Snare help!!!-SM58 in a crunch!

  • Thread starter Thread starter DuoToneBand
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DuoToneBand

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Hey,
I have to record s track this weekend and i am in the middle of looking for a new snare mic. Only problem, I am saving all of my money towards a Paiste Spirit of 2002 snare, so I'm not buying any mics right now. My buddy left a SM58 at my house, so I am using that on the snare right now. I have the placement perfect for the sound i like that i found while using a SM57's in the studio. I have about 4 inches between the windscreen and the snare head, with the mic pointed at about a 35* angle. I am getting no tone or body, just a lil' attack, but absolutly no tone or resonance. HELP!
 
spirit of 2002 snare. Aren't those like $2000 or something :eek:
 
You should try and lift one of the 2002 bass drums.

Lets get back to the mic issue. Sounds like a bad 58. Did you talk into it to see if theirs anything wrong with it? There may be a reason your buddy left it at your house. Did you try it without the grill?
 
Keep in mind, this is a different mic than the 57 you may have been used to. Don't assume the same placement will work for this one. Try moving it around, maybe try pointing it more across the top of the drum around 4" away from it. Sometimes pointing the mic nearly straight down like you do won't sound that great.
 
PhilGood's suggestion of removing the grill is a good one. I recently was short of mics in a live band recording and took a spare sm58, removed the grill and placed it in my favorite below-the-floortom/pointing-at-the-bassdrum-head position. I normally use a MD421 there, but the grill-less 58 impressed none-the-less.

Granted, I always use a sm57 on the snare (due to lack of better choice and extensive experimentation), so I can't attest to the grill-less 58 there. Try it in a different position, as it *is* a different mic [EDIT: I stand corrected, see below].

Again, PhilGood is on the mark by suggesting that you test the 58. It could be bunk. Test it (with different cables/pre's/positions/sound sources) before doing anything else.
 
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I dont have the mic pointed down towards the head at all. I have tried ever placement. I have tried with the grill and w/o. The mic sounds fine on vocals. I have also tried a cheap DR-GX1 reference mic, and it sounds rather similar. The mic is between 4-6" from the head. I tried a MXL 991 with the same placement and it sounds great.
 
I don't know if it has been mentioned yet, but if you take the grille off the SM58....you've pretty much got an SM57. As I understand it, they are electronically and mechanically identical...the only difference being the windscree on the SM58.
 
sile2001 said:
I don't know if it has been mentioned yet, but if you take the grille off the SM58....you've pretty much got an SM57. As I understand it, they are electronically and mechanically identical...the only difference being the windscree on the SM58.
Click to expand...

That's exactly right. Both mics are the same except for the grill. Certain refractions happen inside the pop screens of both mics that alter the sound slightly. That's why side by side they sound a little different. It's the same capsule.

Did you try reversing the phase on that mic. Could be out of phase...
 
First, yeah, remove the grill. My next most serious question is- What's under this drum kit? Carpet? Hardwood? Concrete?. What you are describing sounds like what you get when you put a dynamic on a snare on a carpeted floor. The sound from the snares is sucked up by the carpet and the foam padding, and doesn't come back. You get attack and rimshots, but the snare and the fatness of the rebound is lost. If that's the case, there's 2 fixes- 1. Use 2 mics, reverse the phase on one of them and put it under the snare, facing up. or- 2. Put a big muckin' piece of 1" 5 ply plywood under the kit. If you're already on a hardwood floor or a platform, I'm sorry, I haven't diagnosed your problem. What you are describing I have heard before though, and the fix was to stick a dynamic on top, and a condenser mic under the snare. The drummer thought I was crazy, but it worked.-Richie
 
sile2001 said:
I don't know if it has been mentioned yet, but if you take the grille off the SM58....you've pretty much got an SM57. As I understand it, they are electronically and mechanically identical...the only difference being the windscree on the SM58.
Click to expand...


Right, I'm not saying they are not built the same; I'm saying it is a physically different mic. Maybe he got one that is tempermental. Not every 57 sounds like every other 57 or even 58 for that matter.

And how is a 35 degree angle not point down? Maybe we're measuring the angle differently. Try pointing the mic almost parallel to the top drum head, maybe a little down.
only other thing I can figure is that the room really sucks, or you are using a far inferior mic pre compared to what you used in "the studio" with the 57. In that case, tough titty!
 
i think we are confused about the angles! OK! The mic angle is not that much past parrallel! It is close to parrallel!
 
open up the mic and check if the wires are in place b/c i once had a problem like tht so i just solderd it back on and it works like new
 
This is way too much headache over a 58. By now, I'd have gone ahead and bought a new/used 57 and held off on the dream snare, or I'd have borrowed one from somewhere.
 
also, the 57 and 58 are the same mic with a different grill. I did find the problem. The drum is a maple pork pie and the room has carpet. I found a lil' peice of wood from a shelf, and placed it under my snare stand and it makes the world of difference. I have decided that i am going to build a drum riser!
 
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