, but I've been quite impressed with the open and really fat kick drum sound I've been able to get out of a Shure KSM27. Not a bad mic for $300. I also have the AKG D112 and CAD E100 which aren't bad for kick either. When I do concerts, the live standard seems to be the Beta 52 which has a very powerful, meaty sound that I like for live, but not really for studio. On the cheap side the Shure PG 52 isn't bad and actually sounds like a "smaller" version of it's Beta cousin. Just my $0.02. Peace, -DJ
 
Under $100 used

Hi,

The Shure, AKG, Audix, and EV mics mentioned cost nearly as much used as they do new. When I was looking for kick mics I had the under $100 used criteria.

For some reason the ATM25 and the Peavey 520i (or tn) are what I found. And not only are these great kick mics but they are both really versatile mics for horns, cabinets, anything loud and thick.

On the Flying Hungarians CD I'm doing now the ATM25 is on the kick and the Peavey 520i on the bass cabinet and about half of my vocals. For the other vocals I'm using an AT4054 but I can actually sing loud enough to make that sucker crackle. That ain't gonna happen with the Peavey.

Thanks,

Hairy Larry
 
I own the Audix D6 and i have used the beta 52 and they both are good for metal, the D6 for more extreme metal or death metal and the beta 52 for rock and just regular metal bands like sevendust.
 
I own a AKG D11. It works well for my uses on kick drum. I can eq a punchy and deep kick with it. As to not skew the votes, I did not vote for anything because I haven't really used anything much else so my vote wouldn't be as truthful as it should. But I can say that on a budget the AKG D11 works for me.:)
 
Current kick mics I own:
ATM 25
Beta 52
RE 20
SM 91
Beta 91
M 88
D 112
D 25
MD 421

Current favourite kick plot:
D 112, deep in the drum pointed close to the point of impact and slightly off axis, small blanket as muffling, and an Earthworks kickpad inline. Works great for me. Add a ribbon outside for extra meat, but just a tad. Both channels flat other than the passive EQ.
 
You can sometimes find an Audio Technica AT4047/AV Fet for $300 used. I find that mic just amazing on kicks with both skins and no hole. Even with no eq and no compression I find the sound pretty usable.
For what's it's worth I've had no luck with akg d112s in any circumstances. I find they give a cheesy cliched scooped sound. I personally prefer a md421 where a lot of folks seem to use the d112.
 
I have the Audix D6 - and I love it.


I've never used anything else however, (except 57 or 58, because I had too), but the Audix D6 is pretty hard to mess up.

Put it in the kick drum, and you are done.... instantly give you a nice kick sound.
 
I'll tell you what I don't like: the D112 mounted inside the drum via the May internal mounting system. I get a lot of click and not much body. I think it's because the mic is coupled to the shell. The mic position may be related too, but the May mount doesn't have too much range of motion.

So, use an external stand. :)

Most of the mics already named in this thread have great reputations and have been used on many albums and tours. Whether or not you ultimately like any of them depends on the drum, the drummer, the room, the placement, the processing, and the song. Not to muddy the waters, but that's the reality of it.

I'd recommend buying used, so you can sell the mics you don't like without losing half your investment. This is riskier with condensers, which are more sensitive, but most kick mics are dynamics. (I've seen videos of Bob Heil throwing a PR-30 on the floor to demonstrate how rugged it is.)

If you have the stomach for more research, there's a couple more kick mics nobody has mentioned. I'm cataloging them all here:
http://recordinghacks.com/microphones/tag/kick-drum
Click through to each mic to see reviews and specs.

I'm most intrigued by the Elation KM202, although that's probably the hardest to get. The factory sells them via Ebay, but they're not common.

Oh, one last thing -- as you suggest, it's pretty common to mic a kick drum with two mics. One goes inside to capture the attack; another goes outside the front head to capture the tone. You need to be careful of phasing issues, but if that's sorted then a blend of the two might give you the sound that no single mic can. It doubles your budget of course, and consumes another mic pre and probably another input on your DAW. And the mix engineer will probably sound-replace whatever you record with a sample anyway. :) But it makes single-mic shootouts harder, because ultimately you're only hearing one component of the final sound.
 
So Far for me the best mic I have tried on Kick is a home made "Sub Kick' that I built with a 8 in Subwoofer and a small audio transformer mounted inside a 10 in drum shell....It has a LOT of output, and has a really low end bassy punch....It sounds better with a Kick mic in the drum and the Sub kick at the hole of the drum shell but it also sounds very good by it"s self....

It cost me pretty much nothing to build it, I just used salvaged parts and mounted the drum on an old cymbol stand...It sure as hell beats paying $400 + for a yahama sub-kick.....

Cheers
 
I myself am very fond of the Beta52. Nice solid mic for a kick drum, and also works pretty well on bass cabinets. I do find it takes a little more eq to get to the "sweet spot". But once you find it is a great mic.
 
exactly, this mic is quickly turning into a studio standard and yet most home recording engineers don't seem to put much stock in it. but MAN is that D6 ever the best sounding kick mic. i doubt ill ever use anything different as my main kick mic.
 
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