Best way to mic dual-beater single-kick drum setup?

[mhschmieder]

I am recording a heavy metal drummer who is using two beaters on the same kick, due to not having money for a second kick drum at the moment. We haven't had a full session yet; just a test session. I'm concerned that the test session wasn't realistic enough to assume that my usual kick drum miking technique will hold.

In the past, I haven't done anything radically different when there are two beaters on the same kick, except for positioning the mic inside the frame and dead centre between the two beaters, vs. my usual policy of positioning it mid-way between the beater and the rim (more-or-less; I always adjust by ear after initial setup).

One complication is that his hole is cut at the very bottom, so I can't use a floor mic stand and have to just place the mic on the soft material (towels or whatever) inside the kick. This makes it hard to accurately aim mid-way between the beaters or even to have the exact angle and distance that I would prefer.

I just received a Sennheiser e901 kick drum boundary condensor mic last week that I plan to experiment with -- though not with a secon LCD mic outside the frame, as we don't have enough recording channels with my single RME Fireface 800 setup. So I may try it outside the kick to the side, slightly under the snare.

I am concerned with the double-beater approach that any mic placement outside the kick may be problematic and uneven between the two beaters.

I may use the e901 inside the frame, even without an outside mic -- at least, I'll try it and see how it sounds.

The E/V ND868 remains my preferred kick drum mic due to its transparency and evenness (lack of hype). It is similar to an RE20/27 in a better form factor (and one that is dedicated to kick drum, so that a vocal mic needn't be concerned with the diaphragm stretching from kick drum use). In a test run last weekend, though the placement was non-ideal, it seemed that we were getting even coverage of the two beaters.

During a session though, I'm also concerned the mic might start to drift a bit and then start giving uneven response between the two beaters, too late to be caught and corrected until mix-down time.

It seems most dual-pedal players do use two kicks. With that in mind, I also probably should buy a second e901 and second N/D868 fairly soon, in case either mic gets canceled (as happened with my preferred floor tom mic, the ATM25).

[Phil O]

One complication is that his hole is cut at the very bottom, so I can't use a floor mic stand and have to just place the mic on the soft material (towels or whatever) inside the kick. This makes it hard to accurately aim mid-way between the beaters or even to have the exact angle and distance that I would prefer.

Just rotate the head so that it's in the position you want. It's no big deal - should take a minute.

Phil

[mhschmieder]

Boy do I feel dumb! I'm a bassist; not a drummer -- I didn't realise that it's easy to rotate the head.

I so often read articles referring to what to do when the hole is cut too low, and NONE of them mentions rotating the head! I guess I"m not the only idiot on the planet.

[Phil O]

Don't kick yourself (pun intended). If you've never changed a drum head, it wouldn't be obvious. Drum heads are like strings, only more expensive. They get replaced from time to time and the best time to replace them is before a studio session. Be sure your drummer doesn't come in with year-old heads. As far as kick is concerned, 22 inch is the size I see the most, so I keep a few in the studio with no hole, small hole, large hole, etc., in case we want to experiment. Drummers inexperienced in studio work will come in with what sounds best live, but not always what works best in the studio. Have fun!

Phil

[mhschmieder]

Phil, thanks, and excellent advice.

The drummer shelled out (no pun intended) some money to have his kit tuned by a pro, right before the band disintegrated last Friday, thirty minutes before my arrival to record the first three songs out of the fifteen prepared for the album (the lead singer, who is also the rhythm guitarist, stormed out in some prima donna scene). The drummer also replaced all of the heads recently.

This project is on hold until all the drama subsides, but there are two associated projects (one with the drummer, and other with the guitarist from the drummer's other project) that are still in "go" mode, but not this month.

I turned down other projects in order to have the time to devote to this one, but I have plenty on my plate due to deadlines for the upcoming SF Theatre District stage show that I'm doing all the music for, and will take the additional time to experiment more with drum miking with just the drummer, and continuing to improve my drum mixing skills on legacy tracks for never-quite-completed projects (gobs of them).

[Tonio]

Boy do I feel dumb! I'm a bassist; not a drummer -- I didn't realise that it's easy to rotate the head.

I so often read articles referring to what to do when the hole is cut too low, and NONE of them mentions rotating the head! I guess I"m not the only idiot on the planet.

uh-oh, Do I feel a bassist joke coming?



T

[mhschmieder]

Hey, stop while you're a-head.

[BradLyons]

Whether it's two beaters or one---nothing changes here Whether the beater is hitting dead center or slightly off-center, even well off-center....the kick hasn't changed.

[mhschmieder]

I was too tired to understand your post late last night, but now on re-reading it, I do. Thanks for the sanity check, Brad.