Two Drum Recording Questions!

Corbic

Corbic

New member
Hey everyone, wanted to ask two quick recording questions!

I'm putting together a studio, and I've already gotten a few mics together. My budget isn't huge, but my goal is to be able to record my four-piece band live. My setup is like this:

I use a Presonus Firebox, with four inputs. The two preamp/instrument inputs are for guitar and bass. I use an SM57 on the guitar amp and a Line 6 Bass POD Live for the bass sound. On the back are two line inputs on the Firebox, and I have these connected to a mixer. On the mixer I have the drums and keyboard, and I have the stereo picture done on the mixer and sent to the interface.

So, I'm picking out the last few mics I need, and unfortunately due to my restricted budget, I can't buy a ton of new mics.

I'm planning on using the Glyn John's method of drum recording, using two overheads, a bass mic, and maybe a snare mic. My first question is, would it be too much of a problem if I didn't have a mic on the snare? My drummer is pretty balanced in the way he plays, not too heavy on cymbals and powerful on the bass drum (A Keith Moon and John Bonham disciple).

My second question is, would it be alright to use two large-diaphragm condensers as overheads? I have at the moment an M-Audio Nova, and I could easily get another one of these or a similar condenser mic, but I don't think I'd be able to shell out for two new specific overhead mics. Would this sound fine this way? Thanks very much for the advice and help!
 
Re: Two Drum Recording Questions!

This is what I've learned. Anything can sound great. That drum setup is very organic and can be kind of trashy sounding. Get what you can and experiment until you get a sound you like.
 
Re: Two Drum Recording Questions!

Two overhead condenser mics is good enough. Adding dedicated mics above or below the snare drum is just to add greater control over level balance. If your drummer is as controlled as you say, additional mic-ing should not be necessary.

Large diaphragm mics should be great, so long as they do not reveal any shortcomings of the acoustic qualities of the room itself.
 
Re: Two Drum Recording Questions!

if you can do kick, snare and two overheads, you should be fine.

Keep in mind that the overheads and possibly even the kick will get some of that snare sound bleeding into them, so try to fine tune the kick mic for a kick sound, then do the same for toms and cymbals on the overheads, and then then use the snare mic to get a nice solid snare sound.

But more important than that, is to make sure that your whole kit is meticulously tuned. Do the bottom/resonant skins first then the top skins. It will take a while to get it right, but it'll be worth it, because the whole kit will sound that much punchier and clearer.
 
Re: Two Drum Recording Questions!

Two overheads will pick up the snare just fine. A dedicated kick mic is necessary if you want that big kick drum sound. A dedicated snare mic can be nice but not really necessary.

The large diaphragm mics will work fine too. Small diaphragm mics can be preferable because of less off-axis coloration but I leave that kind of hair splitting to the pros or folks with enough of a budget.

Have your drummer pound out good tracks. The rest will attend to itself.
 
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Re: Two Drum Recording Questions!

what are these "real drums" of which you speak? I thought all drums were midi files :friday:
 
Re: Two Drum Recording Questions!

Corbic said:
Hey everyone, wanted to ask two quick recording questions!

I'm putting together a studio, and I've already gotten a few mics together. My budget isn't huge, but my goal is to be able to record my four-piece band live. My setup is like this:

I use a Presonus Firebox, with four inputs. The two preamp/instrument inputs are for guitar and bass. I use an SM57 on the guitar amp and a Line 6 Bass POD Live for the bass sound. On the back are two line inputs on the Firebox, and I have these connected to a mixer. On the mixer I have the drums and keyboard, and I have the stereo picture done on the mixer and sent to the interface.

So, I'm picking out the last few mics I need, and unfortunately due to my restricted budget, I can't buy a ton of new mics.

I'm planning on using the Glyn John's method of drum recording, using two overheads, a bass mic, and maybe a snare mic. My first question is, would it be too much of a problem if I didn't have a mic on the snare? My drummer is pretty balanced in the way he plays, not too heavy on cymbals and powerful on the bass drum (A Keith Moon and John Bonham disciple).

My second question is, would it be alright to use two large-diaphragm condensers as overheads? I have at the moment an M-Audio Nova, and I could easily get another one of these or a similar condenser mic, but I don't think I'd be able to shell out for two new specific overhead mics. Would this sound fine this way? Thanks very much for the advice and help!
Click to expand...

For a Glyn setup, large diaghram mics would be preferable. CAD M179's are cost effective, good sounding options for the OH's @ $179. I prefer a Beta52 for kick. Snare mic can be optional but it sure adds flexibility at mixdown.
 
Re: Two Drum Recording Questions!

When using a 4-mic setup, I find that having a mic on the snare is crucial for adding the snare's 'crack' to the mix without having to alter the EQ of the overheads too drastically.
 
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