Idea I just had for drum samples...

[Sabian576]

You might be okay on the coffee, I'd just lay off the crack!


That would make for a funny pic though.

[drmmrboy]

I like it..

(Please send me some of that coffee.)

[Bang]

We actually did this and will be in the version 2 upgrade of our drum sample collection. Oh and yes, I am just f&cking with you.

[AlexLakis]

Originally Posted by drmmrboy

(Please send me some of that coffee.)

The kind of coffee I had can't be sent thru the U.S. mail.

Originally Posted by Bang

We actually did this and will be in the version 2 upgrade of our drum sample collection. Oh and yes, I am just f&cking with you.

So that's what's been taking so long, eh, Steve? (Right back atcha, buddy! Please take your time, I'm getting great mileage out of V1. I played the latest demo you posted on some half-busted $2 RCA "computer" headphones and the kick translated better than most kicks do out of my Event TR-8Ns! Is there any system they won't cut thru on?)

[RainbowStorm]

Originally Posted by AlexLakis

Has anybody ever tried setting up a bunch of speakers and arranging them like you would a drumset, the blasting drum samples out of the respective speakers and micing it up like you normally would a real drumset?

Or did I just drink way too much coffee today?

I have tried micing samples and that works great... The possible advantage of placing one or several speakers per drum I guess would be the comb filtering effects of using different speaker angles and get different frequencies from each drum due to the "bleeding" effect. Besides that, it gives you the possibility of adding room mics to the sound, which is very important when it comes to capturing the natural ambience of the drums. You can of course take this concept further and use different kinds of amps+speakers per drum, for instance also using a subwoofer on the kick (some subs have soft clipping which could work great before a compressor to get a nice soft attack), plus placing additional mics near good sounding reflection points.

You might want to run the samples dry just to not end up with weird sounding ambience effects.

[frugalpole]

Originally Posted by AlexLakis

Has anybody ever tried setting up a bunch of speakers and arranging them like you would a drumset, the blasting drum samples out of the respective speakers and micing it up like you normally would a real drumset?

Or did I just drink way too much coffee today?

actually just did this w/ a snare to augment the actual snare sound. there wasn't really any snare (the actual snare sound) there. worked like a charm.

especially since the tracking of the drums was REALLY loose to the click. and programming wasn't really a good option as amount of time/work was concerned.

[AlexLakis]

Originally Posted by RainbowStorm

You might want to run the samples dry just to not end up with weird sounding ambience effects.

Absolutely.

I've run sampled kits (main stereo bounce) out and mic'd the speakers before with good results.

This might be kinda weird tho, because the projection of the sound would be a little more focused/directional coming out of speakers than an actual drum, I'd think. It'd be different, that's for sure.

[novsam]

i like the idea... it certainly wouldn't sound like a real drum kit if that's what you're trying to accomplish... because of the directionality of a speaker compared to the directionality and resonance of a real drum

[AlexLakis]

Originally Posted by novsam

i like the idea... it certainly wouldn't sound like a real drum kit if that's what you're trying to accomplish... because of the directionality of a speaker compared to the directionality and resonance of a real drum

Ha! Beat ya to it! You must have drank the same coffee I did today.

[novsam]

blah sorry... definetly read the whole thread and didn't see that...

[AlexLakis]

I think we posted at the same time.

So guys, what would your go-to hi hat speaker be? Maybe I'll just rack up a bunch of Avatones with drum stands and duct tape. Maybe I'll take the contraption on tour with me (won't have to split gig money with a drummer!)

[sonicdefault]

This general approach is already being used to record virtual orchestras live. I'm about to go to Starbucks...

[nandoanalog]

You`re taking it to another level. Instead of hitting plastic skins with drum sticks, we`ll be hitting speakers!!!

Sounds expensive....

[AlexLakis]

Originally Posted by nandoanalog

You`re taking it to another level. Instead of hitting plastic skins with drum sticks, we`ll be hitting speakers!!!

Sounds expensive....

Drum sticks would be replaced by trout or small rockfish. That way, the drummer wouldn't have to take breaks to eat! Might get a little more smelly in the tracking room than usual, tho...

[novsam]

the more i think about this, the more i am convinced that this would just sound like a lot of low-mid garbage when the faders get brought up... still a cool idea though

[RainbowStorm]

Originally Posted by AlexLakis

Absolutely.

I've run sampled kits (main stereo bounce) out and mic'd the speakers before with good results.

This might be kinda weird tho, because the projection of the sound would be a little more focused/directional coming out of speakers than an actual drum, I'd think. It'd be different, that's for sure.

Yep, it could sound a bit weird due to that, but it might also be a very interesting sound. Synthogy Ivory is sampled with on option of being able to select audience or instrument position, as far as I know that's a similar kind of directional sampling that really works, even though that's a more natural sample process...

A lot of engineers mix the "room" sample sound with the direct sound, you might end up there... These days engineers use almost every imaginable way of getting the frequencies they want, leaving an open mind to approaches like these will pay off...

The room plays a more critical role here, no matter the amount of speakers you use and how you position them... So I think I would spend more time looking for a nice useful room/hall to recapture the samples in...

This whole process is probably a bit more about replacing, rather than adding or removing, so it's really a plus if you can transparently remove what you'll try to successfully replace...

[RainbowStorm]

Originally Posted by novsam

the more i think about this, the more i am convinced that this would just sound like a lot of low-mid garbage when the faders get brought up... still a cool idea though

The interesting thing that I find about this is that gear tend to sometimes unpredictably color the sound in a beautiful way, so even though this technique doesn't do what it's supposed to you might end up with a secondary effect that is useful... Of course that secondary effect could also just be noise...

[novsam]

good point my friend

[AlexLakis]

Originally Posted by RainbowStorm

Of course that secondary effect could also just be noise...

...And could possibly be achieved practically by using techniques that didn't involve that kind of setup time (and that many speakers!)

Heh, you could mic every drum with a Yamaha Subkick. Imagine how whack that would look.

[richardswag]

Should this thread be moved to the 'Great Ideas For Album Covers' forum?

On a more serious note, I recently ran my drum mix through a Fender Blues Jr and mixed it in low - very nice - will definitely be doing this again. I have a feeling I'm not alone in doing this though...

[RainbowStorm]

Originally Posted by AlexLakis

...And could possibly be achieved practically by using techniques that didn't involve that kind of setup time (and that many speakers!)

Heh, you could mic every drum with a Yamaha Subkick. Imagine how whack that would look.

Heh, yep... But keep exploring like this, chances are that in this case the focus in itself is much more worth than the particular result you achieve by setting up the drums like this. Your curiosity screams "I'm creative". Often when you look for new better options you don't find the options you were looking for in order to target the primary issue, but you might find a solution to some secondary issue or you might find out how good/bad something that already works/doesn't work, really works/doesn't work and that's sometimes what you really need in order to head in the right direction from there... And sometimes you simply nail it big time! Also keep an open mind in terms of application here, it might for instance not work on drums and work great on some other instrument. I once happened to try what my Fender strat would sound like through my Yamaha keyboard amp+speakers+signal processor, the distortion sound was bad but the clean sound was awesome...

BTW, have you checked out the Nasvhille package for EZ Drummer? I saw it is currently a bestseller at soundsonline.com and from what I can tell it is the best drums I've heard so far coming from samples... I'm planning to purchase it myself...

[Stevil]

Originally Posted by AlexLakis

Has anybody ever tried setting up a bunch of speakers and arranging them like you would a drumset, the blasting drum samples out of the respective speakers and micing it up like you normally would a real drumset?

Or did I just drink way too much coffee today?

this reminds me of a trick a friend w/ an electronic band did @ a gig.
he programmed his beats on a drum machine & separated kick & snare on a 4 track or whatever. send yer kick out a bass cab with a full sized kick drum in front of it & the snare out a smallish guit cab with a snare in front of it. gives yer electronic beats a more natural tone. i'm guessing for studio experiments the next step would be to mic em up.

i like yer idea too but i dont have that many speakers handy.

[jchas]

Or you could try this...
MIDI driven drumstick motors. Controllable to 127 levels of dynamics.
Compatable with wood tip, plastic tip, mallets, HotRods, or Brushes.
Plugs directly into drum brain or sequencer.
Available in sets of 2 for each drum. Clamps will accommodate both drum hoops
and Cymbal stands.
SysEx messages can be programmed in for the following:
Stick-click intros
Stick twirls
Throwing one stick at the bass-player when he looses the pocket

[Pasta4lnch]

fwiw - i had a buddy who got good results by using that mic that looks like a head to get a fake room sound for midi drum loops . . .