Would this drum setup work?

E

eternalpayn

New member
I searched, and I couldn't find this anywhere.

Okay, so I'm possibly tracking drums for the first time very soon, and my mic choice is limited, and I wanted some input on how to make with this setup:
Acoustically treated room. (I'm super excited for this part, actually.)
All mics run through a behringer mixer (unless one is USB, which I'll explain later)
2 xm8500's for overheads.*
1 sm58 for the kick.
Now, the snare mic is where it gets complicated. We don't have any other mics except for a USB unidirectional one, and a cheap ass karaoke, multidirectional mic. Which would be better, do you think? I'm worried about delay on the snare compared to mics running through the mixer. Also, I wouldn't be able to adjust the volume on the snare. One thing I was considering was to record the whole take using 3 mics, then come back later with only the snare mic and record with just that, and overlay/mix it that way?
The karaoke mic isn't USB, it'll go into the mixer just fine. But I don't know if I can use a multidirectional mic, is all.

Also, as far as the overheads go, my friend has shelves that are about 1 1/2 foot away from the drum kit on either side, and 5 feet up. Would I be able to use desktop mic stands on these for the overheads, or is that too far away?

Any input is appreciated, thanks a ton!
 
Well, that is certainly a start. But I will be honest with you, that is not the direction you want to keep heading. I did my fair share of recording drums with 2 or 3 dynamic vocal mics in the past. But the sooner you can move passed that, the better. I have to agree with the first reply, your set up is going to sound pretty weak as it is, you might as well skip the stereo on the over heads and use one of those mics on the snare. But I have to warn you, these mics are not going to do any justice at all to your kit/recording. The best mic you have is the SM58, but I (personally) never use one for recording unless you absolutly have no other choice as in your case. If you have a few bucks to spend, pick up some SM57's. Its vertually the same mic as the 58. But its a very versitle mic and can be used on snare, toms, and as a last resort, kick. But you really need to invest in a kick mic like a Beta52 or D112. Also, avoid your USB mic all together. It will probably do more damage than good.

And yes, you can try recording your snare after the fact and do some sound replacement. That would help.

Remember, EQ is only going to help so much. You have to get a good signal going in first. You are going to struggle to get that.

But good luck!!
 
Do a search for the Glyn Johns Method or the Recorderman technique. Both of these are a 3 mic setup. I use a blend of the 2 with an added snare mic but you can get a good sound outta 3.

Granted, a couple LDC's or at least a pair of SDC's would work better than dynamics as OH's (at least in this app IMO) but ya work with what ya got til ya can do better, right?

Check em out....
Peace...........Kel
 
Thanks for the advice!
So do you think using the overhead spacing described in the recorderman technique, throwing the karaoke mic closer to the snare, and keeping the 58 on the kick will be a good idea? Or should I just skip the karaoke mic altogether, use 1 overhead, and put one of the 8500s on the snare?
 
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