Drum Mic Differences

Shaft · 4th October 2005

Anyone have experience with the following:

Will an SM57 sound as good (accurate) as a Beta98 or a Beta56? Are the Betas worth the price for just the size/mounting convenience or is the sound significantly better? (I know that's subjective, but any input is helpful).

What about e604s and Audix D2s compared to the above?

Lastly, how would you characterize a Beyer M201 compared to the 57 on snare? Worth the extra dough?

Thanks

doorknocker · 4th October 2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shaft

Anyone have experience with the following:

Will an SM57 sound as good (accurate) as a Beta98 or a Beta56? Are the Betas worth the price for just the size/mounting convenience or is the sound significantly better? (I know that's subjective, but any input is helpful).

What about e604s and Audix D2s compared to the above?

Lastly, how would you characterize a Beyer M201 compared to the 57 on snare? Worth the extra dough?

I much prefer the sound of the 57 to the Beta57 version. The Beta57 is less 'transparent' and somehow 'tamer'.

I don't think that the 57 is an 'accurate' mic but mostly that's not what 'we' want from it. It's very important to have a good pre for the 57, the low gain of the 57 (and even more so the SM7) might give the impression of 'weaker' sound when using a not-ao-great pre.

I love the Beyer M201 on snare. It's smoother than the 57 and it's better at keeping offending hi-hat frequencies out of the snare mic.
You need both! The 201 on snare takes EQ well in the mix but there are songs/sounds where a 57 will be perfect for a somewhat 'dirtier' sound. The 201 on the other hand has more depth and warmth without being too soft.
Personally, I haven't used a 57 on snare for a long time but I started to love them on acoustic guitar for sounds that work beautifully in a mix and are surprisingly 'pristine' without being 'new-age-y'.

I find the 201 to be a workhorse mic, great for acoustic guitar, amps, I even did some vocals with it!

Shaft · 4th October 2005

Excellent information, Andi. That's exactly the kind of input I'm looking for. On the Drum Mic Shootout done a while back on this site, my sense also was that a 57 was very transparent.

Thank you very much my friend.

BTW - I like your site. When and if I get out there, I'd love to visit your studio.

doorknocker · 4th October 2005

Thanks Shaft

you're welcome to visit my place if you're ever coming to Switzerland!

BTW, I'm coming to California in November. I'm playing some gigs with my pardner Mark Wise, we'll be in the SF Bay/Sonoma County aera though and probably won't head south.

Shaft · 4th October 2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by doorknocker

BTW, I'm coming to California in November. I'm playing some gigs with my pardner Mark Wise, we'll be in the SF Bay/Sonoma County aera though and probably won't head south.

If you change your mind and make it down to San Diego be our guest for dinner and drinks. And a place to crash if you ever need it.

doorknocker · 5th October 2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shaft

If you change your mind and make it down to San Diego be our guest for dinner and drinks. And a place to crash if you ever need it.

Thanks a bundle! You're very kind.

uncle duncan · 9th October 2005

The SM57 is cardiod, which gives you better rejection of the hi-hat. The Beta's are proabably hpyercardiod or supercardiod, which means the pickup pattern will allow more hi-hat leakage. Not a good thing.

blueman · 9th October 2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by uncle duncan

The SM57 is cardiod, which gives you better rejection of the hi-hat. The Beta's are proabably hpyercardiod or supercardiod, which means the pickup pattern will allow more hi-hat leakage. Not a good thing.

From my understanding, it’s just the opposite: It is much easier to place an hipercardiod for a great HH leakage rejection than a cardiod. In the standard placement for the snare mic between the hat and the first tom, the nule angle of an Hyper will aim easily to the hat, while a cardiod will capture a good amount of hat in that same position.

numchukskillls · 9th October 2005

Super and Hyper patterns do reject more. I have used beta 98s on toms before and besides for being able to mount them anywhere you want I didn't really like the sound of them. They had a very full, rubbery sound on toms that I really couldn't shape very well(which really could be my own incompetence.) They did, however, have excellent rejection. I personally am a big fan of the AT ATM25s and Sennheiser 421s for the same application. The ATs are even cheaper than the Shures. I've never tried a 98 on a snare so I can't comment there but I have tried a 57 on toms and it sounds pretty decent. Overall I think there are better and cheaper alternatives to the 98 for each specific drum application. The 98 does have the cool mounting and the nice rejection going for it though.

aussie_techie · 9th October 2005

personally i like the beta 56A/57A (same capsule) better, they are also much stronger and can take a hit if it should happen, sm57 only has that week plastic around the capsule and will just smash. it is very subjective and will also depend alot on the drum and music, some like beta 98s others hate them. i say stick with a dynamic and use what works for you and what fits into your budget. you will get a bigger difference out of tuning the drum and a good sounding room, also try and get the main sound through your O/H dont worry about which tom mic to much
the betas are Super-cardiod (not quite the same as hyper) so they are more directional. if you dont know your basic polar patters you need to do some reading

AlexLakis · 9th October 2005

The e604 just recently grew on me. I've only used it for toms, brass, and beatboxing, and the tone is aight, but it needs EQ. The Pultec worked well with it. Got great tone from the toms on my latest effort. As compared to the SM57, they're very different. I have never used it on snare before, but it might work well for a squash track. It's a little less middy and a little more muddy. The clips will rattle a bit, tho.

4th October 2005	#1
Shaft Gear addict Joined: Sep 2005 Location: San Diego Posts: 318 Thread Starter	Drum Mic Differences Anyone have experience with the following: Will an SM57 sound as good (accurate) as a Beta98 or a Beta56? Are the Betas worth the price for just the size/mounting convenience or is the sound significantly better? (I know that's subjective, but any input is helpful). What about e604s and Audix D2s compared to the above? Lastly, how would you characterize a Beyer M201 compared to the 57 on snare? Worth the extra dough? Thanks __________________ "Be just and if you can't be just, be arbitrary." -William S. Burroughs -Shaft

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4th October 2005	#4
doorknocker Lives for gear Joined: Nov 2002 Location: Basel, Switzerland Posts: 6,206 1 Review written	Thanks Shaft you're welcome to visit my place if you're ever coming to Switzerland! BTW, I'm coming to California in November. I'm playing some gigs with my pardner Mark Wise, we'll be in the SF Bay/Sonoma County aera though and probably won't head south.

9th October 2005	#7
uncle duncan Lives for gear Joined: Oct 2005 Posts: 3,713	The SM57 is cardiod, which gives you better rejection of the hi-hat. The Beta's are proabably hpyercardiod or supercardiod, which means the pickup pattern will allow more hi-hat leakage. Not a good thing.

9th October 2005	#9
numchukskillls Gear Head Joined: Sep 2005 Posts: 48	Super and Hyper patterns do reject more. I have used beta 98s on toms before and besides for being able to mount them anywhere you want I didn't really like the sound of them. They had a very full, rubbery sound on toms that I really couldn't shape very well(which really could be my own incompetence.) They did, however, have excellent rejection. I personally am a big fan of the AT ATM25s and Sennheiser 421s for the same application. The ATs are even cheaper than the Shures. I've never tried a 98 on a snare so I can't comment there but I have tried a 57 on toms and it sounds pretty decent. Overall I think there are better and cheaper alternatives to the 98 for each specific drum application. The 98 does have the cool mounting and the nice rejection going for it though.

9th October 2005	#10
aussie_techie Lives for gear Joined: Jan 2004 Location: Perth, Australia Posts: 2,709	personally i like the beta 56A/57A (same capsule) better, they are also much stronger and can take a hit if it should happen, sm57 only has that week plastic around the capsule and will just smash. it is very subjective and will also depend alot on the drum and music, some like beta 98s others hate them. i say stick with a dynamic and use what works for you and what fits into your budget. you will get a bigger difference out of tuning the drum and a good sounding room, also try and get the main sound through your O/H dont worry about which tom mic to much the betas are Super-cardiod (not quite the same as hyper) so they are more directional. if you dont know your basic polar patters you need to do some reading

9th October 2005	#11
AlexLakis Lives for gear Joined: Mar 2005 Location: Annapolis, MD/Los Angeles, CA Posts: 3,631	The e604 just recently grew on me. I've only used it for toms, brass, and beatboxing, and the tone is aight, but it needs EQ. The Pultec worked well with it. Got great tone from the toms on my latest effort. As compared to the SM57, they're very different. I have never used it on snare before, but it might work well for a squash track. It's a little less middy and a little more muddy. The clips will rattle a bit, tho.