Mic Tradeoff

[Gelatin]

Hey guys,

I am recording drums next weekend using a Presonus Firestudio w/ 8 channels. I've got 7 mics on bd, sd, tom1, tom2, floor, oh1, oh2 - That leaves one mic that I can use either for extra bd mic (I'm using a new beta 52a, which I'm told picks more bass and less click) or for a hihat mic. I should mention that this is standard new-school metal (think lamb of god, chimaira, etc.)....

I have always relied on the OH's to pick up the hihats on previous recordings (in relation to having only 8 channels), but on the other hand it might be enough to EQ and position the beta 52a so I get a more click...

Any thoughts?

 

[Unavailable]

Depends what mic it is. But I would say either secondary kick or bottom of the snare.

 

[AudioGeekZine]

Its tough to say, having the hihat mic lets you pan it much better if your overhead spacing isn't very wide.

its easier to add a low kick to a clicky one than adding attack to one thats just inarticulate low crud. I'm talking about sidechained subs or sample replacement/enhancement

 

[Sinister Mephisto]

I wouldn't use a second mic on the kick because of sample replacment (as mentioned) but I wouldn't use it as a hi hat mic either. I'd probably go for another on the snare or a room mic.

 

[Metaltastic]

Yeah, I'd recommend using your remaining slot for a bottom snare mic...

 

[Gelatin]

Thanks a lot for the comments guys.

I'll go for the second snare mic.

 

[Gelatin]

I have a relatively limited assortment of mics, but I have one Shure SM57 for the snare and the "extra" mic will probably be the cheaper Shure PG57 (which I got for free)....

Now the second question: Which mic on top & which mic for the bottom? Or to rephrase, is it more important to get quality top or quality bottom

 

[Sinister Mephisto]

I'm inclined to say use the 57 on top and the cheapo on bottom. But if you have time you could try switching them as see if it sounds better. You never know.

 

[colonel kurtz]

its easier to add a low kick to a clicky one than adding attack to one thats just inarticulate low crud

i dunno man, i've had good luck adding the thwack into a kick track that came out all boomy and muddy because there was no hole on the front head

just get the clickiest sample you can find, put a HP filter on it up to 1K, and boost the top end as needed

and i was going to recommend using the 8th input for a room mic...but if you're working with a PG57 as the other mic, i would go with the snare bottom...i wouldn't want to use the PG57 for either the room or hi-hats

 

[JBroll]

That's really a tough one... a bottom snare mic will really help thicken it, but hat mics can be handy (even if nothing else, cranking them in the drummer's headphones makes him hit them quieter)...

If the drummer knows how to use hats, I'd go with the bottom snare. If he doesn't, I'm not sure what I'd do.

Jeff

 

[egan.]

high hats.
For me personally there wouldn't be any question.
Most drummers hit the hats more than any other piece on the kit.
and try to keep the HH out of the overheads.

 

[Gelatin]

oh man, now I wish I had more channels

I guess I'll just do a test when we begin the session to see what works out better, snare or hihat.

oh and hi Egan, I'm a big fan of your music

 

[ElektricEyez]

I'd use it on the bottom snare, it adds more depth and character to the snare. You get a little more of the snare sounds and it has a little more low mids and then you just blend the 2 together. Snares can sometimes be tricky to cut through the mix. Plus, I like to add just a little bit of verb on the bottom snare mic during the mix, all high passed with some treble boost. Just make sure you reverse the phase on the bottom mic.