As a drummer i know i do this too.

[PyroDano]

So your about to record.You tell the drummer to do a mic check,"hit them like your going to hit them when you record".
You hit record and the drummer is pounding the piss out of them and the signal is clipping.What do you do in this situation?
Are there measures taken to make sure you can get a good signal without clipping,when you hit the Record button,and without having to stop and start over?

[BLUElightCory]

Just factor in the probability that the drummer will hit harder when you're setting levels - Get a good level, and then back it off a bit. If you're recording 24 bit digital, you don't need to record with your levels very hot anyway. Use the extra headroom to your advantage.

[Ryan Earnhardt]

He's right on that. You don't need to have a ton of gain to get a good signal. Use compression to bring stuff up to level when your ready in mixing. I typically have drum peaking at like -12, or 3 out of 5 bars on the 5 segment MOTU meters. I'm more worried about transitors peaking, like the yamaha subkick, which has a very hot level, and if you give the preamp any gain at all, the thing is too loud and peaks. That's more of my worry.

You can always give the drummer more drums in his ears. The problem could be that he can't hear enough of his drums. making it loud in his mix will make him play softer...in theory.

[PyroDano]

Thanks for the replies,Good stuff.What i normally do is get the signal so it just touches the red.
Your saying @ 24bit it doesn't even have to be kissing the red?

[BLUElightCory]

Originally Posted by PyroDano

Thanks for the replies,Good stuff.What i normally do is get the signal so it just touches the red.
Your saying @ 24bit it doesn't even have to be kissing the red?

Exactly, you can stay well into the green and you will be fine. Regarding the previous post about giving the drummer extra drums in his headphones, be careful with this. If you're going for a big drum sound, you want the drummer to lay into his drums (but not his cymbals), NOT to play quietly.

[Ryan Earnhardt]

If you think about each bit beyond the 16 bit that your recording, (24-16=8) Your getting 8 bits of dynamic range, which is 42 dB more. Even if you had tracked the drums way down at -20, you still have plenty of signal. "kissing the red" is way way too hot. I would consider that tracke a dud. It's also really anoying to have to keep turning down the track, everytime you eq ( if you do additive adjustments to the eq curve) cause your adding some gain at that frequency point. Plus compression...it's just a mess. think of margins on a page.

Be Inspired,

Ryan

[HeavyG]

I act like a conducter in front of him...hand signals for softer, lounder, ride, etc. If I am the player, I just remember that dynamics are the most important part of my performance...bring it down in the verses...build crescendos where needed...when to push...when to pull...etc. You should have a short meeting with the player prior to hitting the record button to discuss how he or she should approach the performance and let them know how important dynamics are...

Some drummers without studio experience lack this skill...but it can be taught (like anything). They are used to pounding away and fighting to be heard...the mics will hear them beautifully...so you can coach them to get the desired outcome.