FAQ

How to place the drum microphone when the drums kit are recorded?

Update time : 2019-10-21 15:48:07

When recording drums, the position of the drums, the drum setting and recording occasions are also very important factors affecting the sound. Of course, there is a very good drummer, which is also the basis for recording good drums.. If you have a good technical drummer and the correct drum position, you may get a relatively good sound.

Then let's take a look together. How to set the drum set will make the sound quality and tone better?

1. Kick

The position of the kick drum microphone is located slightly off the center of the back of the kick drum (front face of the hammer face).

Some drummers will remove the bottom drum skin on the back or cut a small slit in the drum skin to put the microphone in.

In addition, different microphones will have different effects. Some microphones have good low frequency performance, while others have very good high frequencies, so you need to try more types of microphones as much as possible. For example, the Beta 91 and Beta 52 of the Drum Kit P-56 are ideal for picking up low frequencies.

2.Hi-Hat

Condenser microphones are very good at capturing the brightness and crispness of hi-hats. Place the microphone about 10 to 15 cm above the hi-hat and keep away from the snare drum to avoid picking up the snare drum.

In the 1980s, the drummer put a blanket between the hi-hat stand and the snare drum to prevent it from picking up the sound of other instruments. Or prevent them from affecting each other's sounds.

3. Rides

Depending on the drum part, you will also need to prepare a pickup microphone separately for the Rides, because their sound will often attenuate a lot after over the head, not enough to be picked up by the two microphones on the top. The type of microphone can refer to the Hi-Hat, and the position is better placed between the center and the edge of the sound, and away from the Tom drum.

4. Snare

The picking of snare drums has some difficulties compared to other ones. First you need to avoid the microphone picking up the Hi-Hat sound; secondly you have to place the microphone stand between the Tom drum and the Hi-Hat.

The better position to pick up the snare drum is in the drum ring, 3 to 8 cm above the drumhead, and point to the center of the drumhead. If you can place the microphone stand between the Tom and the Hi-Hat, adjust the angle and try to stay away from the Hi-Hat.

It is also necessary to place a microphone under the snare drum to pick up the bright sound of the snare drum. You can pick up the microphone directly near the string; if you accidentally pick up the sound of the bass drum next to it, you can adjust the angle and remove the low frequency sound when you finish recording. For the recording of snare drums, SM57 should be the choice of most people.

5.Tom

Equipping a microphone for each Tom is a very "right" choice. The position of the microphone can also refer to the position of the snare drum, and the microphone is placed on the upper side of the snare drum and the central part of the drum.

Generally speaking, the sound of the Hi-Hat, snare drums and other Toms may be picked up when picking up the sound of Tom, but in general, the Tom are used with a relatively small chance, so the sound can be processed after the sound is picked up.

So far, among the microphones used to pick up the sound of the drums in the studio, the SM57 and SM58 are used more.

6.The Ringo mic

The Beatles often hangs the SM58 in the middle of the drum set, which keeps the drum stick away from the drum and allows the drummer to play better, plus a larger compression, which forms the basis of The Beatles drum sound. This technique is widely used and is often referred to as the Ringo-style mic placement.

7. Overheads

In general, the best way to pick up the overall sound of the drum, especially the overall cymbal sound, is to use a pair of condenser mics placed on the left and right sides to the top of the drum for picking.

Choosing a pair of matching microphones is a very common option, and many people now choose different microphones for picking. Depending on the height of the ceiling, placing these microphones 15 to 20 cm above the floor of the playing area and maintaining a certain angle will have a good effect.

This placement method can pick up a more complete, more consistent sound, and can avoid picking up some extra sound to a large extent. In general, the K-7 drum kit is a very good choice, especially for a pair of condenser mics, which have a very good sound effect on picking cymbals.

8. Room Mics

It is very important to place one or two microphones in the studio room to pick up the sound and atmosphere of the overall room. This seemingly inconspicuous move can add a lot to the overall sound of the drum set. It can greatly enhance the energy of the drum and enhance the sense of space.

A microphone can also do the job. But after testing, the two microphones work better. The aluminum ribbon microphone is very suitable here. It provides a very good intermediate frequency effect, which makes the overall atmosphere of the room perform better. In addition, the high quality tube condenser microphone can also get good results.

After reading these measures, have you got more inspiration? Try it now. Maybe you can get unexpected surprises. Make your recordings perfect and get better sounds. Sinbosen Audio hopes these tips will help you.

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