G
gdaq_13
New member
Well im new here and also im new to this so i would like to know how to record my drums, what do i have to buy etc can you help me please !!!
thanx!!
thanx!!
V
VanAmp
New member
Whats your Budget?
Do you own any equipment already?
What type of music?
Do you own any equipment already?
What type of music?
L
Lance135
New member
Yeah, there are lots of drum mic kits out there from companies like Shure, Audix, and AKG, all differently priced. How you'll mic the kit also depends on how many tracks you can record at one time. If you can only set up two mikes, it will be drastically different than if you can record eight at once.
G
gdaq_13
New member
Ok I dont have any mics but, now i would like to know what are the mics for my set, my set is a starclassic performer with 22x18 bd, 10x8, 12x9, and 14x11toms and the snare that is 14x5.5 now lets say that i have the mic ( wich i dont!!) now hoe do i put my sound into the computer and what software shall i buy thanx again and i would like something cheap
TexRoadkill
Audio Bum
There is no real cheap way to record drums onto seperate channels. If you were to put your budget into an actual dollar amount how much would it be?
F
fazil
New member
You'll need alot of gear and most of the quality will depend on your budget. I didn't mention any prices, as i live in Belgium and it looks like everything is twice as expensive here.
Mics
----
Let's say you need 4 tracks for your drums.
So you'll need 4 mics. 2 mics for close micing (kick and snare are most important) and 2 mics to get the drumset 'alive', to catch the cymbals, hats, toms and the room, called: Overheads.
Snare:
Shure sm57 is a very nice starter mike that you'll probably wanna keep for the rest off your life. It's quite popular. Other options are senheiser md421 or md441 (better but more expensive!) The E60.. (with the drummountclip thing on it) sounds nice aswell. Put it on the top head (batter) about one inch above the rim, pointing at the middle (listen to the sound while you're placing it).
Kick:
Akg D112 is pretty much a standard, i love it some love others ... like md 421, audixd6 , e602, EV re20, .... place it inside the kick pointing at the batter, try outside aswell.
Overhead:
You'll need 2 (matching) condesor mics mostly prefered small diaphragm, like rode nt5, SP c4, mxl 603, shure sm81, akg c 451, ...
A large diaphragm mike, like SP b1, akg c 414, ... can do wonders aswell
Mess around with stereo mic techniques, like xy, spaced, ortf, ...
Preamps:
--------
You'll need preamps to preamplify your mic outputs. You can either use stand alone preamps, ore mixers, with built in preamps.
You have four mikes, so you'll need 4 preamps, or 2 dual preamps. Possible suggestions are: m-audio audiobuddy or dmp3, RNP, .... Make sure they have phantom power, or you get another device that provides phantom power.
If you wanna use a mixer, you have the advantage of using more mikes (for toms), submix them with your OH's to a stereo track. A 4 bus mixer would be handy, otherwise you can use the inserts as outputs. Some suggestions are behringer (if you're on a very low budget), mackie, soundcraft, ...
Soundcard:
----------
So you've got your sound on decent levels, now you have to record it. You'll need a soundcard with analog inputs: Like m-audio delta 44, digi00blahblahblah or terratec ews 88, .....
Software:
---------
Some soundcards have software with'm. If it doesn't, you could use cubase, nuendo, cakewalk sonar, adobe audition (love it), .... These programs mostly have some plugins (for compression, reverb, eq, ....). Other options are waves plugins or some free plugins that you might find on the web.
As you see there's a long way to go to make descent recordings and you could have saved me from typing all this if you read alot on this site. There's a million books of information here on the bbs, especially harvey's big sticky thread in the mic forum, go check that out !!!
hope it helps though
greetz, fazil
Mics
----
Let's say you need 4 tracks for your drums.
So you'll need 4 mics. 2 mics for close micing (kick and snare are most important) and 2 mics to get the drumset 'alive', to catch the cymbals, hats, toms and the room, called: Overheads.
Snare:
Shure sm57 is a very nice starter mike that you'll probably wanna keep for the rest off your life. It's quite popular. Other options are senheiser md421 or md441 (better but more expensive!) The E60.. (with the drummountclip thing on it) sounds nice aswell. Put it on the top head (batter) about one inch above the rim, pointing at the middle (listen to the sound while you're placing it).
Kick:
Akg D112 is pretty much a standard, i love it some love others ... like md 421, audixd6 , e602, EV re20, .... place it inside the kick pointing at the batter, try outside aswell.
Overhead:
You'll need 2 (matching) condesor mics mostly prefered small diaphragm, like rode nt5, SP c4, mxl 603, shure sm81, akg c 451, ...
A large diaphragm mike, like SP b1, akg c 414, ... can do wonders aswell
Mess around with stereo mic techniques, like xy, spaced, ortf, ...
Preamps:
--------
You'll need preamps to preamplify your mic outputs. You can either use stand alone preamps, ore mixers, with built in preamps.
You have four mikes, so you'll need 4 preamps, or 2 dual preamps. Possible suggestions are: m-audio audiobuddy or dmp3, RNP, .... Make sure they have phantom power, or you get another device that provides phantom power.
If you wanna use a mixer, you have the advantage of using more mikes (for toms), submix them with your OH's to a stereo track. A 4 bus mixer would be handy, otherwise you can use the inserts as outputs. Some suggestions are behringer (if you're on a very low budget), mackie, soundcraft, ...
Soundcard:
----------
So you've got your sound on decent levels, now you have to record it. You'll need a soundcard with analog inputs: Like m-audio delta 44, digi00blahblahblah or terratec ews 88, .....
Software:
---------
Some soundcards have software with'm. If it doesn't, you could use cubase, nuendo, cakewalk sonar, adobe audition (love it), .... These programs mostly have some plugins (for compression, reverb, eq, ....). Other options are waves plugins or some free plugins that you might find on the web.
As you see there's a long way to go to make descent recordings and you could have saved me from typing all this if you read alot on this site. There's a million books of information here on the bbs, especially harvey's big sticky thread in the mic forum, go check that out !!!
hope it helps though
greetz, fazil
R
Richard Monroe
Well-known member
Yo gdaq! In case you haven't noticed it, you've opened quite a can of worms here. You didn't give us the most important thing- a budget! I could give you a damn good way to get the sound of your drums into that computer, but in *my* version, you'll need about $500 worth of *cables* to connect $6000 worth of mics into a $15,000 (used) Neve console into a $4000 PC with a $1200 sound card! Then you'll need at least a $2000 pair of monitors to listen to how cool you sound, after you spend about $6000 on a new set of drums. All this for under $30,000! Actually, you'll probably want some noise gates, but you get the point. I'm guessing you aren't quite that comitted, or that loaded. (If you are, send me a plane ticket, and I'll fly to wherever you are and set up the whole rig for a very reasonable price).
But, if you are like normal people, you have to do the best you can with what you have. I suspect that you are running backwards, like most people. Most people try to find out how much it will cost, then find a way to get the money. The problem is, the more money you have, the better sound you can get, *if* (big if), you have a good room and know how to use all that equipment. In most cases, people in your position need a better soundcard. Soundblaster will not cut it. Therefore, first you need something that's worth plugging real recording gear into. Check out M-Audio at 8th street. Second, you will need a bunch of preamps. The simplest way to do that starting out is get a mixer. Yes, I know the Behringers are dirt cheap. The Yamahas are almost as cheap and are much better mixers. For more money, Allen and Heath, Mackie, and Soundcraft mixers are popular. You might be able to get by with 4 mic inputs, but 8 would be better.
Then you will need some mics, mic stands, and cables. Ay least one or 2 heavy duty boom stands would be good for overheads. Mics are one of the areas where you can go from cheaper than dirt to death by sticker shock. Generally, don't buy a drum mic kit. Just buy the right mics. Start with 4, and then build from there. You will need a pair of overheads, a kick drum mic, and a snare mic to start. You can add dedicated floor and rack tom mics later, and maybe high hat. Overheads- dirt cheap- Behringer ECM8000's. Better but still cheap-Marshall MXL 603's. Mid priced- Studio Projects C-4, Rode NT-5. Pricey but cool-AKG C451's/Josephson C42 (I'm skipping over the to-die-for mics- biiiig bucks) Snare- Shure SM57- a rare thing in this business, an $80 industry standard. Sennhiser MD421 costs more, and rocks. Kick drum- Many choices- expect to spend $100-$200 on this one. Favorites include AKG D112, Audix D-6, ATM25, AT Pro25, Shure Beta 52. Just for those 4 channels, the sound card, a mixer, and the stands and cables, you're looking at about $1200. That's without monitors.
This reality check has been brought to you by the flat broke homerecorder's association. We're working for you in L.A.-Richie
But, if you are like normal people, you have to do the best you can with what you have. I suspect that you are running backwards, like most people. Most people try to find out how much it will cost, then find a way to get the money. The problem is, the more money you have, the better sound you can get, *if* (big if), you have a good room and know how to use all that equipment. In most cases, people in your position need a better soundcard. Soundblaster will not cut it. Therefore, first you need something that's worth plugging real recording gear into. Check out M-Audio at 8th street. Second, you will need a bunch of preamps. The simplest way to do that starting out is get a mixer. Yes, I know the Behringers are dirt cheap. The Yamahas are almost as cheap and are much better mixers. For more money, Allen and Heath, Mackie, and Soundcraft mixers are popular. You might be able to get by with 4 mic inputs, but 8 would be better.
Then you will need some mics, mic stands, and cables. Ay least one or 2 heavy duty boom stands would be good for overheads. Mics are one of the areas where you can go from cheaper than dirt to death by sticker shock. Generally, don't buy a drum mic kit. Just buy the right mics. Start with 4, and then build from there. You will need a pair of overheads, a kick drum mic, and a snare mic to start. You can add dedicated floor and rack tom mics later, and maybe high hat. Overheads- dirt cheap- Behringer ECM8000's. Better but still cheap-Marshall MXL 603's. Mid priced- Studio Projects C-4, Rode NT-5. Pricey but cool-AKG C451's/Josephson C42 (I'm skipping over the to-die-for mics- biiiig bucks) Snare- Shure SM57- a rare thing in this business, an $80 industry standard. Sennhiser MD421 costs more, and rocks. Kick drum- Many choices- expect to spend $100-$200 on this one. Favorites include AKG D112, Audix D-6, ATM25, AT Pro25, Shure Beta 52. Just for those 4 channels, the sound card, a mixer, and the stands and cables, you're looking at about $1200. That's without monitors.
This reality check has been brought to you by the flat broke homerecorder's association. We're working for you in L.A.-Richie
lpdeluxe
The Precision Bass Guy
Richie, I think you're letting him off cheaply.