recording Djembe/Bongos

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guitarfreak12

guitarfreak12

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I posted a thread a while back about mics and these instruments, but I have a new problem.
1. I would like advice on mic placement on both the Djembe and Bongos, I have a
a.Samson CO1
b.Audio Technica Dynamic unidirectional
2. Also, recently I encountered a problem with my Djembe player, she plays louder than the mic can stand apparently. If I set it close, it distorts no matter how I set my preamp, if I set it far away, I get a horribly thin sound. When I record with it, I can get my throaty bass sound, because I play quieter. I want a good range in the recording, but the only thing I can get is the thin far away sound. I hope there is another alternative than making her play quieter. Thanks God bless
 
Not good news for you...

Unfortunately the mics that you have are clipping because they are not equipped to tolerate the SPL's coming from the djembe.

I am a djembe player and record djembes and hand drums a lot. You will a good dynamic lke any good snare mic to mic the skin side of the djembe (think SM57, Senn. e604, AKG 790,etc.) then you will need something like a kick mic to mic the throat of the djembe. You may not want a real punchy mic because all you are trying to acheive is the low resonance coming from the throat, your skin mic will give you all of the attack (I personally use the CAD KBM412 because it's dark, dull and picks up very low frequencies, you could also use the AT Pro 25 which works well. I mention these two mics because they are cheap.)

In a studio that can adequately deal with all sorts of sound and acoustic problems they would probably use much more expensive mics and pad them.

The mic is clipping because you are giving it too much sound pressure and information than it's diaphram can handle. You need to back it off, maybe through a screen over it and see if that improves it. The answer is probably going to be different mics. Sorry.
 
What Rimshot said. You can mic bongos with almost anything, but a Djembe, especially a big one, is a beast. Ypu need mics with pads, and you need 2. I've had my best luck with a well padded condenser (C414B-ULS w/ 20db pad) on the skin, like a snare, and a good dynamic with high SPL handling (AKG D112 ir Shure SM7B) on the throat, phase reversed. Does your preamp have pads? If so, use them. Also, the SPL handling of your room will most definitely come into play. A real Djembe, well played, will bring out uncontrolled room reflections. You need to be in one heavily treated acoustic space.-Richie
 
processing

ok, cool, so how do I process the drum, eq/comp/delay etc.
 
The answer is- after you track it. Don't use delay. Don't use compression. EQ will be variable, depending on the sound you're trying to get, and the material. Start by playing around with the relative level of the 2 mics, and then EQ the 2 tracks separately. If you do it right, and the player is good, it'll sound like 2 drummers on 2 separate drums.-Richie
 
ok

ok next question, when you say that essentially I should record each mic to a different track for the "two player" effect. How do I do that when using Cool Edit Pro, I only have one in. What if I panned one mic to the left and one other to the right.
 
Somebody else is going to have to answer that question. I'm not familiar with your software package or your soundcard. I process all tracks independantly before mixdown. Best of luck-Richie
 
thanks

Thanks a lot guys for your advice, God bless
 
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