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
I really like the ATM25 as a kick mic. The AKG D112 is the industry favorite and it's a great mic but a bit too stacatto for my tastes. I prefer a warmer kick drum with a more resonant glow to the bottom end. This mic just works well for me. I also got a terrific price on it because at my local Guitar Center, they didn't know any better and sold it to me for the price they had on the AT Pro 25. Yay!
I'm sure that the other mics mentioned are equally wonderful for your own personally applications, but I'm sold on the ATM25. I spent a long time looking and asking questions and making a total pain in the ass out of myself at the GC (which actually let me try some of the different mics through the same mixer I use.) I'm sure they're glad I finally bought one, and probably want to run away every time I walk in. :)
I am very new to this side of music making, but I rely on very top of the line organic stereo EQ testing devices to make my judgements and final decisions....my ears.
 
DJL said:
Cool thread. I own the Sennheiser MD421, AKG D112, and Shure Beta52 mics, and out of these three mics for kick, the Sennheiser MD421 gets used the most.
Click to expand...

Well, my above post is old......... and now I own most of the mic's in this thread........ and the Sennheiser MD421 still RULES! :)
 
I as always under the impression that the D12E was the 'Daddy' of modern kik drum mics. I know the one I used to use was great.Another mic to consider these days for kik is the Sennheiser MD409.Yes its an older mic but it works great on the beater side while you apply an ATM25 to the interior of your drum.Its also one of the finest guitar cab. mics I've evr heard.
 
We'll am I a stupid goon for having used an RE-20 on floor tom and a D112 on bass drum (with a sm57 on the beater)? We hardly had time to compare mics, so i dont know how it would have sounded switched around. It's for a hardcore/indie rock/punk type record.
 
yes indeed

WOW my post is back from the dead!

So here's the newest entry(s) into the kick drum fray:

the AT AE250 (dual element dynamic/condenser) seems very cool as does the new Audix D6 although that seems like more of a live mic.


anyone sheel out the dough for either of these?
 
I had 3 kick mics to demo on my double headed birch 22x18 DW/Pacific kick.....the shure beta 52 ($189.00), the AKG D112 ($199.00) and the Audix D6 ($199.00).

the beta 52 took me a lot of time to find its "sweet spot" inside my kick. (I had the most positioning problems with this mic) best position was upper left angleing towards the edge (above bottom of floor tom through the beater head).... overall the mic had a "honky" type mid range tone which I never could get used to. its "click" sound up close was more "flabby" sounding and "boomy"

the D112 sounded pretty cool. (though its sweet spot was dead center 3 inches off beater, slightly off center) I got a great click sound with a tougher bottom end and not as much mid range and its freq sat lower in the overall mix than the Beta 52.

The Audix D6 was the winner and the one I purchased. when I threw it in the kick, it sounded great at every position (no fussing) I really like the scooped mids as it enhanced the sub freguencies the most. the "click" was present but not as bright as the D112... the Audix was the "toughest" out of the three...now I'm not really into that Metalica slap sound and though I thought the D6 was heading in that direction at first, in the overall mix it sat the lowest, perfectly enhancing the bass guitars attack.

the way I classify these mics is the following:
the beta 52 feels like it hits you in the chest area.
the D112 hits you around the stomach
The D6 smacks you right in the balls!
 
Finally bought one

I just bought the Senn 602. The kick on my new kit is a 7 ply maple 18x20, with a superkick 2, and a stock sonor front. It is very solid and tight sounding but I miss some of the low end boom that other kits I've owned had. I hoped to get some of that back with my kick mic in the PA, and I figure that if I want more click/punch, I can always add a 57 to the front head for recording. A 58 and some eq has been doing the job decently, so the whole reason I even bought a kick mic for the low end.

Samash.com was clearing out the kickpack for $169, but they were out of them. I got Music123 to price match it (they were asking 199 for the kick pack). The pack comes with a decent mini boom stand, which is plenty good to hold the mic, and a usable looking 20ft. cable, and a crappy nylon sack (mine has a funky zipper, but I can't complain).

Between the samples I've heard of this mic in use, the good reviews and comments on it's low freq response, the fact that Sennheiser has a good rep, and the smokin deal. I felt confident about the purchase. The D112 is a fine mic and I've always thought it did a good job, that is what I was going to buy, but then decided the 602 was worth a try. I will AB them at some point when I have access to a 112.

I've barely used it as it only came Wed. but so far I'm impressed. I am anxious to try it on an accoustic bass, and the bottom of my congas and djembe soon. I've even heard people say that it occasionally has use for some people's vocals- I can't wait to try it for human beatbox (with windscreen, of course).
 
I have three ATM25 and dig 'em. My needs are strictly for live performance recording, and they do the job.
 
for a few years I used the D112 and the ATM25 but then a couple of studio guys turned me on to the EV N/D 868 kick mic, so now I use the EV the most, my ATM has been getting a lot of time on the floor tom of late.
 
I have an older AT model called a pro9 kick mic. must have been the model before the 25?? not ever been able to find out much about it, but got it 2nd hand for like $40.00 . this thing sounds great on kick and guitar amp. even can do a decent jobs on vocals.
cheers
 
The beta 52 is a kick ass mic. Of course like any kick drum mic, its all placement. Really. Anyway, look up a beta 91. its a kick mic that sits right in the drum and its KILLER sounding.
 
D112 - why the bad rap?

I just purchased a D112 for my home studio, and I think the guy "studio engineer" who hates it so much must have gotten a defective one.

My brother-in-law recorded with Jack Endino in Seattle and he used the D112. Also talked to a few guys who record a lot, and they love 'em. So I got one, and I have to admit, it's not as user-friendly as other mics, but way more versatile... I tried mic'ing a bunch of positions, and each one gave me a different sound. Eventually found the place I liked a few inches from the rim on the outside of the beater head, pointed away from the beater to control the attack level. Unorthodox, yes... but it gave me what I wanted. Plus, I talked the guy at guitar center down to $160 - a steal.

Chris
 
a big kick drum sound. old trick.

try this and you will be quite surprised. BUT WATCH YOUR LEVELS.
can be very powerfull. use a big old speaker as a drum mic.
just attach a quarter inch jack to a big old speaker, and if you have no mixer plug the output into a cassette deck microphone input and let her rip. the choice of speaker is critical. but if you find the right one it will probably beat many microphones.
give it a try but turn the input down on the cassette deck
because this is LOUD and you dont want to blow your monitors.
 
How did this pop up again??

Manning's post was like from december. ????

Anyways ...... I'lll re-enforce the RE20 vote.

Got mine for $230 or something used and it had a faulty roll off so the shop I got it from ended up sending it back to Electro Voice and they basically refurbished the whole thing.

I dont have a ton of drum micing experience but it has a very responsive sound to different placements (which can be a pain but makes it versitile) and has a great low end to it.

Also can work damn fine on a bass amp.

-mike
 
you should have included an 'other' category. I have none of those you have listed.

I do have a CAD KBM 412 which I bought secondhand. It was one of the components of a drum mike kit which I bought for $350. I only wanted the kick mike, but I figured the others might be ok. As it happened, I don't use the others, but the kick mike has given me great results on kick and double bass. I am very happy.

I expect there are greater chioces, but the CAD will do me fine for a while.
 
Um, lots of other choices out there. RE-20, Beyer M88, Audix D6, Beyer M380. I have the ATM-25 as well. They all sound different and it depends on the drum and what kind of sound you actually want.
 
Kick mics

A really common setup fot the big boys is 2 mics rather than just one. A wicked set up is a beyer dynamic M88 and a Shure SM 91. A trick for the 91 is to glue a piece of case foam to the bottom of it so it does not move around while the drummer is beating that kick. A way to get the M88 inside a Kick with out using a mic stand is to make a donut out of case foam. Simply abig circle with a little circle inside it. little circle has to be same size as shaft of mic. Big circle has to be small enough to fit through hole in bass drum head. A trick I stole from Dave Jerden is to put a single 12 in speaker cab in front of Bass drum run the speaker cable into a di and wala super low frequncies. :D
 
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