Check out my drum recording - opinions and tips are welcomed

golot

Hey!

I decided to mic up my kit and just want you pro-dudes opinion and maybe tips to improve...

I will list my equipment after you guys will check out my recording and try to guess what equipment I bought for this recording... Lets see who can get it right Very Happy

Heres a link (please use the first link and only if that one is down, then use the second):

http://www.geocities.com/golot_drums/first_sample.mp3

PS - dont mind the Playing-wise of the mp3, I just drummed something up, just to get an idea about the quality of the recording...
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Run Asulin - golot@dr.com

Saluda Mist: 13" Hi-Hats, 16" Medium Thin Crash, 17" Rock Crash, 20" Ride, Voodoo - 19" China.
Wuhan 12" China (x2)
Tama Iron Cobra Double Bass Pedal
Ahead Lars Ulrich Drumsticks

nine · Cobra Joined: 08 Nov 2004 Posts: 479 Location: Evil

I'll take a guess as to what mics you used. Crappy ones? Laughing

They really don't sound all that great. Recording drums well takes quite a bit of experience, and it's all in the mics.

davedunn · Posted: Mon Nov 15, 2004 4:46 pm Post subject:

Work on it a little bit. May I ask your placement of each mic, and how many mics you are using?

golot · Posted: Mon Nov 15, 2004 5:21 pm Post subject:

hehehe, for sure, crappy ones...

Im using three crappy dynamic mics. Placement:

Two behind the drumset (one at the right at 14 inch (around 40cm) higher then the floor tom and one at the left at the same height as the snare (a little but higher))
One near the bass beater. (5 inch (12.5cm) from the beater)

Im getting another crappy dynamic tomorrow to put on the snare.

What do you say? change placement? boost the volume on one of them? apply an EQ on the recordings?

buying good microphones is out of my budject (way out)... I dont want to publish an album, just want to record my drumming and mix in guitars, bass and vocals....

Thanks for your replys...
_________________
Run Asulin - golot@dr.com

Saluda Mist: 13" Hi-Hats, 16" Medium Thin Crash, 17" Rock Crash, 20" Ride, Voodoo - 19" China.
Wuhan 12" China (x2)
Tama Iron Cobra Double Bass Pedal
Ahead Lars Ulrich Drumsticks

nine · Cobra Joined: 08 Nov 2004 Posts: 479 Location: Evil

If you're limited to three mics, I'd say avoid directly miking anything. Put two of them in front of the kit to the left and right, on stands at about 6 feet off of the floor. That'll give you a nice stereo separation. Then put the third about a foot off the ground, 2 or 3 feet in front of the kick. That should help with mixing in some low end later on.

You can get some great sounds with three mics, but you have to resign yourself to getting a very roomy sound. It's never going to sound like a studio with everything nice and seperated, because you're totally at the mercy of your room. If you're finding one drum too loud or whatever, fool with the placement of your two main mics.

Just some basics in case you didn't know:

Snare and toms typically get miked on the beater head side, kick drum on the resonant side, usually in the hole in the resonant head or right next to the head if there's no port.

golot · Posted: Mon Nov 15, 2004 6:21 pm Post subject:

If I get 4 dynamic micrphones?

I thought it would be good to have: 2 behind the kit, one on bass, one on snare.

Would that be good?
_________________
Run Asulin - golot@dr.com

Saluda Mist: 13" Hi-Hats, 16" Medium Thin Crash, 17" Rock Crash, 20" Ride, Voodoo - 19" China.
Wuhan 12" China (x2)
Tama Iron Cobra Double Bass Pedal
Ahead Lars Ulrich Drumsticks

nine · Cobra Joined: 08 Nov 2004 Posts: 479 Location: Evil

Yep, with 4 that would be okay. Just put the two overheads in front of the kit, not behind. Really though, just put them at the spots they will capture the best sound from, but start about 4 feet in front of the kit to the left and right. It all depends on the room's dynamics.

golot · Posted: Mon Nov 15, 2004 7:01 pm Post subject:

ammm...

The idea of Mics in front of the drums sounds quite weird to me...

The room... ammm, I can try drawing it here:

________
| |
| |
| |
| |
/ |
__________ / |
| O J |
| myO 0 J |
| drum 0 J |
| set O J |
| J |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
|_____________________|

I sit with my back to the wall. <-- good or bad?

The drumset is close to the 2 walls and infront of the drumset I "built" a "wall" of foam (where the J's are) <-- good or bad?

the room is quite big.... <-- good or bad?
_________________
Run Asulin - golot@dr.com

Saluda Mist: 13" Hi-Hats, 16" Medium Thin Crash, 17" Rock Crash, 20" Ride, Voodoo - 19" China.
Wuhan 12" China (x2)
Tama Iron Cobra Double Bass Pedal
Ahead Lars Ulrich Drumsticks

golot · Posted: Mon Nov 15, 2004 7:10 pm Post subject:

That got messed up!

Heres a sketch of the room:

http://www.geocities.com/golot_drums/drums.JPG
_________________
Run Asulin - golot@dr.com

Saluda Mist: 13" Hi-Hats, 16" Medium Thin Crash, 17" Rock Crash, 20" Ride, Voodoo - 19" China.
Wuhan 12" China (x2)
Tama Iron Cobra Double Bass Pedal
Ahead Lars Ulrich Drumsticks

nine · Cobra Joined: 08 Nov 2004 Posts: 479 Location: Evil

Either way would work. It's really up to whichever sounds better.

random white person · Posted: Mon Nov 15, 2004 9:16 pm Post subject:

it started out fine, and snowballed into a rushed jumble of sound. you started playing at a moderate tempo, and then started going probably 40 ticks faster once you started playing on the ride. it sounded like you wanted to keep playing the snare and bass at the old tempo, and were just letting the ride get completely out of control, so even at the faster tempo things just werent lining up where they should have been.
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DAVESWORLD26 · Newbie Alert Joined: 17 Dec 2004 Posts: 4 Location: India

The drum sounds like a bunch of cardboard boxes!! and i think u would do a world of good to the sound if ur playing is a little cleaner and softer... what mics are u using are any of em condensor or all of em or dynamic??whats ur idea of placing them behind u? i think looking at ur room i would suggest you to place the kit in to the other corner of the room facing the door.. that would give you a little more space and some ambience .. try placing them in front of the kit about 5-7 feet away from the kit if they are condensor microphone with a switchable polar patters.. use OMNI direction and use spaced pair technique.. If they are dynamic use one mic in front of the kit facing ur kit... and tilted a bit to the Kick.. and then one on ur hihat and one on top of the toms.. see if it works thanx Cheers

stagecustom_99 · Posted: Sat Apr 01, 2006 7:34 pm Post subject:

Yeah dude, you definatley need to to look at the sound coming out of your drums. You can't make crappy sounding drums sound good by micing them up. Do you currently have any muffling inside your toms? It literally sounded like you were hitting milk cartons. Hope everything works out.
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