Mic Drums with the mics i already have?

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o0Charlie0o

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I can't seem to get a good sound.

I have:

1 Groove Tubes Condensor
1 Shure Sm57
1 Shure Sm58
1 Shure Beta52 Kick Mic
5 Other Crap Dynamic Mics

Since i only have 1 condensor mic and it seems like the popular choice is 2, i put that one in the middle over the cymbols, but it seems to over power the other mics, and picks up all the other drums and gives a room sound. I think its obvious to put the Beta52 in the bass drum, i already have that one figured out. But the rest of the setup i can't seem to get a good sound going. Should i buy another condensor? If so does it really have to be good? The grove trubes was 300, and I don't want to spend that much again for a while.
 
You should have a matched pair of condensers. Then when you record you can pan them hard left and right to make your drum set sound fuller in the mix. Also, are your drums in tune. As many have said before "crap in, crap out" or whatever lol. Experiment with placement over the snare and inside the kick drum. a compressor or two couldn't hurt. I sometimes gate the drums to isolate each of them. Since you're limited on money I would leave out gates and compressors for now. Either get another Groove Tubes or purchase a new pair of MXL603's for 160.00:

http://www.8thstreet.com/product.asp?ProductCode=1558&Category=Microphones
 
.

Wow those are cheap... Where would i place the big one, and where would i place the small one?
 
Whoops, i went to musicians friend and it showed a package for a large diaphram with a small diaphram
 
I'd go with just using the 2 MXL603's....one over the floor/ride and the other over the hihat/snare. Careful of phasing. If you wait till later when I get home I have some good diagrams I could email or post of these.
 
Thank you

I think if i can scrape up about 200 i'll go and get those and a stand...
 
Well if they sell these things at guitar center, i get a nice discount there, so i can have them today, instead of waiting for them in the mail ;)
 
Originally posted by o0Charlie0o
i put [the condenser] one in the middle over the cymbols, but it seems to over power the other mics

Well, mix it lower then...???

and picks up all the other drums and gives a room sound.

That's what it's supposed to do. If you don't like how it sounds, don't use it. First of all you need good sounding drums. Second of all you need a good sounding room. If your room sounds like crap you have to close mic the drums and hope the room doesn't bleed through.

My tip on how to do this is to start with setting up one mic for the kick. Switch mics and move it around until it sounds as good as possible. Then do the same for the snare. And you are right, starting with the Beta 52 for the kick is a good bet (but you might want to try the others just to make sure). And an SM57 is a popular snare choice.

When you have come this far, play all the drums and see how it sounds recorded. Figure out what sounds too little and put a mic there *or* move one mic closer. Go on with this until finished.

First time I did drums the room has a lot of highs, but I got a decent sound with three cheap crap mics. One lay on a pillow inside the kick, the second recorded the snare, and the third was placed between the toms. No need to record the hihat or cymbals, they sounded nice anyway.

When I record drums in my current home studio I use two mics, and SM57 aimed at the kick from the drummer side, and an Oktava MK-319 aimed at the snare. I record these two separate tracks, and during mix I pan them halfway right and left. This gives a drumsound that is balanced enough and in stereo. Of course, my current room doesn't have much resonance so I'm lucky there.

Doesn't have to be more complicated that that.
 
You should be able to get a decent sound with what you have....considering you have decent sounding drums.

Personally, this is what I do when approaching the task of micing drums. I get the drummer to just go nuts on the drums, and I walk around, standing on things pretending my ear is a mic. I find the best position (near field or not) for the mic. I usually start with the kick. It seems to be one of the hardest to get right. Lately, I have noticed that it sounds better when mic'd out of the hole....otherwise it is too boomy and lacks the defining tick.

It is true that you need to similarly tuned mics for stereo overheads. In your case, if your not willing to pay, try using your 57 and 58. They are supposed to be the same mic....response wise anyways. Utilize your crappy mics for the toms and snare....see if you can get them sounding decent by trial and error of placement, and maybe try switching them around to the different pieces....one may work better for a different drum. I would try putting the condensor behind the drummers back because as you said before, it is a really hot mic. You won't have to crank up your gain to pick up sound with this one. I personally have found that this is the best place to mic the high-hat....your condensor will probably work great for that.

When you have them all sounding OK, record like a minute or 2 worth of the drums.....all pieces of it being played at all dynamics. Then adjust for any clipping, and play around with your EQ's to see if you will be able to get what you want in the end. Adjust and repeat as many times as necessary. This is the most critical stage in recording any/all instruments. After that, it just simple tracking.

This setup will proabably give you the best sound with what you currently own. I would at least give this a shot before scraping the bottom of your wallet. Hope this saves you some $$$. :) Greg.
 
I just got two overhead condensors, and panned them hard left and right... It works wonders!!!

Thanks everyone...
 
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