Overhead mic placement....

[BradLyons]

I have very good ear's, I hear things others don't....so I'm used to talking about these things and others thinking I'm crazy.

[jerkrecords]

I have very good ear's

humble too.

[monkey man]

What's this? The "Let's lay into Brad" thread?"

Considering the variety of equipment Brad's owned, auditioned, sold and used on gigs over the years, this makes sense to me.
One doesn't have to possess "special" ears to begin with, but continued exposure to and use of said equipment does indeed refine one's judgement and ability to discern that which is all but invisible to others; I've seen this happen many times.

What else can he say if he's hearing something others don't?
His only options are to either back away or say that he's hearing a difference.
If he articulates the latter fact and is not believed, he can only conclude that he's got good ears.
It's not a crime to admit to this, IMHO, especially when backed into a 'Cornie... I mean, corner.
Give the man a break, I say; he obviously means well.

Thank you for the food for thought, Brad.

[BradLyons]

Monkey is right....my CAREER is to rip gear apart and figure out "what's wrong" with it. I am absolutely CLOBBERED by manufacturer after manufacturer getting me to sell their product, telling me what is great about their product and why I should sell it over the next product and manufacturer. It is my belief that in order to understand ALL THE BENEFITS of each item, you must also know and understand the weaknesses and short-comings of everything as well. Humble I am not---- I am, however, very confident in my abilities, my experience and my track-record.....maybe that is perceived as egotistical, and that's fine. My career has been built upon taking every box home I can, using and abusing it, listening for what is wrong with it---not what is right with it. Because the less "wrongs", the better the chance of it being right. I do not go with the flow nor do I follow other roads before me, I pave my own....and that's why my clients purchase through me is that confidence that I'm going to do for them what I feel is best, and I'm not afraid to cut them off and say "that is wrong!" BUT I will always explain why and let them decide for themselves.

You see---I've been working with many of the same clients for YEARS (as many as 12-years, now) based on a trust of listening to them, providing solutions, them trusting my advice, purchasing the items and then experiencing it on their own. After a few times, that trust grows---and they keep coming back to the point where they just ask me "what do I need". I don't lie, I don't mis-lead (purposely, anyway), I don't try to pull anything over their eyes...... if I do, then I just lost their trust. And if I lose trust, I lose EVERYTHING. And somethings to me are more important than my wallet.

[monkey man]

I'm thoroughly disappointed that Brad's felt he's had to take the time to defend himself here.

What an embarrassment. Talk about looking a gift horse in the mouth!

[bolla]

Hey Brad et al,

No offense intended this end.
Simply trying to understand the physics of the motion and resultant effect.
(Reminder to self. Don't talk about motions with MM listening)
One thing I try to teach students studying production techniques is to question and validate whatever they are learning.

If I were to tell them something was so simply because "I have very good ears" I would hope that they asked me to elaborate or prove my idea with an example. At the next opportunity I'll give the suspended cymbal theory a bash and report back in.

Cheers, Bolla

[monkey man]

Hey Adrian, the Peristaltic one here.

Agreed. Please report back with your findings mate.

[BradLyons]

Hey Brad et al,

No offense intended this end.
Simply trying to understand the physics of the motion and resultant effect.
(Reminder to self. Don't talk about motions with MM listening)
One thing I try to teach students studying production techniques is to question and validate whatever they are learning.

If I were to tell them something was so simply because "I have very good ears" I would hope that they asked me to elaborate or prove my idea with an example. At the next opportunity I'll give the suspended cymbal theory a bash and report back in.

Cheers, Bolla

It really isn't as big of a deal as it was made out to be. It was something that I heard the difference on, so I mounted my cymbals that way and left it there because I was curious. They sound perfectly fine mounted on top of the mount, but suspending from the top did provide a better tone. Now mind you it's not night and day, but that's how audio works----little differences accumulate. I'm not going to sit here and tell someone they must mount the cymbals the way I do, but I know that from what I've heard I can't say that mounting them my way is foolish either. I try new things and concepts for the sake of trying them.

For example---there is a MAJOR country group that is about to start up a new tour this coming week. They wanted to purchase a particular FOH console to use as their monitor board---but after talking with them, I designed a system that would function both as the FOH and the monitor console allowing each of them their own complete control of their mix without the need for a splitter, monitor board or a monitor engineer. They are now going to be using that design on-tour----and I wouldn't be surprised if there is an article written up on the concept and how it's being done. I say all this because it's the research I do in my studio and on-stage that gives me the information and experience to recommend and design systems that must work in front of 20,000 people night after night after night---or work in a studio where CD's are being made that are expected to go Platinum and beyond. So the information I provide, the gear I set them up with-----it better do what I say it does and the techniques I tell them better actually work, or I lose ALL credibility. THAT's my point.

Okay, time to get ready for GearFest!

[Phil O]

I've always noticed how the floor tom in my Yamaha kit always sounds kind of choked. I've tried all kinds of stuff - still sounds choked. A friend of mine has a Sonar kit with a huge sounding floor tom. One day he showed up at my house with the legs from his FT and said, "I've figured out your problem. Put these on your FT and see if it makes a difference."

Wow! Huge. As it turns out, Sonar has a big hole through the rubber foot of the leg running parallel to the floor, making the foot slightly springy. It's still a stiff rubber, but the springy(ness) is not that noticeable. Bob figured this out when one night his FT sounded like crap and he noticed that one foot had cracked. Replacing the foot made all well. So a crack in ONE foot of a floor tom makes a huge difference in the sound. Hmm. The difference between the Sonar legs and the original Yamaha legs (on the same drum with the same tuning) is not subtle. It's a difference that anyone can hear and it's a VERY big difference.

I have no problem seeing how the mounting of a cymbal can make a small difference. I think the difference everyone is ignoring is that the bearing surface that supports the felts will be different. Depending on the stand, not only might that bearing surface be a different material, but it could be a different size (i.e., upper vs lower surface). And, mounted one way the bearing surface will be against the stand's shaft and mounted the other way it will be against a wing nut.

Phil

[BradLyons]

Exactly! This is why I use suspension rims on my drums as opposed to mounting directly to the stand. This allows the drum to "float" and resonate freely.