Kickdrum microphone

mindglow said:
I have tried that "tunnel" technique before but never got any satisfying results.
Click to expand...

I never really tried this but I got some good results...

Sometimes I played around with some miks for the bassdrum.
During experimenting I mounted a SM58 (it lies around, no other reason) on a little mik stand. I got no good results so I put it ca. 1-1.5m in front of the bassdrum and wanted to use another mik.
But the SM58 was still connected and I mistakely used this signal instead that of this other mik.
It was one of the best bassdrum sounds I ever got. Like those on Metallica's Black Album. Simply a SM58 1m before the hole of the resonance fell.
The only problem was the crosstalk, it captures more Toms and Crash than actually bassdrum...so a tunnel would be a good idea...but in the age of triggering...
 
Another mic to consider would be the ATM 25. I've used this one for ages, and I always get good results.

If you're after massive amounts of click, you can check out the Apex 125, which has a huge 10k lift.

I will check out the Sm91, though. It looks quite promising.


-0z-
 
Frank'nfurter said:
Hi Thomas
See it as a competition nowadays, to get a decent bassdrum sound WITHOUT drum modules. Every trick is alowed just using the mics in any kind of it, positioning and good EQing. Hehehe....
Click to expand...

I always try this. It's a kind of sport.
And I must say I often got a decent bd sound. But as Andy said nowadays every bassdrum hit have to be heard loud and clearly and you seldom find a drummer who play that way.
At my current production I got a good bd sound (Beta52, Multibandcomp) but we used triggering becouse the sound was clearer without the other captured noises of the bd mik. The guitarist did not notice when I mistakely switched the original BD track on instead of the triggered track.

My big problem drum is snare.
 
Yeah the snare is a bit of a problem for me also. I have a hard time getting those high frequencies that i hear in sampled drums. I want a crispy sound, not boxy. I tried using a trigger to mix with the original snare (recorded with a SM57) and I used my own snare as the trigger sample. The result is that I get more consistency in the snare (obviously) but it still lacks that punch and crack that I get when i use sounds from some sample library.

How much do the choice of skin matter? When I have recorded in the last couple of days I've been using Remo Powerstroke on the snare but maybe I should try Ambassador?
 
i think the re20 is great on kick. i would never touch a d112 if i had an re20 instead. the re20 seems to respond to eq better than the d112 or beta 52, its a great mic imo. its much rounder and punchier to my ears then the other mics. expensive though yes.
 
Frank'nfurter's eBay link showed some great prices for new RE20's. $399!

I got mine used on eBay for about $350 shipped last December. Balls.

Since we're kind of back on the subject, I totally agree that the RE20 is rounder and punchier than a Beta52 or D112.

Another reason why I referred to the RE20 as old school is that it tends to pick up a lot of mids, especially low mids, from the kick.

From what I can tell, there's almost nothing between 80k and 500k in the kick on most records these days -- and not just on metal albums.

I think a lot of that has to do with the clip-mania mastering that's been going on as well as general kick drum tone aesthetics.

When you really push a mix, those pesky low mids tend to flab out and eat up a lot of headroom that could be used instead to slam all the dynamics and tone out of the song.
 
Andy Sneap said:
Just got the audix D6, absolutely killer, definately go for one of these!
Click to expand...
A friend of mine just bought one of these. Can't wait to try it... He was interested in the ATM25 first but finally choose the Audix one... He also bought a beyer M88 (some people says that it's the best KD mic ever but I don't know if it sounds right for modern stuff).
 
Just got my Audix D6. First impressions: Very cool! I won't have to EQ this mic very much to get the sound I'm after.

In a direct comparison to the ATM25, it seems to have a brighter top end and a less boomy low end.... in other words, pretty much what I've been after.


For good measure I picked up an i5 as well., and on snare it's pretty damn wicked.

-0z-
 
OzNimbus said:
Just got my Audix D6. First impressions: Very cool! I won't have to EQ this mic very much to get the sound I'm after.

In a direct comparison to the ATM25, it seems to have a brighter top end and a less boomy low end.... in other words, pretty much what I've been after.


For good measure I picked up an i5 as well., and on snare it's pretty damn wicked.

-0z-
Click to expand...
yea, it rules. thats the best thing about it. you dont have to eq that much with the d6. they went after a good response pattern for a contemporary kick sound.
i think it does the job well for alot less money than some of the better kick drum mics that people have been using for years. glad you like it, now you have to get another for dudes with two bass drums :rock: !!!
 
I just got a bunch of stuff off Audix, including the i5, which I have to say gives our good friend Mr57 a run for it's money. Recording drums in a week or so, will report back.
 
Andy Sneap said:
I just got a bunch of stuff off Audix, including the i5, which I have to say gives our good friend Mr57 a run for it's money. Recording drums in a week or so, will report back.
Click to expand...

Really? F***, had buyed 4 new SM57 this week for Toms.
What's the price difference between SM57/i5?
 
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