Recording drums with 2 mics

Greg_L said:
unless you're into that trendy-ironic-chic-indie lo-fi sound.
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Haha. Why exactly is lo-fi chic? How is it ironic? I get the trendy thing, but as far as recordings go, hi-fi recordings are FAR more popular.

I don't know why you assume that hi-fi recordings are always the thing to do. Sometimes the song calls for lo-fi elements. There are times where hi-fi would ruin the feeling.
 
What are would you guys think if I were to use a LDC for an overhead aimed at the snare and a dynamic mic on the kick?
 
fendersk8911 said:
Haha. Why exactly is lo-fi chic? How is it ironic? I get the trendy thing, but as far as recordings go, hi-fi recordings are FAR more popular.

I don't know why you assume that hi-fi recordings are always the thing to do. Sometimes the song calls for lo-fi elements. There are times where hi-fi would ruin the feeling.
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Because I'm not interested in making bad sounding recordings on purpose and I don't know why anyone else would want to either. Lo-fi is stupid. People fly the flag of lo-fi because A) that's the best they can do, or B) they're morons. It's cool if that's all you can do because you have one mic and a 4-track tape recorder. At least then it's genuine and not not contrived. Probably 80% of the music I listen to wasn't done in pro studios with big budget gear, so the quality isn't great. I still love it and don't care that it doesn't sound like a 2011 commercial release. The Misfits or The Stooges wouldn't be the same with Rick Rubin at the controls. I can dig that. On the other side of the coin, people sounding like shit on purpose is when it becomes "ironic" and I don't like it, so I speak out against it. Indie hipsters eat it up. In this day and age of cheap interfaces, affordable mics, and damn near free DAW's, there's no reason to sound like shit on purpose. It's dumb to limit yourself to one or two mics based off some retarded principle.
 
There's nothing "ironic" about something that was recorded lo-fi. I'm not even sure how you can shoe horn that word in there. Doesn't make sense in the context. What I've found is that people who spend all their time trying to get that perfect sound from their average gear typically are shit songwriters. I'd rather have a setup that sounds slightly "lo-fi" recording great songs than have a great one recording shit songs. Some of my favorite albums were recorded in lo-fi: This here is an example of someone doing the best they can with what they have. You're telling them to get an interface with more inputs simply for the sake of being "not lo-fi hipster trash." How about helping him to get a decent sound with what he has, rather than spending a bunch more money on an interface? He can always get another interface later.
 
fendersk8911 said:
There's nothing "ironic" about something that was recorded lo-fi. I'm not even sure how you can shoe horn that word in there. Doesn't make sense in the context. What I've found is that people who spend all their time trying to get that perfect sound from their average gear typically are shit songwriters. I'd rather have a setup that sounds slightly "lo-fi" recording great songs than have a great one recording shit songs. Some of my favorite albums were recorded in lo-fi: This here is an example of someone doing the best they can with what they have. You're telling them to get an interface with more inputs simply for the sake of being "not lo-fi hipster trash." How about helping him to get a decent sound with what he has, rather than spending a bunch more money on an interface? He can always get another interface later.
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I did help him. I gave my opinion on what he should do: get more inputs. It's not because I want him to avoid being a dorky ironic hipster, it's because I want him to make good recordings. How is that a bad thing? How have you helped, besides disagreeing with me? I've done the two mics on drums thing. I've done the multiple mics into mixer into two inputs thing. More dedicated inputs is better. These are drums we're talking about. They're difficult to record even in the best case scenario and there's tons of variables. More mics gives you more options. People only use two mics for two reasons: they have no choice, or they specifically want that sound. I don't know what kind of music homeboy is trying to make, but I'm betting that if his interface only has two inputs, he probably doesn't have good mics or a good room to record the drums in. Using two mics means he's gonna be capturing more of the kit with each mic, which means more room. It's usually a recipe for failure. But again, maybe he wants that lo-fi drums in a basement sound. I don't know. I do know that more inputs is better. It's not even debatable. That doesn't mean you have to use them all, but they're good to have.

As far as songwriting goes, everyone is a shit songwriter. Or they're great. No one is gonna agree on what a "great song" is, so that argument is moot. Lumping consumer gear with shit songwriting as if they're related is retarded at best. If you're actually capable of actually writing great songs, why wouldn't you wanna make a good recording of them? The recording matters too. If it didn't, no one would spend thousands or millions in studios.

m.g. eddie said:
What are would you guys think if I were to use a LDC for an overhead aimed at the snare and a dynamic mic on the kick?
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It's fine. Do it.
 
And the fact that he wants to record drums with two inputs suggests that he has neither the money for an interface with 6 more inputs or for the microphones to accompany the new inputs. Yeah the theory is more Mic's = more control = better chance for a better recording. but we all know the skill isn't in putting microphones on Mic stands and then vaguely aiming them at the source, the skill is in knowing where to put everything and what to use to get the product you want. I believe that it is more beneficial to learn how to get the best product in less than perfect ideals then it is to hand everything down on a plate. If the OP learnt how to get a great drum sound with 2 mics. . . which is perfectly possible, imagin how much better he would be when he came to upgrading the setup.
 
benherron.rrr said:
And the fact that he wants to record drums with two inputs suggests that he has neither the money for an interface with 6 more inputs or for the microphones to accompany the new inputs. Yeah the theory is more Mic's = more control = better chance for a better recording. but we all know the skill isn't in putting microphones on Mic stands and then vaguely aiming them at the source, the skill is in knowing where to put everything and what to use to get the product you want. I believe that it is more beneficial to learn how to get the best product in less than perfect ideals then it is to hand everything down on a plate. If the OP learnt how to get a great drum sound with 2 mics. . . which is perfectly possible, imagin how much better he would be when he came to upgrading the setup.
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^^^ exactly.
 
benherron.rrr said:
And the fact that he wants to record drums with two inputs suggests that he has neither the money for an interface with 6 more inputs or for the microphones to accompany the new inputs. Yeah the theory is more Mic's = more control = better chance for a better recording. but we all know the skill isn't in putting microphones on Mic stands and then vaguely aiming them at the source, the skill is in knowing where to put everything and what to use to get the product you want. I believe that it is more beneficial to learn how to get the best product in less than perfect ideals then it is to hand everything down on a plate. If the OP learnt how to get a great drum sound with 2 mics. . . which is perfectly possible, imagin how much better he would be when he came to upgrading the setup.
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I don't disagree with that at all. I'm all for doing the best you can with what you have. That's pretty much the very basis of home recording. But I'm a realist. I'm not saying more inputs is gonna automatically make his shit pro quality. More inputs means more room for error. More phase problems. More bleed. More expense. More everything. It also means more control, more flexibility, and more sound!

Two inputs leaves you very limited, and let's be real, if he's recording hard rock or metal, two mics aint gonna cut it on the drums. And, I think I've said this 4 times now, YOU DON'T HAVE TO USE EVERY TRACK! Having 6 or 8 inputs means that you can record on 6 or 8 tracks, it doesn't mean you have to use every one of those tracks in your mix.

If he simply can't afford a better interface and mics, then that's understandable. He has no choice but to rock the fuck out with two mics on the drums, or get creative with a seperate mixer and run the entire drum sub-mix into his two inputs. I did that for a long time myself. When I finally got more inputs, everything got better, easier, and faster.
 
Think of it as a learning experience. If he can work on developing a good technique with 2 mics then it's a good start when he uses multiple mics.
 
To be honest I not trying to be trendy or cliche I'm just poor and trying to get the best possible results with what I have.
 
drumslinger said:
Think of it as a learning experience. If he can work on developing a good technique with 2 mics then it's a good start when he uses multiple mics.
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Yall are acting like I don't get that. It doesn't change the fact that more inputs would be better. But dude said he is poor, so that's that.
 
Balls, balls.......banquets and balls !

Greg_L said:
the fact [is]that more inputs would be better. But dude said he is poor, so that's that.
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This thread's kind of interesting because you're all right ! There are just so many ways of recording drums and until one is aware of the songs at hand, much of the thrust and counter thrust is just.....thrusting. :D
m.g, you can do interesting things with 2 mics and only you can determine whether or not it does sound like balls or whether you dig it.
But do bear in mind, should you ever have a bit of spare cash that you can outlay, that 6 or 8 inputs {whether it be an interface or a standalone DAW} can make a difference that is hard to appreciate till you've heard it.
The logic {and I don't criticize it, it's logical} is "if you can get good sounds with 2 mics, think of what you can get when you get to using more". I look at it like "Get as many inputs as possible because then, you'll be able to use any number of mics on the drums".
Of course, it could be argued that that ultimately means the same thing ! :D
But this ain't Perry Mason.
 
I'll be honest with you guys were not trying to be trendy of cliche were just poor and trying to get the best possible results out of our recordings.
 
And that's cool. Even if you were trying to be trendy or cool, so what ? Your sounds are primarilly about what you like and think, not what others' opinions dictate is the way to go. If you're going to follow someone's tastes, might as well be your own.
 
I just remembered I recorded a kit with two Mic's a couple of months back, and here is what I did. . . . .

I think its important you get a stereo pair going on, your never going to get a really strong kick and a tight snare. But having a good stereo image will really help sound bigger in the mix.

I set up my 2 SE1a's in a near coincident position like this < (so the diaphragms are pointing away from each other) opposed to a coincident set up like this > (where the diaphragms cross each other) because you get a wider image with a NC set up IMO.

I set the Mic's so the height of them was just poking over the top cymbal, angled down slightly, placed directly central of the kick. then I moved them a few feet away from the front of the kit. This way you are covering the full dynamics of the kit. With this basic setup I could then listen to how it sounded, I found that If I moved the Mic's further away I got more kick punch, closer would get more sizzle from the cymbals. and by positioning the snare side Mic so it directly pointed at the snare, it isolated it a bit more, getting a little more presence, and also helping to balance the level with the Hi-hat. this position is worth trying, the tricky bit was getting the distance, hight and angle exactly right, to match the balance I wanted. But I did walk away from the session with a great drum recording, perfectly usable. a good powerful kick, sharp snare, and a good tom roll and cymbal separation .
pan the tracks left and right, do a bit of careful EQing to bring out the pieces you think are lacking, a tiny bit of light compression just to help tighten it up. It was a decent kit, but possibly the worst room I have had the displeasure of recording in.

Hope this helps
 
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