Getting that Nice Metal kick

[cpierce0304]

So I'm going to be recording a Metal band. I know in metal the kick is important and needs that snappy sound. so with what and how should I mic it? I have a sennheiser 421 that I usually use for the kick. any ideas will be helpful
thanks!!!

[zzfdvz@mac.com]

recomendations in order...YMMV...a lot...so maybe try all of them...

this is also assuming it's modern metal such as as i lay dying, killswitch, emmure, etc

1) get a sample. a very consistant dynamic, very little variance, really mechanical sounding. most metal kicks are 100% samples. if you have drumagog, the pipeline audio samples are free, and a pretty f-in good starting point. sneap kicks are laying around too if you can find them. or a really good pack. i generally make my own gog of the kick i'm recording and eq, compress, to whatever i need it to be.

if samples aren't possible...

1) tune it as best as possible. since the slap is so important, i'd look at how that sounds more than how much bass you're actually getting out of it.

2) glue and/or tape a quater to the kick head where the beater hits it and use the hardest beater head possible...preferably wood. this really depends on the kick, player, etc as it can be too extreme, or absolutely perfect

3) edit it to hell so you more or less have a sample as descibred above

4) make sure you get great isolation and eq, compress, and limit it probably to death. you want to as consistant as possible with little to no regard to emotion or human-ness.

4a) VERY general eq guidlines...
-60hz for thump?
-scoop the hell out of 200-600hz-ish?
-lots of 5k an up? (really depends on how much click you get out of it
initially)

...just be mindful of what the band is going for...ask for an exmaple of a kick they like, and just f with it until you at least get in the ballpark.

as far as mic's go...it really depends on what's in your closet. almost anything that can take impact can work...placement is totally dependant on the drums. the 421 might be ok if the drum sounds rad. your band might be pissed that you spend 3 hours tuning, getting mic positions etc...UNTIL THEY HEAR IT! or tell them flat out, you need to experiment and throw them a free hour or something.

[wertt]

i really like the audix d6 for this kind of stuff (and most pop/rock stuff as well). it's mostly replaced my d112 and beta 52 and i think i paid $150 for it new. put it anywhere inside the shell (take the outside head off if you need to but cover it with an acoustic blanket or something) and move it closer or further away from the beater to taste.

a lot of dudes talk about using a mic on the beater side, but i've never had much luck with that. there's so much bleed in it that putting it at a usable level tends to **** up my snare sound.

[rhythminmind]

Being a drummer 1st i really try not to use samples. I use a sen 603 inside & a b52 out. The D6 is great as well. I use mine on my floor tom tho.
The SSL Duende has a tool called DrumStrip that adds harmonic content & a transient shaper. This really helps, & the channel comp is punchy as hell..
You can hear some of my sample-less recordings here.
Rhythm In Mind - Sets - SoundCloud

[jbsg02]

Scoop those mids! Notch out about 800 hz with a narrow Q and cut a lot.

[G.TheDuke]

Tighten both the batter and resonant head finger tight, put a fair amount of muffling (I prefer jean/denim material) then slap mic of preference about 6" from the batter in the drum itself (through the port) and viola! Make sure you compress the signal coming in to your interface/recording device and eq like a few other have recommended. Good luck!

[Jschulze]

I think one of the most important things is to make sure the kick drum actually sounds at least close to what you want. From everything I've tried, the Remo Powerstroke 3 seems to give me the best "metal" kick sound. I like to use the Remo PS3 on the batter, Evans EQ3 on the reso, and an Evans RGS pad on the inside. I tune the batter as low as possible and tighten up the reso enough to have a decent rebound on the kick pedal, again hard beaters are a nessecity. I like the 4 sided DW beaters.

For mics, I like to use a Shure Beta 91 sittin on the inside pad and a Audix D6 by the front hole. You can dial in a nice snap with the 91 and get some nice low end with the D6. Then bring each up to taste. YMMV.

[nomoreflakes]

+1 d6

then scoop it more in the mix with a subtle addition of a sampled kick for extra weight / punch (works better than eq) making sure it doesnt start to sound like a drum machine unless thats the vibe your after.

massey plugs makes a fine device for making midi out of audio

[mikethedrummer]

metal is a little vague IMO. if its the band is called iron metalli then youll be fine with good mic placement and a proper EQ

death metal is a different story
if the drummer plays a lot of fast and technical double bass, youre going to want to ensure there is plenty of click so that the speed stands out. as a drummer, metal just isnt the same without triggers or sound replacers. even if christ himself is tracking the drums, as speed increases, volume decreases. close micing and heavy compression can combat this, but i really dont think youll be content until you use samples. save your quarters, i dont think there is any way to make your bass drum sound any cheesier

[dangoudie]

D6 thumbsup

[cdog]

The Audix D6 is a sample, the people who think its a mic need to get their ears examined.

[VigilantSound]

Use an Audix D-6 inside the kick about half way to the head.(Make sure you move it around a little and find the sweet spot)

Then when mixing Do a low mid scoop around 60hrz.

And a high boast around 4000k (this may vary but as long as you add a little click to it)

Also lots of compression about 5:1 with a fast attack about 1 millisecond.

Also consider using triggers or a Pug-in like Drumagog. All the great metal bands use this.