Muddy toms sound

  • Thread starter Thread starter frosty55
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frosty55

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How do you fix muddy toms in the mix?
I recorded my band of drums, guitar and bass on my eight track analogue machine.
The kit sounded good in isolation with the toms nice and clear. I bring up the guitar and bass and the toms almost dissapear. Any ideas for a beginner?
Thanks.
 
You have competing frequencies, your guitar/bass and toms are fighting for space in the mix. Play with panning and EQ to find space for everything.

One trick you could try is to monitor in mono if you have the capability, and pan your guitars and toms around until they become a little more present in mono, this can help you find positions in the soundstage where things are interacting more happily. Then you can go back to stereo monitoring if you wish, and play with EQ to carve out a little more space out of your competing tracks if they're still too muddy. You'll probably want to focus on mids/low-mids, but I say this without the benefit of hearing what you're hearing.
 
How are you micing the toms? I'm guessing you don't have a spot mic for each tom. If that is the case, consider buying a cheap mic pack for toms. You can get 3,4 clip on mics for a hundred bukcs. Without a spot mic for each, you can't really eq or pan them. If you do have mics for each, start from scratch. Are the toms tuned? You say they sound good, are you sure? Do you know how to tune drums? If that's fine, look at mic positioning. If they are tuned fine, the mic is positioned fine, and they are audible in a mix, it's hard for them to sound muddy. Toms are the easiest thing about recording drums. Post a sample of the song in the clinic.
 
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