Recording Emergency!!!!

I like the idea of keeping it simple and using mic's sparingly. Saying that however, I do like the idea of miking all the toms for that extra control (maybe I'm just an old control freak at heart lol?), also I like the, almost 3D, spatial awareness panning can give, particularly with great fills around the kit.

Try the Recorderman overheads.
 
update :- ( specially for MFB )

Everything is running behind schedule as a result of the bass player gigging his butt off and not being available to record.

Will keep this thread posted on the unfolding drama...
 
update :- ( specially for MFB )

Everything is running behind schedule as a result of the bass player gigging his butt off and not being available to record.

Will keep this thread posted on the unfolding drama...

Damned bass players!

It's all good. However you go about it, a report of some sort would be appreciated.
 
MFB, you are a great guy - I would say you're God-like but I know you're an atheist! ;-)

I am preparing to do some recording soon and the sound engineer is highly skilled, but has less experience with drums and wants some direction. I have told him to check out this thread.

Another vote to sticky this thread. Recording questions are common and MFB took quite a bit of time to share his expertise, tips and tricks. Truly, this board every day proves itself to be a great resource for drummers, by the quality and expertise of the people who post here.
 
Good luck Shauno! Pictures and recordings will be appreciated.

Hi MFB, et al.
No worries at all! I will post some pics when the mic's arrive and I have done the install, acoustic soundproofing etc.

After some extensive net researching, I have decided to go with the Shure drum mic kit (well.. two of them to cover everything) for the start as the old budget is fairly limited and I thought paying a few thousand $$$ for mic's just to get started would be a bit silly lol. The mic kit in case (Shure PGDMK6XLR) costs around Au. $680. This has a kick, 3 tom/snare and two overheads. So I figured two kits would be perfect, leaving a spare kick mic, and allowing me to use the other two overheads for the ride and hi hat.

Take care and keep practicing!
Shauno
 
Hi guys,
Just a quick update on my recording gear progression.
I ended up ordering the 2 Shure PGDMK6XLR drum mic kits (which have arrived just before xmas). I was lucky to order them when I did as they have since almost doubled in price to around A$1130 each after our dollar fell against the US currency!?. I am extremely happy with the quality (Shure are pretty well known for this) and can't wait to set them up! I have the mic stands on order and they are expected to arrive at the end of this month (January). I also have a set of Sennheiser HD280PRO Professional Closed Monitoring Headphones on the way. I'm just in the bind of whether or not to go with something like a Tascam 4 or 8 track recorder to run the mixer into or to have a laptop setup? I'm tending to favor the laptop currently, possibly running something like Adobe Auditions (which I have used before with my band) so there are still a few niggling decisions to deal with. It's all in good fun and very exciting though! :D

I wont post any pics just yet as I'd only be showing you what you can see online anyhow? I will however take a couple snaps once I start to re-organize my kit and set up the mic's/mixer etc.

Take care and keep practicing!
Shauno.

Happy new year by the way! :D
 
Shauno. My recommendation to you is to go with the laptop method. I love stand-alone recorders, I like HDD recorders and the like - but the flexibility you get with a laptop is unparalleled and the cost of software is going right, right down now. Shure make good kits and although I probably personally wouldn't have bought a 'set' of microphones, they are good quality and will hopefully serve you well. Buying anything from a leading brand like Shure guarantees a certain level of quality at least; so a wise decision to make if you weren't sure about it.

I hadn't looked into this thread for a while, but I'm humbled by some of the comments you other guys have made - DMC in particular. When I learn more on my degree, I'll let all you guys in on what I know if anybody asks any questions, but we're all students of this and it's important we learn the important recording techniques now that the industry is fracturing.

And Latin Groover - I own one bass. A Yamaha BB414....
 
I am preparing to do some recording soon and the sound engineer is highly skilled, but has less experience with drums and wants some direction. I have told him to check out this thread.

Just curious, is this "sound engineer" a professional? I can't imagine a pro that is "highly skilled" but with "less experience with drums". In what area is he/she more experienced in?
 
Shauno. My recommendation to you is to go with the laptop method. I love stand-alone recorders, I like HDD recorders and the like - but the flexibility you get with a laptop is unparalleled and the cost of software is going right, right down now. Shure make good kits and although I probably personally wouldn't have bought a 'set' of microphones, they are good quality and will hopefully serve you well. Buying anything from a leading brand like Shure guarantees a certain level of quality at least; so a wise decision to make if you weren't sure about it.

Hi MFB,
Thanks for the laptop directive (it was high on the list so I will definitely go for one now!).

I understand about the pro's and cons of a microphone kit and would've loved to go with a fully professional/individual selection but it would have taken me ages to scrape the funds to go for separate mic's not to mention that I'd have to hear each one and test it against one of a similar quality/brand etc. I'm 6hrs drive from the nearest decent music store so you may understand the position I'm in lol. It will do me to play around with and learn from for now. :D

So hopefully the mic stands and headphones will not be too far away (arrival date is around the 15th of Jan.) so I can get cracking- minus the laptop for a while yet.

That whole industry fracturing thing was inevitable with today's so called "music" being used and abused for the purposes of a purely monetary marketing device. What happened to the times when you had to be able to read music and have actual, real talent to get into a band? When did it all change? Now I try and avoid most of the Top-40 and chart stuff like the plague lol. I'm just thankful that there are still amazing bands and musicians out there like Dave Weckl, Chick Corea, Porcupine Tree, Tool, Rush, Mudvayne, etc. etc. but they definitely do not get the attention that they deserve! Though that may be to their advantage at times? I USED to be a Korn fan back in the mid 90's until I saw a 7yr old kid wearing a Korn shirt and singing A.D.I.D.A.S. That's where I'll draw the line I thought.

(sorry if I strayed off topic a little there but I do have a real passion about music, as I'm sure most of us will do here!)

Take it easy guys and keep practicing!
Shauno
 
Actually I don't think the problem is a new one. I don't think it's ever about ability, it's about sincerity and soul. People ask me what kind of music I like, I say 'anything with a soul'. Anything I can listen to and gravitate towards the artist. John Coltrane is a good example of this. 'A Love Supreme' is the obvious example, but the later stuff 'Crescent' and 'Interstellar Space' being good examples are really hard stuff - but rather than hearing lots of notes, I hear John Coltrane. I don't hear people in music that I listen to much any more; but that's always been the case; it's just that the passing decades are an automatic filter of the detritus.

Like I said, technical ability to me isn't really relevant. I often find the opposite to be the case actually and I've said it before and I'll say it again - people get obsessed with playing an instrument rather than expressing themselves and get stuck into the 'I can play it so I will' mindset. Drummers I've noticed are particularly prone to this mindset. A lot of the really raw stuff (Dead Kennedys, some earlier Stones, Syd Barrett, etc) appeals to me a lot more than pristine production; because they're really capturing an atmosphere and 'studio mojo'. I think that can be lacking when the players are too good - they just play because they can and I don't often find that technically proficient players interest me. Coltrane being an exception. That's not to say that proficient players are bad at all - merely that they have a tendency to be too pristine and not get stuck in the dirt of it.

Portishead are another good example of that 'dirt'. Adrian Utley is a really, really great guitarist - but they leave all the recordings imperfect. Little mistakes. Fret noise. It's all there and in a genre like electronica, you'd really expect it to be removed. Not a bit of it - and it's really refreshing.
 
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