Micing a Drumset with 2 Sm57's

[NosferatuMan]

How would I go about micing a drumset with only 2 sm57's?
I'm using a Tascam 414 mkii portastudio.

[LD Productions]

well, realistically just two 57's is NOT gonna be a great way to capture drums. but if that's all you have access to, i'd personally put one down by the drummer's right leg to capture snare and kick, and hopefully some toms. move the mic in small increments to try and balance the levels between each drum. on the second 57, i'd put it up as an overhead mic. try to capture a balance of cymbals, and the overall set. hopefully you have some way to eq and compress each channel, as 57's are VERY dynamic... hope this helps!

[Tomer1]

With 2 57s the drummer will have to play very unnaturally to creat a balanced sound for the recording.

I would go mono with 1 room mic and 1 bass drum.

[deafsound]

here's what you do....

set those 2 mics up anywhere in the room, get a good level, listen to the the playback, and if you like the way they sound where they are, use them.

if not, move them around until you like the way they sound on playback:
( one on the overhead, one near the kick

one in the room, one in the snare drum case

one behind the drummer, one on the backporch

one as an overhead pointing at the ceiling, one on the snare

one [wherever you like], one [wherever you like]).


this is a totally valid way of recording.

Bottom line is...whatever sounds good.

and sm57/58s are totally good enough to make good music.

[ohmicide]

get a condenser (or two) man..

like an mxl 603 or an audio-technica at-2020

if you absolutely MUST record with the sm57s then place one behind the drummers right shoulder (like around where the floor tom is) pointing at the snare and another one in front of the kit or inside the kick drum

that should get you somewhere

[benthebass]

+1 deafsound

There is no standard with 2 dynamics, use your ears and try some stuff out - find the thing that works for the song.

[jazbina]

Check this !
The All 57 Song by Kelly McGuire


3 X sm57 drum setup

[ndv]

that song settles a lot of microphone arguments i think!

listen to the vocals and the backing harmony vocals as well amazing considering the microphones used!

[RMJAZZ]

Originally Posted by jazbina

Check this !
The All 57 Song by Kelly McGuire


3 X sm57 drum setup

3 can be cool.....2 is dangerous! LOL I would surely try to get at least one condenser or a cheap ribbon for the overhead mic...Apex 205 would be cool for the same as a new 57...

A lot of inexpensive mic solutions can sound great with a great player and great kit. The problem is usually if you can only afford $200 worth of mics, the drum kit is going to be on the lower end of the scale. The deal is that you need to play with the set up for a long time and try all these ideas people are throwing out, and make up a few ideas of your own too. Who knows, we might be talking about how you got a cool sound with only 2 57's! LOL

Happy Sessions,
R

[Black Shadow]

If you're not terribly experienced, it's gonna be difficult to get good sounding drums this way. And without good sounding drums it's gonna be difficult to have a good sounding record...

My m.o. would be: record kick and snare together, then overdub hi-hats, crash, toms & ride.

Mix to taste and bounce it all together to a stereo track.

[jazbina]

Originally Posted by NosferatuMan

How would I go about micing a drumset with only 2 sm57's?
I'm using a Tascam 414 mkii portastudio.

Alternatively, you can try the Recorderman setup, but...

Here's the link !

Recorderman overhead drum mic technique - Hometracked

[mark.james]

Not sure how many of you guys follow Ronan's Recording Show, but I thought this was a good episode about getting a good drum sound with two mics or two inputs.

Ronan's Recording Show: Get drum sounds with only two mics or two inputs


Mark

[dysenterygary]

I would either use them as semi-overheads and work until you could get a good balance, and you'd have a stereo sound too! Compression will be a must though. On a different note doing the whole thing in different takes will work too. Several years ago my buddy and I recorded a 3 song demo, and only had a 2 track converter. We started with kick and snare, then added tom fills, and then finished w/hi hats and cymbals. It was a pain in the arse, but it worked! And it was fun.

[BLUElightCory]

I use this method to get some really nice drum sounds using only 2 57s - It's great for demos and other situations where the mics are limited - here's how I set it up on a standard 2-tom/kick/snare/hat/crash/ride kit (you may need to play with positioning for more complex kits):

Position the first 57 over the top of the kick drum, aimed at the snare. The diaphragm of the mic should be hovering somewhere close to the inner rim of the kick drum, about 3-6" up - position it closer or farther from the snare to alter the kick/snare balance.

Try to position this mic so that the rack tom blocks some of the hi-hat and crash on one side, and so that the back side of the 57 is rejecting some of the crash/ride on the opposite side.

This is great because:
- The snare and kick are prioritized and present.
- The mic is far enough from the snare to pick up the full sound of the snare, as opposed to just the top head/attack. This yields a natural snare sound.
- The mic will still pick up the rack and floor toms on either side of it.
- The rack tom and the null side of the 57 will keep the hat/crash/ride from getting too harsh.

Once you get the first mic positioned, you can use the 2nd 57 to fill in any holes in the drum sound. You may wish to use it as an overhead, kick mic, room mic, etc., or just discard it altogether and go for a simple, mono, perfectly phase-coherent drum sound.

[soul&folk]

If you only have 2 mics but really need a third and can't find a way, try plugging in a pair of headphones and see if they'll work as a mic. I know it can be done. Back in the 70s my band recrded a 2 hour rehearsal that way and it came out pretty well! Another option is to use a speaker from a stereo system as a mic for the bass. why get ripped off for something like this when you can do it yourself?

[gizeh12]

whoops

[twentyhertz]

Originally Posted by BigGreen

deafsound nailed it!


Just take your time and listen.
If you start getting confused, take a break.
Make a little copy of everything you try, so you can listen tomorrow.


Have fun!!!

Good luck!!!


D

+1 !!!

Advice like 'get a condenser' while well meaning doesn't answer the OP's question and doesn't teach anyone anything about recording.

Not that I claim to know anything about recording, mind you. But experimenting and learning mic placement and working with what you have is a lot more fun, rewarding, and educational than buying another piece of gear. IMHO

[allan]

I recorder some guys once where, for demos, the drummer put a towel on top of the kick and just sat a 57 pointing towards him on the towel, sounded surprisingly good, but still the best advice is to try stuff and go with whatever sounds best.

[Hammer Mark]

The first configuration I'd try would be front-of-kick (about 2-3' back) and mono overhead. Set overhead height to get the best blend of snare and cymbals, set the FOK distance to get the best kick sound when blended with the OH.

[Dr. Mordo]

Originally Posted by Hammer Mark

The first configuration I'd try would be front-of-kick (about 2-3' back) and mono overhead. Set overhead height to get the best blend of snare and cymbals, set the FOK distance to get the best kick sound when blended with the OH.

Yep, I was about to suggest this. This is how they recorded Ringo on the first Beatles albums, so I'd guess it works ok. If the cymbals are too loud, lower the mic, if they're too quiet raise it. I have a feeling you'll get very good results like this with your 57s. Just try not to bash the cymbals too hard.

On a number of occasions I have recorded the drums with two mics - once I put the mics about 10 feet in front of my kit and got a huge room sound out of them. I have also done the Ringo setup.

Lately I have been using dynamics as room mics instead of my ribbons or condensers (because I always have to turn down the treble anyway), which is sorta the way you'll be using your 57s. I'm also to the point where the only thing I'll use a ribbon or condenser on is vocals, and that's only because the noise floor becomes an issue with voice and a dynamic mic.

Always remember - what the gear is matter less than how you use it. There an infinite number of examples of people are coaxing great sounds out of gear that somebody else would say won't work.

Deafsound did nail it. You can get tons of usable drums sounds in unorthodox ways. They key is the find the most appropriate sound you can, and then mold the mix to fit around it. If it sounds good in the mix, it is good, no matter how you captured it.

[sleep over jack]

Originally Posted by NosferatuMan

How would I go about micing a drumset with only 2 sm57's?
I'm using a Tascam 414 mkii portastudio.

sounds pretty punk rock, so just mic the kick and snare. if you really need cymbals, overdub them with the same 57's at a later point in time.

[dustyreels]

Originally Posted by Dr. Mordo

On a number of occasions I have recorded the drums with two mics - once I put the mics about 10 feet in front of my kit and got a huge room sound out of them. I have also done the Ringo setup.

+1. How bout just trying a stereo front of kit set up. If phase is a issue just try it mono. You can move the mic(s) up and down, side to side, and back and forth to get the balance you're looking for! I also agree with the poster that said to pay attention to how hard the symbols are being hit, it can make or break any drum recording technique. Good luck, you may be surprised at the results!

[ohmicide]

Originally Posted by mark.james

Not sure how many of you guys follow Ronan's Recording Show, but I thought this was a good episode about getting a good drum sound with two mics or two inputs.

Ronan's Recording Show: Get drum sounds with only two mics or two inputs


Mark

ronnan is the best

[NosferatuMan]

Thanks for your advice guys. I really appreciate it, especially the people who told me that I should try whatever I wanted. It made me feel less weird & more confident when recording.

If you wanna hear what it ended up sounding like, you can check out the two songs on my bands myspace. WOMBERANG on MySpace Music - Free Streaming MP3s, Pictures & Music Videos
(I don't know what just happened to the font but I can't change it) I used one mic over the drummers right shoulder at an angle towards the snare, and one in front of the kick. Then I recorded the recording of drums, guitar, and keyboard, to my boss br600, and recorded vocals on that and mixed with Audacity, which I think kind of sucks.

Oh and myspace made the recordings sound a fair bit worse.
I think the songs themselves are pretty cool though, if the recordings aren't the best quality.

I'd appreciate any advice anyone has though (about improving the recordings not the songs)

[ohmicide]

good job man, drums sounded a better than i expected

you should try to keep the guitars from the middle though like on the ending of 'venus flytrap'

[davew]

Originally Posted by jazbina

Check this !
The All 57 Song by Kelly McGuire
3 X sm57 drum setup

agreed! sometimes people forget that talent and a good song has a lot to do with the sound as well. i've done some nice recordings using radio shack $15.00 mics back in the 80's.

[LD Productions]

drums sound decent! a quick improvement i hear would be to pan stuff a bit harder in either direction on some of the tracks. guitars, for me, never sit in the middle of the mix (unless its a lead guitar), they tend to sit more panned, to leave room for the drums and vox...

[danielperez808]

If I was on a deserted island and this was my situation here's what I'd do.

Put one overhead...and the other on the bass drum.

Now compress the crap out of the overhead one.
The cymbals might sound funky...but you'll have some attitude in the sound that might make it work.

I would try to add in one condenser if you could.
Even something inexpensive...anything.
If you can mic up the snare and bass drum with the sm57s and add a condenser for overheads.

Good luck and have fun.

[danielperez808]

I didn't even realize you had finished the recording...sorry...I didn't read the complete thread.
Checked it out. Sounds cool...nice to hear the northwest making music.

I started with audicity...I have to say...some of the best music I've made was made on audicity.