nt5 on snare?

[aramism]

i have a project i;m doing and they are on a super tight time schedule so i was getting all my mics ready and stuff and i was thinking about trying a rode nt5 on either side of a snare drum. i've tried it a few times just goofing around and i felt like it has a lot of that crackle that gives a snare a snare sound.

before i spend time trying to work on it is this even a customary thing to do??? of course i can always just fall back to 57/57 but i figured let me try something new. anyone have experience with this?

 

[Nebulous]

Condensers on a drum are not a "new" thing, but watch the distance and spl so that you don't damage the mic. Snares can get pretty loud, especially if you're talknig metal, so I'd watch the placement.
Apparently they can begin to distort/ damage before the pre even clips. I haven't tried this.

 

[aramism]

yea no kidding i remember the first time i ever tried i was getting a healthy signal with the pre level on my presonus firepod at 0. yes, 0.

it was like 6 inches off the outer rim if memory serves me well.

 

[devouredremains]

Condensers on a drum are not a "new" thing, but watch the distance and spl so that you don't damage the mic. Snares can get pretty loud, especially if you're talknig metal, so I'd watch the placement.
Apparently they can begin to distort/ damage before the pre even clips. I haven't tried this.

Good advice. I've read stories of people destroying mics by pointing the diaphragm at the small hole on the side of the drum.

 

[JeffTD]

I've seen a lot of mic'd kits that have an SDC literally taped to an SM57 on the snare.

 

[Nebulous]

There are some condensers which can withstand high spl. It's best to check the manufacturer specs to see how fragile they can be, and if at any point it doesn't sound right, switch it for another mic.

 

[LSD-Studio]

I don't think the SPL will destry the mic (it's a different thing if you're pointing it at the hole in the side of the drum....but that's the airflow that kills it).

I'm sometimes using a 184 taped to a 57 (sometimes instead of using a bottom mic at all), but watch your phase.
another thing to consider: if the drummer hits it it'll be fucked!

 

[greyskull]

watch out for hi hat spill!

 

[aramism]

hey i ended up using a nt5 on top and 57 on bottom after a bunch of experimentation. it seemed to sound right. so rules or no rules, at the end of the day it is what sounds right. i also placed a 57 two stick lengths above the snare for some reason i recorded once and i really liked how it came out. it adds a lot of natural "air" to it. the nt5 was like 6 or 7 inches away pointed at almost a 45 degree angle towards the outer rim.

i'll get some pictures or something as well as samples of the drums once we are done with everything.

 

[Metaltastic]

i also placed a 57 two stick lengths above the snare for some reason i recorded once and i really liked how it came out. it adds a lot of natural "air" to it. the nt5 was like 6 or 7 inches away pointed at almost a 45 degree angle towards the outer rim.

Two-stick lengths, as in, like 2-feet? Damn, it may have added air to the snare, but I'd imagine it'd be a little distracting to the drummer, cuz that sounds right about at eye level (and talk about bleed, whoa mama)

And when you say the NT5 was 6-7" away, in which direction? Up? So you had it hovering pretty far above the snare?

 

[aramism]

ill post pics.


it was a little more than 2 stick lengths now that i think about it. it didn't distract him. bleed wasn't much of an issue. it will be a really cool mix i think once it is done. it's not that it adds air it just makes the snare seem alive naturally. the bleed isn't an issue because i am going for a very very organic and roomy drum sound. i am kind of looking at it like a room mic.

 

[Metaltastic]

Ah coolness, look forward to seeing/hearing it!

 

[aramism]

Ah coolness, look forward to seeing/hearing it!

can be found here

and this is the best pic i could find i had abetter one sorry haha

i also couldn't get it to rotate so i'm sorry you're gonna have to kind of turn your head.


the snare came out OK i wish we had more time to like sample it or something or more time to screw around with the placement. i also wanna find the pic that shows the overhead 57 for the snare which makes it sound cool.