Recording Live Drums?

[christineanderson]

Recording Live Drums?

Any tips for recording live drums? How many mikes would I need for a standard kit? What volume do I set them on? How do I angle them and where do I place them?

Grateful for any pointers,

Christine Anderson
www.christineanderson.net

[Bluessunn]

Sure thing... Here are the methods for 2 and 3 mic techniques

2 mics:

Arrange them in one of 2 ways.

Method number one is where you place 2 mics (the 57 and 58 model mics manufactured by Shure are the best bet for anything under $200 a piece)

about 3 to 5 feet apart.

Angle both mics downward 20 to 45 degrees (so that they are not hit by the cymbals).

IE, Mic #1 is placed both facing the snare drum and about 1 or 2 feet above that snare.

If you face the first mic at the hi hat or cymbals instead, you lose your beautiful snare sound (keep in mind that this can sound good if you are doing smoky jazz and the like).

Secondly, Mic#2 is then placed 1 to 3 feet from your toms or 1 to 3 feet from the front of your bass drum (decide for yourself what sounds best).

Metal and loud Rock usually opt for micing the bass drum. And Jazz, Acoustic, or otherwise opt for the toms.

These are the basics, the rest is simply adjustment and slight modification that you will make to fit your musical tastes.

Let me know if you want the 3 mic method as well.

Let me know if this is helpful at all to you, or if you need further clarification.

Keep it real,

Taylor A. of Bluessunn

[brianlewis]

RE: Recording Live Drums?

Many thanks to NetDotMusic and Taylor of Bluessunn for the advice on recording live drums. I'm the one who will be drumming with Christine, and this is a whole new world for me. For so many years, I've been the guy booking the talent, so it's exciting for me to finally be exploring the other side, too.

I do use some extra percussion in addition to a standard maple wood DW kit, like a cowbell, a Rhythm Tech DS tambourine, and some funky green and yellow plastic things (don't know what they're called, but they're by Pearl and Christine picked them out for me). I also have LP Performance Series bongos, which I love.

Will I need additional mikes for these?

I'm not sure if this part matters, but as far as cymbals go, I use A-Custom Zildjians, and I switch out the heads on my drums, between Evans and Remo, on the snare and toms. I switched out my snare strands, too, to create a tighter, drier sound.

As for the sticks, I use all kinds from the light Water brand for rehearsals to heavier sticks for recording, and sometimes I use these crazy mallets made by Zildjian. For almost ten years now, I've been given sticks from many of the bands I've booked, from rock n roll bands to big time jazz players. Knowing I'm playing with these heavy hitters' sticks really puts me in a cool head space.

Thanks for the help!

Brian

[christineanderson]

This Is So Exciting!

Wow, this is so exciting! The enthusiasm in this forum is contagious, and it makes me doubly excited to get some kind of home recording system in place. Thank you for all the helpful hints!

And even though we only have a few mikes, we definitely know enough bands to borrow more from. That's one of the perks of working with Brian - he just calls his friends if we need a sound man, or a different mike, or whatever, lol. Definitely better than getting gouged at Guitar Center!

Thanks!!

Christine Anderson
www.christineanderson.net