Triangular Miking

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guitar roy

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I know this topic has been covered before but I would like some help in some areas I am not clear on and I am a newbie.

We have a four piece blues-rock band (drums, bass, guitar, harmonica & vocals). For the drums we have a PG52 for the kick drum and two SM57's for the overheads. It is a rather typical drum kit (bass drum, snare, 3 toms, high-hat, 3 crash, and a ride cymbal). We use a Korg D1600. Here are my questions.

1. For the overheads, I have seen the overheads spread a couple feet from the center of the set and then point slightly toward the center. I have also seen the two overheads placed together in the center and pointed away from each other. My intial attempt (spread techique) was ok, but the cymbals were not picked up as well as the toms and snare (could this be, in part a function of the mic; although it is unlikely we will be buying new mic's). I realize that I will have to experiment and that there are a lot of other variables that could affect the sound, but I am looking for a good starting point and rules of thumb.

2. If we add a fourth mic (PG56 for the snare), should I just leave the two overheads in the same position that worked in a 3-mic situation?

3. What is a typical panning setup. I figure the kick drum and the snare (in the case of the 4-mic setup) would be dead center. The two overheads I think should be panned left and right. Should it be panned 100% to the right (or left) or 75%, etc? Does the inclusion of a fourth mic on the snare impact the panning decision of the overheads?

4. Any eq suggestions?

5. Would SM81's (pricey) for the overheads make a big difference?

Thank you.

Roy
 
The only question I can answer with confidence is #5.- Yes- sm81's would make a *huge* difference, and almost certainly, that difference would be an improvement. The downside is- they'll also pick up every background noise, and every thing that is wrong with your room.-Richie
 
id say any small diaphram condesnor would be more desirable as drum overheads than a dynamic- i like my oktava mc012's- big difference
 
#1) I've never gotten good results from putting the overhead in the center looking away from each other, but that may have more to do with me than the techinque itself.

#2) yes

#3 ) I wouldn't spread the overheads hard left and right, I'd do
10 o'clock and 2 o'clock at the widest.

#4) depends on taste

#5) yes. should be a pretty good improvement. i've used audio technica mb3000c mics that have worked better than sm57 as overheads...
 
Thanks for the replies. A couple of follow-ups.

1. Any other thoughts on placement of overheads in a Triangular mic setup. I know I will need to experiment but the possiblities are endless, so any other tips to get started are appreciated.

2. Regarding mics, it looks like getting a pair of small diaphragm condenser mics will make a material difference. So now it comes down to what to get. Since its difficult to impossible to demo mics where I am, I need to depend on your comments and what I read elsewhere on the web. The other guys in the band have the venerable SM57's and SM58's, but these will be the first mics I buy and I'm looking for some versatility and value (not necessarily cheap).

My needs are (a.) drum kit overheads discussed above: (b.) acoustic guitar; (c.) vocals (if I'm doing a solo project and no SM58's are around); and (d.) last in priority, live mic a total performance (ie. just set out two mic's to capture a band).


The 3 mic's mentioned here provide the cost range: MB4000C (is this the same as the MB3000C?) for about $70 each; MC012 for about $180 (would the MC011 give me the same sound with added versatility with vocals?); and the SM81 for about $330. I don't mind spending the extra bucks if there will be a noticable sonic improvement or greater flexiblity in application.

Thanks for your help.

Roy
 
Bro... it ain't rocket science. With your monitoring environment in 'one speaker mono' put up 3 mics, and move them around until you get a good sounding, balanced, drum set in 'one speaker mono'... then put it back in stereo and pan to taste.
 
OK. I'm now thinking MXL 603's will do the trick(s). A matched pair (w/shock mounts) goes for $200. Not bad given what I have heard about these babies.
 
Im gonna Have to go with a pair of either

Marshall MXLv67's
Marshall MXL990's
Marshall MXLv93M's
Studio Projects B1

because all fit in the under $200/pair category and work fine as overheads, acoustic guitar, and vocals.......
 
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