Recording Drums 2 - Snares & Toms

 

Recording Drums, Percussion - & Dealing with People Who Like to Hit Things 2

Here at The Coolest Studio in London Town - we get all types knock knock knocking at the door - little tiny people - long gangly ones, threadbare gypsies & be-suited impresarios - &  the odd werewolf. 
One thing they all have in common - they come to SHStudios to sound good - & this is how we go about that particular science. 

Snare Drums 

The snare ...... is a drummers' signature - on the record "Burnin' Beat" you can immediatley tell who's taking a solo, as Gene Krupa & Buddy Rich are two top-of-the-game boys, who are not only phenomenal players - but also have a unique sound. Most session guys have a collection of snares for differing timbres & shades - & pre thinking a recording - begins with snare selection, as it's the one sound that will hit the listeners ear consistently throughout the recording - & from the centre of the audio picture. Think about what that means for a minute. At the very least - it better be a Good sound eh. 

It's a recording - not a gig - so you don't want the drummer smashing the shit out of the kit - you want good & consistent tone - so - invest in some O rings - buy some Moon Gel to cut down on drum ring or boom - & buy some Hot Rod sticks - these will Save Your Life when you get a drummer who can't play cymbals of hats properly (They're Everywhere) - they're softer than regular sticks butcha don't miss out on tone. 

You generally mic up a snare about an inch in from the top skin: 

Use an sm57 - a Beyer M201 or a Peavey 520i 

These are good dynamic choices - the 57 has good body, punch & clarity, M201 is drier (in a very good way) and the Peavey 520i is a bit more expansive / deeper. 

Top Dynamic Microphone

Moving the mic a bit further in will get a deeper tone: 
Just be careful it don't get whacked!

You can also under mic the snare for a snappier crisper tone - I use closed back ribbon microphones for this purpose as they are open & honest sounding mics:

Ribbon Mic Under Snare

And for a bit of extra tone, bottom,  richness & clarity - you can always double up the top dynamic mic with a pencil condenser.

double mic on the snare

You can add a bit of compresson to the condenser mic on the way in - add a bit of energy Oooomph & bloom. 

If your drummer is a bit heavy handed cymbals wise - you can always build a small mic shield - half a plastic milk bottle lined both sides with felt & taped to the hi hat side of the snare mic will save you a ton of trouble come mix time. Talking of felt - old Motown trick - put 2 strips of felt under the snare & toms top skins - you get All the drum tone - & zero ring. Sounds gorgeous.

I generally always use a peavey 520i on the toms - unless I want a more vintage tone - then it's the sennheiser md421:

Maybe a small amount of compression & / or gating may help on the way in - just don't overdo it! 
I tend not to under mic toms - unless it's specifically asked for - or it's a classical / jazz combo in session - those forms of music need a very honest picture - most other syles of music have been influenced by edm production - so there's a lot of behind the scenes engineery programming going on to enhance, clarify & motionise the musical elements of a mix. 
More of that later. 

Next time - Overheads, ambients & cymbal miking. 

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