Suggest me some kick drum mic's for versatility

onetruth

onetruth

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Apr 21, 2006
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Worcester, UK
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hey all,

i currently have an audix d6 for miking kick drums and although i can get some great sounds out of it for metal, its not the best for doing any other style of music. can anyone suggest 2 other mic's that i could use for recording rock, punk, indie, alternative, pop, jazz etc etc.

i was hoping that with 3 mic's, depending on the sound i was after, i could use a combination of 2 mic's on the kick (in and out) and then have the 3rd mic free for recording a bass cab (if a band ever wanted to track drums and bass together and the bass player wasn't happy with a DI).

i've been looking at the following mic's....all pretty standard:

akg d112
shure beta 52
sennheiser e602
heil pr-40
a u47fet clone, like the cm-47fet at advanced audio
Audio Technica ATM25
Sennheiser MD-421

so which 2 of these mic's, combined with my d6, will give me the versatility to get different kick drum sounds?
 
I use the D112 and love it. With the right EQ it'll do metal with no problem, but it really shines in rock/punk/pop. It's punchy as hell, with just enough attack to cut through. Of course, the grass is always greener, and I really want a D6! haha
 
I have a D6 and a D112. They they complement each other well cause they sound very different. I would also consider a vintage D12e if I had the money.
 
The place I work has a D112, Beta 52 and that Audio Technica mic LAsse uses for guitars..I have the MD421. IMHO, in gerenal use, MD421 > Beta 52 > AE250 > D112. The D112 is by far the hardest to get a good tone on bass drums I mic.
 
Loren Littlejohn said:
I'm borrowing a beta 52a today and was going to do a little shootout between it and the D112 and D6.

Personally my current setup is D6 inside the shell pointed off axis at the beater and a home made subkick out in front of the kick. Sounds pretty slick.
Click to expand...

dude....a mic shootout between the beta 52a and the d112 is EXACTLY what i need to help make a decision. you'll be my hero if you can sort that out this week! :D ps. how far into the shell do you normally have your d6? 2" from the batter head or morelike 4-6" just inside the soundhole?

burny - do you mean the d6 and the d112 work well together? as in, using one inside the kick and one outside? if so, do you use the d6 inside and the d112 out? or do you mean that they both have different sounds and so each work well individually for different styles?

i'm leaning towards getting a u47fet clone for miking the outside of the kick no matter what style of band i'm recording. seems to be a sure fire way to nail a beefy sound when mixed in with a mic inside the kick. so maybe i'll get that and just one other mic which i can then alternate with the d6. so maybe either the d112 or the beta52. i think loren's shootout will be the deciding factor for me! :)
 
I shove the D6 in balls deep. The idea isn't to get that much low end, I just want the click of the beater with it. I think I end up around 3" from the beater, but off axis as I'm trying to avoid anything weird.

But then again I'm more of a metal guy. I would gather the beta 52 is good for bringing the rock kick sound.

Anyhow, I go pick it up around 9am today so expect something later.

I only have my little 18" kick to fuck with though, so expect different results with larger kicks.
 
What I fucking should do is head up the the real studio and give a few mics a go in a nice studio setting (like the ifet 7 in front, beta, SM7, 441, 414, d112, d6, beta 91, RE20, an actual yammy subkick, 421 etc...)

But I'm fucking lazy. I'm getting together with Staind's new drummer Sal later this month to sample some one of a kind snares though, probably gonna sample some kick and toms as well while we are at it.
 
onetruth said:
burny - do you mean the d6 and the d112 work well together? as in, using one inside the kick and one outside? if so, do you use the d6 inside and the d112 out?
Click to expand...

Exactly. I read the op a bit too quickly. Sorry.
On its own the D112 isn't great for a modern rock/metal kick sound but it's definitely useful for other genre. Some people hate it but I don't.
In my experience the beta52 is still a clicky "pre-scooped" mic. Just not as much as the D6.
 
Loren Littlejohn said:
I shove the D6 in balls deep. The idea isn't to get that much low end, I just want the click of the beater with it. I think I end up around 3" from the beater, but off axis as I'm trying to avoid anything weird.

But then again I'm more of a metal guy. I would gather the beta 52 is good for bringing the rock kick sound.

Anyhow, I go pick it up around 9am today so expect something later.

I only have my little 18" kick to fuck with though, so expect different results with larger kicks.
Click to expand...

ace....that's pretty much what i do now too and it works a treat. good to know i'm doing the same as others! :) yeah, i always put the mic off axis....having it aimed straight at the beater/head seems to pickup very weird stuff!

amazing....you rule dude!!
 
Loren Littlejohn said:
What I fucking should do is head up the the real studio and give a few mics a go in a nice studio setting (like the ifet 7 in front, beta, SM7, 441, 414, d112, d6, beta 91, RE20, an actual yammy subkick, 421 etc...)

But I'm fucking lazy. I'm getting together with Staind's new drummer Sal later this month to sample some one of a kind snares though, probably gonna sample some kick and toms as well while we are at it.
Click to expand...

oh mate...that would be the fucking perfect!! but yeah, its gonna be time consuming....i doubt i could be bothered to it either! haha

fucking hell...the drummer from staind?! awesome!! can't wait to hear those samples!!

i'm recording some of the ex-members of Stampin' Ground as my next project....they've got a new melodic hardcore band in the vein of dagnasty/ignite etc and will prob be putting out a 7" release on a label in the states......so i really wana get the right mikes sorted ready for their session so i can get a meaty kick drum sound for starters!!
 
Sennheiser E602 is a great mic for rock and can still get a great metal sound with a little eq.
D112 I have to use live all the time and to be honest I really don't like it. Takes more eq to get a nice sound than any other mic I've used.
 
D112 and D6 here. I never like 52's and I had one fail on me during a session. D112 will take a beating.
 
The Beta 52 sounds nasty on kick to me. My main kick mic is an SM57, and then I put the beta 52 on the low tom, which sounds really good.
 
was never keen on the 112 or the 52 i think they are nasty :( i've been using 421 and Wunder CM7 fet combo alot recently and it works well. the blue kiwi can sound gorgeous on the outside of a good kick too, the Re20 can be a cool if you can get it right, ive still never tried a D6 really want to though ive heard great things about them
 
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