Getting he drums to fit in the mix like the Beatles'...

[cavedog101]

That's why if you use, say a pair of Neumann K184's for over heads, you basically don't have to EQ them if the room has decent acoustics and the drums are tuned well. Try that with cheaper condenser microphones, and you'll be cutting midrange like crazy.... and they were using High Quality condensers for overheads.. mic's that we'd have to pay thousands of dollars for toady.

The only change I would like to make on this quote is the fact that they used the STC 4038 ribbon mic on the drum overhead early on, but due to the leakage (they are figure of 8 and picked up a lot of room) Norman Smith went to the AKG D19c, a dynamic mic, for the drum overhead. The 'Recording The Beatles' book I own (signed, first run #596)also said that Geoff Emerick went back to the 4038 for the Abbey Road sessions.

It was also said that Norman Smith used only two mics on Ringos set, a D20 on the kik and the D19c on the over. When Geoff took over in 1965, he used this up until the Sgt Peppers sessions. He then experiemented with as many as 5 D19c's as well as the D20 and a KM56 under the snare. While this wasnt always the setup, it shows that Geoff was the one who took the experimentation to new levels never before seen at EMI. When Ken Scott became the engineer it was mostly a three mic setup, D19c, D20 and the KM56 under.

As for the D20 on the kik....They used it so much and for so long, that they had eventually determined which D20 out of the Abbey Road mic locker sounded the best and they labled it simply "Beatles". They also used a D20 on the bass amp. A D20 is in fact a nwere version of the D12 AKG with no bump in the low-end. Dont ever ask me why I sold mine...........


All of Ringo's early drum recordings in Studio 2 were recorded with gobos or screens in place. Mostly three sides to focus and contain the drum sound as well as cut down of the natural reverb. Later recordings were with a screen that also had a top to it. Geoff Emerick felt that it focused the drum sound even more. This was the arrangement from 1966 on.

The Recording The Beatles book is by far the most complete look at the sessions and the surroundings at Abbey Road during their work there. GREAT STUFF!!