Drum overheads
- Thread starter SolvoRock
- Start date
WhiteStrat
Don't stare at the eye.
I'm not saying this is the end all, be all answer, because I haven't tried 'em all. I haven't even tried a lot. But I too, was using a pair of 993's for OHs (and stereo recordings of acoustic). I moved up to Rode NT5's and haven't looked back. I like them a lot on both applications.
They're about $400-$420 for the pair, new. I got mine used for less.
They're about $400-$420 for the pair, new. I got mine used for less.
Whoopysnorp
New member
I recently picked up a pair of Peluso CEMC6s for just over $500 (they were used...the eBay transaction was a nightmare and they don't cost much more brand new, so I would probably spend the extra money if I had it to do again). They are high-quality American-made mics, and I'm definitely happy with the purchase. However, they did sort of drive home the old axiom about how you spend a lot of extra money to get an extra few percentage points of performance. I did some test recordings comparing their performance on drum overheads to my old MXL603s, and while they do sound a bit fuller and smoother, the difference is surprisingly subtle. The 603s held up very well, at least in a wide-spaced configuration...in XY config, the Pelusos did much better, I think due to the fact that they are much more closely matched than the 603s.
So I guess my point is that you should be aware that you may well get results you'll be happy with by buying the right pair of 'bargain' mics. I am glad that I stepped up to the next level, because I have been upgrading the other parts of my signal chain and it was the right time for me to buy better mics, but if money is tight you could be 98 percent as happy with a carefully-selected $200 pair as with a $500+ pair.
So I guess my point is that you should be aware that you may well get results you'll be happy with by buying the right pair of 'bargain' mics. I am glad that I stepped up to the next level, because I have been upgrading the other parts of my signal chain and it was the right time for me to buy better mics, but if money is tight you could be 98 percent as happy with a carefully-selected $200 pair as with a $500+ pair.
WhiteStrat
Don't stare at the eye.
Excellent advice! In other words 100% more money does not equal 100% better sound. In fact, I'll bet if I had bought my NT5's new & at full price, instead of used, I'd have been disappointed in the improvement over the 993's. It certainly wasn't night and day.
But the used price made the improvement worth it...
WhiteStrat
Don't stare at the eye.
FWIW I just noticed a listing for a pair of NT5's in the Free Ads/Classified forum for $345. I'm not saying you should get these, or that you're even ready to buy, just letting you know.
And I don't want to offend that poster, so if you want, PM me and I'll let you know what I paid for my NT5s--just for comparison's sake.
And I don't want to offend that poster, so if you want, PM me and I'll let you know what I paid for my NT5s--just for comparison's sake.
grafixguy4point
New member
after doing FOH on the road, my all time faves are the AKG C1000S's (small diaphram condenser). get yourself a pair of those and you'll be golden, studio and live work. you should be able to pick them up for about $150-200 each. good mics--and very rugged.
also, the Audio Technica AT2020's (large diaphram condensers) are amazing little mics for about $100 each. acoustic gutiars and vocals espcially sound good and are awesome for home studio stuff. the Oktava MK319 is a good pick up too (if you can get a Russian made one as opposed to the Chinese made ones...).
also, the Audio Technica AT2020's (large diaphram condensers) are amazing little mics for about $100 each. acoustic gutiars and vocals espcially sound good and are awesome for home studio stuff. the Oktava MK319 is a good pick up too (if you can get a Russian made one as opposed to the Chinese made ones...).
Drum Overheads can be a tricky spot to compare mics on since the source signal is so capable of wide variances which account for certain differences. Also, nicer mics can really reveal other issues which may result in not being as happy as you might have thought. That being said, I notice a pretty big difference between my Peluso CEMC 6's and the MXL mics. The Peluso's offer a lot more detail, a MUCH smoother high end which allows me to use the overheads in the mix much more. They also seem to leave a wider sounding image (which sometimes on overheads is not necessarily what you might want). I do however have the advantage of using the same kit in the same room that I have used hundreds of times. If you were to compare the pelusos to the MXL's on something like voice or acoustic instruments I think you would start to notice the differences a lot easier.
As far as other options, personally, I can not stand the C1000's. The work great on banjo for some reason, and I don't have a problem using them on hi hats, but as overheads I feel like they have a very abbrasive top end, not much in the imaging department, and a very cloudy midrange. For fairly budget conscious mics, AT makes a good SD condensor, The Shure KSM's are nice (the KSM 27 is a good decent priced LD condensor for OH's), The MXL's do ok if you watch the high frequencies, and the Oktava mk012's seem to usually do pretty well here as well. There are also good options from Josephson.
As far as other options, personally, I can not stand the C1000's. The work great on banjo for some reason, and I don't have a problem using them on hi hats, but as overheads I feel like they have a very abbrasive top end, not much in the imaging department, and a very cloudy midrange. For fairly budget conscious mics, AT makes a good SD condensor, The Shure KSM's are nice (the KSM 27 is a good decent priced LD condensor for OH's), The MXL's do ok if you watch the high frequencies, and the Oktava mk012's seem to usually do pretty well here as well. There are also good options from Josephson.
Whoopysnorp
New member
I feel I should follow up on my earlier comments...the other night I took my mic case over to a friend's house to play with some homebrew preamps a friend of his had built, and we did tests with a single Peluso pointed at his drum kit, followed by a single MXL603. The increased fullness of the CEMC6 over the MXL was a lot easier to hear in that context. When I went home I relistened to my old tests with the overheads soloed, and was able to more easily perceive the same differences there as well. So although I'd still say the MXLs held up pretty well, they will never match the performance of the Pelusos. I stand by my earlier point that you don't necessarily need to drop a ton of cash to get decent recordings from your drum overheads, but I think I should amend myself to say that you'd probably be more like 85-90 percent as satisfied with the correct $200 pair as compared to a nice $500+ pair.