first time in studio...advice?

BroMan · Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 2:23 pm Post subject: first time in studio...advice?

okay, here's my situation: I've been playing drumset for about 10 years and have played in numerous bands (all rock bands except for one jazz group) and a good number of gigs, but I've never been in the studio. The band I'm currently playing with has dates to record coming up in a couple weeks.

What should I do to prepare myself and my gear?
What did you wish you had known before you went into the studio for the first time?
I've never played to a click track...is it disorienting or distracting the first time?

any advice or tips from those of you with studio experience would be excellent...thanks!

oh yeah, this is my first post to DrumDogs - looks like a good group

foster39 · Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 3:21 pm Post subject:

First off welcome to DrumDogs. All i can say is recording is going to feel alot different than just jammin. Depending on how you record will be the factor. I found that laying the drums down first was really hard for me. I rely on the bass and guitar for cues and whatnot. Not having that was very hard.
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paintballer687 · Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 3:34 pm Post subject:

my friend had the same problem so they just recorded one track of everything for him to play along to and then there was an immediate improvement
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BroMan · Posted: Sun Jul 18, 2004 1:01 am Post subject:

cool, thanks for the reply...I'm looking forward to the studio, will be a learning experience

DjembeDog · Posted: Sun Jul 18, 2004 3:42 am Post subject:

Hey, Bro. You want this.
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Kevinlsg · Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2004 12:30 pm Post subject:

I will be Going into the studio for the third time this weekend. The first time I recorded i just went and recorded with some helpful tips from the producer. The second time i got a drum tech to help tune my drums and he offered some better snare drums and some new micing techniques. That made a huge difference. This time I am going to experiment with some different head like Remo coated ambassodors vs. Evans hydralic 2-ply so i'll let you know how i made out. also my advice for micing the kick is to use the double micing technique.

drumminelsewhere · Moderator Joined: 27 May 2004 Posts: 3741

When i first went into the studio, i was so nervous, because I didn't want my timing to be off, haha first take the song was twice as fast as it should of been. Once that light goes (or they say ok go for it) immediately you get a pressure that you never felt. just remember to relax and try your best not to think of the timing, just play it and play it smooth, the timing will come. after we did another take i was much more ready and focused. the more you go into the studio the better, because it really helps you with experience
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Kevinlsg · Posted: Thu Jul 22, 2004 7:08 am Post subject:

The #1 best peice of advice i can give for a drummer recording in the studio is learn how to play to a click track. Go buy a metronome(or however you spell it) and practice till your hands bleed. Learning to play to a click wont only make the drums sound really tight and smooth but it will help your whole band so that they can punch parts in, cut and paste etc. I would say that if you cant play to a click dont even bother recording because it's gonna be really frustrating for you, the producer, and your band. Not to mention you will spend an @ss load of money for time that you have to take fixing your off beat mistakes.
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nlberg · Posted: Sat Jul 24, 2004 11:38 am Post subject:

Here's some tips for your first venture into the world of studio drumming.
1. Know the song! studio time is exspensive and not the place to practice.
2.Have your equipment in the best condition possible. Tuned, heads that aren't worn out. Make sure your hardware has no sqeaks or rattles. You'll hear everyone on tape.
3.Act professional. Nothing pisses off a producer more than havimg to babysit.
4.Listen to the engineer and the producer. They know what they are doing.
5.Practice with a click track. Take an old drum machine, put on somehead phones and go to town. You'll be surprised how quickly you get the hang of it.
6.Usually when they do the drum track, they can have the guitarist, bassist whatever playing in your headphones, so dont worry about that.
7.Be quiet. Dont talk, whistle, grunt, groan or whatever while your playing, the mics will pick it up.
8.Have fun! The studio is agreat exsperiance. Just remember after all that work, all the retakes, all the times the producer yells "What the hell are doing?" Will all be worth it when you hear that CD for the first time.
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BroMan · Posted: Sat Jul 31, 2004 8:08 am Post subject: thanks all...today is the day

thanks for all the advice from everybody

today is our first day recording - I have new heads on all my drums (except kick) and they are tuned decently. Tuning drums is definitely an art and I get a little better each time.

i'm stoked!

BroMan · Posted: Sun Aug 01, 2004 11:02 am Post subject: it all went well

well, yesterday we laid down the drums and bass and it sounds awesome. The engineer was laid back, professional, and a magician with ProTools. He had 9 mics on my kit and made it sound incredible! I had put new heads on everything in the last couple weeks and that definitely paid off.

Me and the bassist were so well-rehearsed that we didn't have to do more than 3 takes for any one song.

Now, i'm hooked....I wanna do some more recording!!

Thanks again for the advice - I'm going out of town for almost a month (i.e. won't be on DrumDogs for while...later)

BroMan

drumminelsewhere · Moderator Joined: 27 May 2004 Posts: 3741

hahah glad you had fun, post up the stuff i want to hear it
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Not for fame or praise
Or to make noise with hate,
But to carry the torch in his mouth,
Strings create a flaming sound,
Thunderous beats crack the heart of our Savior
And His love pours out

www.myspace.com/redseaaffair

chetatkinsdiet · Ferret Joined: 26 Jul 2004 Posts: 107

I always wonder why does everyone always use a click in the studio automatically? I understand all the reasons for using one...if you've got midi stuff that needs to be added, or if you're totally doing it one piece at a time, but if you're recording the basic tracks live, then what's the point? To me, it's really great to hear a slammin song sort of speed up at points and stuff like that....it totally gives a song character.
later,
m

Kevinlsg · Posted: Wed Aug 04, 2004 4:49 am Post subject:

NOOOO WAYYY, if you're serious about music and you want to get a deal your soungs have to sound TIGHT that why you play to a click. It's also to help the band out with punch edits and stuff. A song is not supposed to slow down and speed up.
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chetatkinsdiet · Ferret Joined: 26 Jul 2004 Posts: 107

I'm not talking about an inexperienced sounding band speeding up and slowing down parts. I'm talking about a well rehearsed band that has a song that actually breaths. Think early Zep....no clicks....just guys that knew how to play and the sounds benefited from it.
Also, if you know the songs and have practiced with the members, then punching in on a song recorded without a click shouldn't be a problem. Again, what I'm talking about is probably not all that audible, just more of a feeling thing.
My point was just that I'd rather have the musicians comfortable, than having an inexperienced drummer chase the metronome all day long. That sounds HORRIBLE and will kill the feel of a good song.
later,
m