h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hey,

does any of you have any experience with home recording?
We're ('we' being my band) gonna try to do some recording of our own, using a digital recorder. I was wondering how to get the drum recorded in a easy way. Searching the net I've come across a number of things, ranging from using one mic, placed at the back and a bit above the drummer, to miking every piece separately. Of course, this last one is a bit to expensive: we would have to by about 6 dynamic mic's and two to three condenser, to use as overheads.

The idea we had was to get two condenser and use these as overheads and place one dynamic mic (which we otherwise use for vocals) in the kick drum and another to capture the snare.

tips and pointers are welcome, as well as your experience with this kind of thing.

My experience is rather old - mostly single tape machine. Although I did experiment with playback of backing track and recording of main part on top of that. I do know (on the internet) someone (possibly more) who does have a studio setup though.

First it depends how big the room is that you are recording in, as the drums would easily be picked up in a small room with just one mic behind the kit, placing it in the bass drum would drown out most of the other instruments.

I used to place my kit under a ceiling light and fix the mic to the light fitment above the kit, then wrap a sock around the mic, this will diffuse the higher tone crash of the cymbals.

If you do put the mic in the bass drum, make sure that you have a pillow budged up against the skin, this will prevent reverberation and produce a lovely solid thump sound

I heard that taping cotton-wool to the skin (the one that gets hit by the hammer) should help as well. This can also be done with the toms and even the snare.
Won't that take the typical edge of the snare away, though?

For the bass drum try taping the biggest coin you can find to the impact site on the skin...

With only several mikes available...making individual drum and cymbal pick-up not possible...tis a matter of considering the drum style of the 'skin slammer' that is to be recorded...Tom tom use... overhead cymbal use...is it jazz... rock...blues or folk?

In general...four mikes are usually more then enough...even three is possible...
Consider that sound leakage is not an overriding priority in home recording...in fact that is desirable...think about fittings rattle though that can be a pest...

Two mikes overhead...left and right...one well forward of the kit giving ambient sound...and one bass drum mike....with suitable damping in the shell...(as already mentioned...)

Depending on the mixer panel you intend using... a fair balance can be achieved before you run any tape...

Sometimes....not always...a light to medium cloth covering on the floor and top tom tom's can give more depth with punch...gonna have to experiment with that...also depends on the song dynamics...and personal taste...
Blankets or similar heavyish sheets hang on a washing line surrounding at least 3/4 of the kit dampens echoes or vibrations from elsewhere in the room...

If you want to run a bass guitar line at the same time....then drop a stick mike down a hoover tube and listen to the affect...quite surprising...

The last few years of my band life was spent in mostly 24&36 track studios up and down Europe and most of the home recording tricks are of course not required and I have forgotten most of them anyway...been a fair while since I attempted any home recording but I do remember that learning and having a giggle sometimes is more important then getting the definitive take straight off...enjoy...good luck!

cool, thanks for the advice.

that coin, does that go on the inside of the drum (so inside the kettle) or on the outside, the side where the hammer hits the skin?

a mic down a hoover tube? So, you just stick it inside a plastic hoover tube and than you place it in front of the bass-cabinet? Luckily, the cab of our bass player has only one speaker, makes it easier.
I'm gonna try that.

You've already had one reply. Another bod says:

"If I was to give a hint , I would point them to Kvr 's and it's Production Technique forum (and it's not just because I have a forum there )

http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=62 "


(PS I found that slightly annoying to open because it repeatedly wanted to download a flash player.)

Tape the coin between the beater head and the skin...i.e on the outside of the shell...on the striking head of the skin...

If you can...try and find one of the old metal vacuum tubes...I cannot vouch for the plastic ones...

The way we found out about that 'innovation' was that I was supposed to be singing a back vocal line whilst recording bass...the mike slipped down the tube...which being typical musicians we had to macgyver into a mike stand...what we got on playback knocked our socks off bass wise...actually much more so then my singing....

Placement of the tube will change bass affects...again tis more experimentation then fast science...

If you got a fairly empty largish bathroom/WC...with tiles on the wall...you got yourselves a reverb room...lead guitar ...even vocals will sound so much more 'alive' in such a space...

If the space you have is yours to do with as you will...consider the old trick of eggboxes glued to the wall...even ceiling...to add damping affect and cut the hi fi freqs from intruding...ya get loads from cymbal crashes etc...it sounds naff...but it does work...if ya got enough..

The main trick to remember is that you are going for sound...not volume...sure over-driven amps..always made guitars more expressive...but these days the sheer array of FX pedals and modules is staggering...the same FX on your recording can be done so much easier then it was in my time...
These days sound levels can cause a lack of sympathy for your cause in your neighbourhood...

Check out your local music store....sometimes they will hire equipment modules...desks...echo...reverb...chorus...well explain what you want and they might be able to suggest the appropriate sound tool...or at least what you might need...just hire for a day or two...

Planning...important..work out what you want to record first...how you want it to sound...then how you do that...

Every band works different...some want guitars together...some apart...some want drums on first some last...it depends on what you find easiest and delivers the result you are looking for...

Metronomes are always a fair idea...I think these days an electronic one plumbed into the tape deck monitor will save a heck of a lot of hassle and grief...playing in studio you WILL find the tempo will be so much different then live performance...tis the adrenalin level...a click track keeps ya centered...

If you have any specific questions then I can try and answer them as best I can...but the best way is to 'taste' it and see...good luck...

[qoute]
Tape the coin between the beater head and the skin...i.e on the outside of the shell...on the striking head of the skin...
[/quote]

So your actually hitting the coin? You get the following order: beater head, coin, skin, mic?
Won't that rip the skin? I think I'm gonna have a hard time convincing my drummer to do this

Gaffa tape is the best stuff to use...

First lay down a strip...possibly two strips...one on top of the other to give a pad...then the coin then another layer or two of gaffa...

What the coin does is deliver a wider area of attack on to the skin...a wider area of attack gives a slightly deeper sound but with more punch...instead of a thin 'bif bif'...you get thicker 'doof doof'..

On home made tapes made of drums it can be tricky getting them to sound deep and solid...all the highs..snare...cymbals... being acoustically louder...tend to smother the lows...in a proper studio.. we used sound gates and an eventide clockwork module and a veritable array of FX gizmo's to soften the attack on some drums and exaggerate it on others...whilst maintaining depth and punch and relevant attack...tis a tightrope you walk really...and even in a 36 track studio it takes time to set the kit up both acoustically and electronically to perform proper...

In a home recording situation by definition ya ain't got that luxury...

I can only say that in numerous home recording sessions we never had a problem with that method with the coin actually puncturing the bass skin...but never say never tis no guarantee...

We also had a neanderthal drummer that did hit his skins with a touch of do or die...

As long as there are no obvious sharp edges on the coin it should be A OK...

'You get the following order: beater head, coin, skin, mic?'

You get the following order: beater head, layer or two of gaffa tape, coin, layer or two of gaffa tape, skin, mic....

cool, we're rehearsing on monday, so we're gonna try this.
Can't wait to see the look on my drummer's face when I take out a piece of 2€ and tape it to his drum

...And...?

How did it go...?

Are you and your drummer still on speaking terms...?..or is it more

Just remember the oldie but goldie... that the only similarity between a drum machine and a drummer is ...that you HAVE to PUNCH the instructions in with both...

Ahem, I thinks it's: What's the difference between a drummer and a drum machine?

You only have to punch the instructions into a drum machine once.

Not that I'd know: I'd be too busy looking at the ghuy changing the lightbulb and saying 'I could have done that'.

> 'I could have done that'

Perhaps not. Lighting engineers might have unions (or even professional qualifications, regulations and a large supply of red tape to go with the gaffer tape).

Roys drum joke again

And I shall continue to spew that joke at any available opportunity. It's not much of a life so one takes one's joy where one can.

How do you make a guitarist play quieter?
Put sheet music in front of him

That's too true to be funny.

how come there are no bass player jokes?

anyhew, first recording went quite good. We still had to do it without overheads (they had not arrived in the store, yet).
miking set-up:

one dynamic about 1m above rack toms, slightly directed to the snare.
one dynamic, low to the ground, to pick up guitar amps and bass (they were directed towards this mic)
2 vocals.

All directed to 4 tracks. Sounded not to bad. Can't wait to get the overheads and try it a bit more professional

> "how come there are no bass player jokes?"

Is referring to them as the mad axe-man not enough? Perhaps them actually *being* the mad axe-man is why no-one makes any further jokes though ...