Micing a 3 - peice drumset

  • Thread starter Thread starter MSG_VT
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MSG_VT said:
Now.. our cymbals are Sabian B8's..not bad for a starter cymbal set ..... but still not the best.. Is there a way to position the mics to prevent like extra ringing noises?

Stick a small piece of electric tape on the underside of the cymbal. It works.
 
If you had 4 mics to choose from to mic a drum kit:
ATM pro 25 - kick
Shure 57 - snare...

The other TWO????
SP C-1?
Shure KSM 32??
Neumann K184??

What do you all think?
Thanks in advance - dan
 
any of those would be a pretty good overhead. I would start with the C-1 and the KSM-32 but if those are your only choices experminent with the 3
 
patty david said:
If you had 4 mics to choose from to mic a drum kit:
ATM pro 25 - kick
Shure 57 - snare...

The other TWO????
SP C-1?
Shure KSM 32??
Neumann K184??

What do you all think?
Thanks in advance - dan

How much you willing to spend? Two great budget mics have already been mentioned above (ecm8000s, MXL 603). People here seem to like the C-1 too as an overhead. But if the sky is the limit there are certainly better options (I have no idea what they are, since I'm cheap).
 
Micing a 3 piece drum kit.

I mic'd my the drummer 2 piece drum kit with just 3 mic's. I used a Shure BETA52 on the kick drum. I used a Audio Technica 4033a on as front drum mic (to pickup the snare mostly) and then a Alesis GT AM40 microphone for the overhead. I think I got balanced drum sound. I think you should be able to use this same technique with less expensive microphones. I would definitely suggest getting a good dedicated bass drum microphone. I would actually suggest getting a better quality large diaphram microphone than 2 ECM8000's. You can also use the large diaphram for vocals, more bang for you buck. If you are on a real budget use the SM57 for the kick and then buy a Studio Projects C1 microphone and use it, as a single overhead and use the SM57 for the kick. Then also have the C1 to used as a great vocal microphone. Remember everybodies advise is subjective and is base on their personal experience's. If you want to hear an example of my drum micing you can do so at www.mp3.com/goodwin. All 3 songs are using a 3 mic technique.

Good Luck,
Daniel
 
Re: Hmmmm....college boys, huh?

jitteringjim said:
yeah, well... it's i before e except after c.
That's ok, I always misspell "their." And sometimes "misspell."

Ah! My favorite subject!

Remember, the whole rule is: "i before e except after c, unless the combination is being pronounced "ay" like in neighbor or weigh." In the case of "their", the vowel sound should be considered part of the "ay" family of exceptions, as it is pronounced (roughly) "th-ay-r" , as opposed to "theer".

Now you'll get it right forever! ;)
 
patty david said:
The other TWO????

I'm sure some of these guys mean well with their recommendations and all . . . but seriously, you gotta' remember small diaphragm condensers on drum overhead, okay? And I don't know, but I doubt you have the kind of accoustics to flatter a pair of omnis, so Marshall mxl 603 or Oktava mc012. Let's not get side-tracked with all this other nonsense, okay?

Good luck,

Kayth
 
Im kind of confused now.

Do you already have the SP C-1, Shure KSM 32, and Neumann K184? or are those mics that you are looking at getting. I was assuming thats what you already had to work with.

In the case of thats what your looking at getting I agree with Chessrock on the mxl 603 or Oktava mc012.
 
Ide have to agree with chessrock on the ECM8000. The ECM8000 is a great budget mic, but i really dont like the sound of omni stereo even in a well accousticed room. I dont know how much i like the hype of the ECM8000's around these forums. Yes it is a very good mic for $35 and is worth buying. But these are not going to be the best for the money in every situation. If your room acoustics suck, so will the sound of your omni ECM8000s. I know this from experience. I used the ECM8000s in my old studio which had nice acoustics. They worked pretty good as drum over heads and i actually used them on a project to see how they sounded. Later on, i moved the studio and i tried using them before the acoustics in the studio was finished. To make it short, they sounded horrible (phasing, muddy).

However, like i said they are great mics for there money. But as this is a homerecording forum, im guessing most people are recording in there bedroom, or some kind of basement, where im sure acoustics are a problem. Thus these mics can sound like a radio shack mic and would be better using an SM57 as an overhead.

Just my opinion.

Danny
 
I use my ECM8000s all the time in XY as accoustic guitar mics(NICE), drum overheads(VERY NICE) and I used them today on a beer keg. Most people don't beleive me when I tell them they are only 35 bucks. I made a believer out of one of the tech guys at my church who bought three to use as ambeint mics for video feed. One band I record never shut up about how long, skinny, and shiny they are(drummers :rolleyes: ). Once I got some sort of accousical controll on my room they sounded even better. In my crappy room I was able to obtain a Zepplen-y type sound(or is that too blasphemous). On accoustic guitar I'd just put them right up almost kissin the strings. Put them closer to the source, the less room noise you get.

Cheap. Versitale. Long, bright, and shiny.

ECM8000

Get yours today!
 
what is a another good condenser mic for both a drum overhead and vocals ( i.e Studio Projects C1 microphone )


So I can use it for both..

AT pro 25 or shure beta 52?

is there a BIG difference between the 2?


i'm already safe with the sm 57 ( guitar , snare )
 
There isn't a huge difference. Some people prefer the AT regardless of the price difference.

If you want one mic you can use on overheads and vocals, I would say go with the Audio Technica 4033. It will also make a killer mic on guitar amp and/or accoustic guitars. Versatile little bugger.
 
Can someone tell me if and how a sm58 could be used for micing a home studio, is it just for vocals.
 
Hokypokynose - Glad to hear they worked out good for you. Like i said i didnt like them much for stereo stuff or for drums anyway. But i have used it on acoustic guitar without stereo and it was a good sound for $35 but a bit noisy, but i prefered my AT4033 with acoustic guitar anyway. They are worth the $35 to have around the studio. However 2 things in my opinion does not make them versatile, but more just a drum overhead mic and possibly a acoustic guitar mic. Have you had any luck on other things with them? X/Y Stereo micing with omni mics? How exactly does that work? You cannot get a stereo image with non direction mics in the X/Y Method. However i guess if you like the sound thats cool, but why dont you try spacing them apart in a A/B type stereo and see if you like the spread a little better. Of course then you might also hear the phasing thingy im talking about. But as far as using them in an X/Y you might as well be using only one mic (i think).

bullyhill - Welcome to the board. The SM58 is one of the most versatile mics you can probably get for a home studio and project studio. The best part is the fact that these mics can be bought for around $100. Vocals, acoustic guitar, guitar amp (my favorite mic for this), snare drum (most everyone favorite for this too), tom mics, horn mic, etc, etc, etc. The list goes on and on what you could use an SM58 on. Infact it would be much more easier to write the list of what the SM58 cant do, even though i cant think of anything besides maybe a kick drum (which it can still do). If your using it for anything for vocals you might wonna unscrew the little ball on the top of it which will basically turn it into an SM57. Of course there are other mics that might do one of those things a little better, like a nice condenser on vocals. But you could easily get a good sounding recording done, even radio quality recording done using only an SM57/58 mic.

Anyone else and about the main thread - Alot of this depends on what style of music you are doing. Also alot of peoples opinions on drum micing is different. For loud drums i usually dont like the overheads to pick up alot of the other drum sounds and like to use the close mics for the main sound. Of course this completely depends on the situation. But for this i would rather have a mic that pics up the quick transients of the cymbals and hi hat and stuff and place it right over the cymbals to minimize the rest of the kit. If however i feel the drums should be warm and sort of roomy i will use a larger diaphragm mic that will pic up a little more body of the kit, then i will place the overheads so they pick up a good balance of the kit, with the cymbals mainly infront still. This is completely depending on style of music though and what sound your going for.

I think a much better mic but of course not $35 would be getting a pair of the Rode NT5 (i think thats the right model but check me if im wrong). I think it will be around $300 for the pair (i might be wrong about that also) but i believe will work better for stereo drum overheads and acoustic guitar than the omnis. There might even be something better than those for the money but those are the mics i can think of off the top of my head.

But if your looking for something you can also use on vocals and stuff and could sometimes work on drums also you could get a pair of SP C1s which would also work good for micing orchestras and stuff. But remember its a large diaphragm which is not as versatile for drums but might work perfect for what you are trying to do.

But budget is definately something you have to look into. If all you can afford is $70 bucks for the overheads then i definately believe the ECM8000's are the way to go. But i would not choose them over very mainy other mics for stereo micing.

As far as the kick drum mic goes? I dont know anything about these two mics and i dont know the difference in price. However, i havnt heard much good stuff about the Beta 52 unless your doing some soft jazz or country or something. But i dont know how the AT pro 25 compares really.

I just thought of another thing i would like to mention that is a big factor on this subject. This is something you will have to think about everytime you buy something for the studio. You need to side between dinstinct sound or versatility. I recommend for most homerecordists on a budget to worry more about versatility. But this means you might not get that super juicy sound you love on some certain sound but instead you get more of a good and decent sound but not that awesome sound (does that make any sense?). Anyway, this means i would stay away from tube stuff in my opinion. Lean towards things that dont color sound because those things will eventually have something it just doesnt work on.

Danny
 
darnold said:
As far as the kick drum mic goes? I dont know anything about these two mics and i dont know the difference in price. However, i havnt heard much good stuff about the Beta 52 unless your doing some soft jazz or country or something. But i dont know how the AT pro 25 compares really.

I wouldn't say that. I have a friend who has a Beta 52, and he plays heavy rock. He gets a great sound. I think it has more to do with your drum and how you tune it.
 
I think I'm very close to my decision what do you think guys?

Versatile, more bang for the buck :


For the 3-piece set consisting of...

Sabian B8 Pro Cymbals ( 14", 16" crash, hi hats , ride)

Pearl Export 16" Floor Tom

Pearl Picollo Snare

Ludwig 20" bass drum

Using these mics :

AT Pro 25 ( kick )

Shure SM 57 (snare)

AT 4033 ( single overhead , and also vocals )


Sound good enough?

Paid 80 for sm 57
I saw an at pro 25 for 120

and lets say 150 for the at 4033

$350 on mics.
 
darnold said:
Hokypokynose - Glad to hear they worked out good for you. Like i said i didnt like them much for stereo stuff or for drums anyway. But i have used it on acoustic guitar without stereo and it was a good sound for $35 but a bit noisy, but i prefered my AT4033 with acoustic guitar anyway. They are worth the $35 to have around the studio. However 2 things in my opinion does not make them versatile, but more just a drum overhead mic and possibly a acoustic guitar mic. Have you had any luck on other things with them? X/Y Stereo micing with omni mics? How exactly does that work? You cannot get a stereo image with non direction mics in the X/Y Method. However i guess if you like the sound thats cool, but why dont you try spacing them apart in a A/B type stereo and see if you like the spread a little better. Of course then you might also hear the phasing thingy im talking about. But as far as using them in an X/Y you might as well be using only one mic (i think).

Of course I didn't think it work, but it does produce a good stereo image. Not wide by any means. I have to pan hard left and right in order to hear any stereo definition(is that the phrase I'm looking for?). It comes out to a nice, clear, natural, stereo image at least to my terrible ears. I might have something I can post an MP3 of if you're curious.
 
darnold
thanks for the break down, i think a couple of 58s will be the choice and will give us one more piece of equipment that we don't have to rent to play out...they're durable too?
 
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