Snare microphone volume vs hitting harder

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Hi all,

I’ve gotten feedback from sound techs and a band member that I need to play snare louder. It’s a cover band doing pop/rock and country rock. It’s not hard rock or metal.

I feel I’m already hitting quite hard, even to the point that after 4 hours, my hands start to crack/bleed a bit. In fact, when hitting so hard it’s really tough to add nuances to the sound.

Is there some reason the sound techs can’t just turn up the snare volume instead asking me to hit so hard?
 
Well, its not just volume, its the tone.

If you play a drum at piano and at forte, they sound vastly different aside from the difference in volume. You can record both signals, level match them, and find out yourself.

So playing harder will yield a different sound then just turning up the gain on the mic.

With that being said, if your hands are starting to crack/bleed, everyone is either telling you really bad advise, or you need to evaluate your technique.

Is there a way you can shoot a quick video showing how you play backbeats?
 
Thx…
Hi all,

I’ve gotten feedback from sound techs and a band member that I need to play snare louder. It’s a cover band doing pop/rock and country rock. It’s not hard rock or metal.

I feel I’m already hitting quite hard, even to the point that after 4 hours, my hands start to crack/bleed a bit. In fact, when hitting so hard it’s really tough to add nuances to the sound.

Is there some reason the sound techs can’t just turn up the snare volume instead asking me to hit so hard?
I’m pretty familiar with technique and am using a full height (eg almost eye level) “whipping” motion, with a relaxed grip on center of drum with 5B drumstick, and moderate head muffling. To me, the tone is already a nice ‘snap’. Feedback has been just been that it’s not loud enough…using Sure SM57 mic very close to head….??
 
stay away (try it) from the Center it's the dead spot;

probably maybe ditch the muffling too.
Center is the dead spot (ask Bill Bruford ; )
on any drum)
```
Turn the stick around- use butt end out- Purdie grip- and use a rimshot
(that last one was for me)
 
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stay away (try it) from the Center it's the dead spot;

probably maybe ditch the muffling too.
Center is the dead spot (ask Bill Bruford ; )
on any drum)
```

Not by much though. A half inch off center will do the trick.
 
drums like golf are a game of inches ; )
metric too.
 
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stay away (try it) from the Center it's the dead spot;

probably maybe ditch the muffling too.
Center is the dead spot (ask Bill Bruford ; )
on any drum)
```
Turn the stick around- use butt end out- and use a rimshot
(that last one was for me)
Good ideas…thx
 
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Turn the stick around- use butt end out- Purdie grip- and use a rimshot
(that last one was for me)
Agreed. Catching some rim will make the drum sound louder, like you're beating the heck out of it, without hitting it any harder. The mic will love that extra attack and the snare will cut through the band better.
 
A drum is only so loud. If you are whipping the stick down from eye level and hurting your hands, you are hitting it plenty hard already.

Hitting a snare with a baseball bat wont make it louder.

Ditch the muffling. Tune up the heads. Let the snare do its thing so the mic can do its thing.
 
I've owned a few DW's and they will produce plenty of volume. Is it metal or wood?

Tune higher, play rim shots. and get rid of the muffling.

What heads are you using?
 
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Define moderate amount of muffling. For me, that’s basically a couple of moongel dots or maybe something like a snare weight. More than that and you are getting into boxy land, and tone and cut don’t live there.

Agree on rimshots. Get that metal singing. You mentioned pop rock, country rock. It’s probably rim shots more often than not.

Agree on off center hits. More harmonics, more tone. Combine with the above.

Agree with hitting harder not being louder. There’s a ceiling. What you want to be doing is finding where you have room in the mix to sit. Likely, you are conflicting with somebody else right now. Get those harmonics doing their thing, maybe tune up a bit (or a lot, I can’t know what you think is normal), there’s a niche out there waiting for you to fill it.
 
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