Marcel speaks about all the choices and considerations when deciding on which mics to use. Whether the mic is dynamic or condenser, large or small diaphragm, and when you might want to take advantage of the proximity effect. All with the aim of faithfully reproducing a realistic sounding drum kit. Filmed in the Neve Studio at SSR London.
Recommendation:
This masterclass is best listened to on a good pair of headphones or quality studio monitors
01. Recording Drums: Mic Choice, Positioning And Phase
Other episodes
02. Recording Drums: Achieving a Realistic Drum Sound
We hear with two ears, so imitating stereo location clues with the overhead mics helps our brains to perceive the recording as realistic.
03. Recording Drums: Placing the Kit
Positioning your kick drum within the live room makes all the difference in getting the best out of the low end. Phase comes into play yet again.
04. Recording Drums: Kick Drum
EQ for free! Marcel uses four in-phase microphones to achieve a certain amount of tone control without reaching for the EQ knobs.
05. Recording Drums: Snare Drum
With four mics on top and two on the bottom, Marcel explain how to get all six in phase for a great snare sound.
06. Recording Drums: Hi-Hat
Marcel shows us how he decides on a position for the hi-hat mic, and how to avoid wind noise.
07. Recording Drums: Rack Tom
Showing how an accidental setting on a HPF filter can damage the recording, Marcel chooses the best position for the Rack Tom mics.
08. Recording Drums: Floor Tom
Marcel chooses a position for the Floor Tom mic by listening carefully while he scans the surface of the drum.
09. Recording Drums: Overheads
Marcel delves deeply into phase aligning the whole drum kit. This is a must-see!
10. Recording Drums: Overheads & Pan Matching
Creating a realistic stereo image by panning the hi-hat and toms to match the stereo image from the overheads.
11. Recording Drums: Overhead Comparison
We compare the sounds of the AKG 414s and the DPA 4011s and decide which to use.
12. Recording Drums: Alternative Overhead Positioning
Marcel demonstrates the Glyn John method - a means of setting up overheads so that the kick and snare end up in the centre of the stereo image.
13. Recording Drums: Mixing The Whole Drum Kit
Back in the control room, Marcel mixes the whole kit - the beautifully in phase mics channels making life easy for the mix engineer.