Modern Rock Snare

[silverdisk]

Not sure which is the right area for 'how to ' threads, but here goes,


Any of you guys have a suggestion on how to get that ' shotgun blast in a

warehouse'

modern rock snare sound? The band 'Submersed' has it on their tune 'Hollow"



http://www.submersed.com/audio.html


im guessing it has to do with samples?, but id prefer a way to get it witout using

samples


thanks guys

[warhead]

Nowadays it probably is a sample, but of course you gotta start with a snare that sounds like a shotgun is going off (I know you know this!). Playing with a compressor and not setting the attack too quick (don't kill the inital hit) could net a nice result but don't choke the life out of it. Mostly I would attribute it to the snare and player unless it's a sample and even then...the snare and the player of the sample!

That snare isn't real choked sounding either, many drummers choke their snare strands too tightly and it kills the "BLAM" and sounds more like a "whump". Nice tuning on it too.

EQ it, and play with the low end (maybe 200Hz) to add that oomph. Mic selection...don't be afraid to throw a condensor on top of that snare (even an LDC) and if you use a bottom mic phase reverse it or shift it around in the DAW as you could lose a lot of punch if it's out in a bad way.

War

[paultools]

Here goes:

A quality drum with good heads tuned properly
A musician that knows how to hit it (MOST IMPORTANT!)
A close mic- Shure SM57 is the consensus
A good pair of OH mics- AKG 451/Neuman KM84/AKGC12 (check phase)
A good room
Room mics eq'ed and compressed to taste (spend time placing them)
Parallel EQ and compression when mixing
A cool-sounding reverb to send the snare to, be it a real chamber or plate, or something digital.

That's really all there is to it. No smoke and mirrors. Check out M Waegner's thread:
http://gearslutz.com/board/showthrea...5&page=1&pp=30
Great snare there... too bad he took down the audio clip.

[84K]

Definitely sample... a modern rock popular snare that I love is the Brady Jarrah Block Wood Snare.... (pictured Below)

http://www.bradydrums.com.au/f_home.php


And Spaun makes some amazing Snare drums (as well as Drum kits)....

http://www.spaundrums.com/

Spaun and DW are my favourites Drum kit makers....

Wood Snare is always the Spaun or the smaller (but not a piccolo) Jarrah Brady.

Very modern... a lot of the top rock guys are using them.

But, everyone is big on SR. Snare samples blended with the original. My only advise...
If you sample a snare and trigger it with an SR program, I would print it to a separate track, and do manual moves to tighten it up. No program locks it in perfect every hit... Ruff it in, then manually lock it. Each and every hit. Also, when you are using your SR plug, vary your setting depending on how much action is going on with the drum you are SR/sampling...

Always record your snare mics with NO gate and NO compression. Trust me. Save that for mixing.

[Phil Buckle]

It's the drum but a big part of that sound is the predelay on the ambience.
Get the tempo, calculate the delays in 8th and 16th notes (download a music math calculator), dial in the predelay on a good short ambient reverb and adjust...be subtle.

Princeton Digital 2016 TDM plug is designed for this.

[djui5]

Get a really really big live room, and stick some very very well placed room mic's. Squash em. Add some cheeze. Make sure you got a drummer who know's how to make his/her drums crack properly. It's all in the wrist, literally.

[84K]

Originally Posted by djui5

Get a really really big live room, and stick some very very well placed room mic's. Squash em. Add some cheeze. Make sure you got a drummer who know's how to make his/her drums crack properly. It's all in the wrist, literally.

I would not crush the snare when recording the drums unless you know that sound is exactly what you want.... I rarely do.... Hey, if you slam it too hard, you may end up with strange urges like wanting to sound replace your Overheads!!!

[djui5]

Originally Posted by 84K

I would not crush the snare when recording the drums unless you know that sound is exactly what you want.... I rarely do.... Hey, if you slam it too hard, you may end up with strange urges like wanting to sound replace your Overheads!!!

[cfjis]

FWIW, I'm pretty sure that's a metal (probably brass) snare drum (like a Black Beauty or the Hitmaker by Drum Paradise in LA)... and it sounds like a pretty deep one, too.

Cheers,
Charles

[Wiggy Neve Slut]

Originally Posted by djui5

. It's all in the wrist, literally.

so is wanking.. lol lol
Wiggy

[Grasshopper]

Get the drummer to hit the rim and the center of the head simultaneously. Also the longer he/she holds the stick against the the rim after striking it, the better. And what the above sluts said couldn't hurt either

[Jamz]

Originally Posted by 84K

I would not crush the snare when recording the drums unless you know that sound is exactly what you want.... I rarely do.... Hey, if you slam it too hard, you may end up with strange urges like wanting to sound replace your Overheads!!!

That is good advice. I sometimes find inexperienced engineers enjoying their new compressors a little too much.
Facist-like compression when recording the snare is a vibe killer that can paint your drum sound into a corner....then you absolutely need to replace with a sample of a better recorded snare.

[alphajerk]

try micing the side of the snare... use that for the meat... needs like no compression, evens out oddball head hits than top micing... use in combination with top micing for the crack.

add verb, use predelay to keep the initial hit dry and then the verb following. i like putting a widener/spatializer on the verb.

i also like said, really play with the snare itself. getting the right head for the song, right shell size for the song... tuning it into submission [not a big fan of any of the ring for this type sound] so get the snare sounding really crisp and tight. i like a CM700 on top and some LDC in f8 on the side with the hat in the null space of the pattern.

if you have it available... pump the snare track through a stairwell and mic it for verb.

[jbuntz]

Originally Posted by cfjis

FWIW, I'm pretty sure that's a metal (probably brass) snare drum (like a Black Beauty or the Hitmaker by Drum Paradise in LA)... and it sounds like a pretty deep one, too.

Cheers,
Charles

The Pork Pie BOB doesn't suck either. Just picked one up and love it. Also triggering in room samples is a cool "reverb," usual sounding more real than a reverb box. It can make for a good cymbal-less room mic. You can get away with brighter room sounds that way.

[silverdisk]

Wow


You guys really came through... TONS of good stuff here . thumbsup

[djui5]

Originally Posted by Jamz

That is good advice. I sometimes find inexperienced engineers enjoying their new compressors a little too much.
Facist-like compression when recording the snare is a vibe killer that can paint your drum sound into a corner....then you absolutely need to replace with a sample of a better recorded snare.

This is very true.

For the record, I was refering to the room mic's when I said "squash it".

[84K]

Yes, 90% of the time when I cut drums I like very little or NO compression, but there have been a few instances that I was ready to marry a sound... sometimes that snare destruction feels right for the song when recording. RARELY, but I have gotten results I have been very happy with in slamming the snare mic... but like I said, RARELY! I would not recommend it to anyone (slamming th snare mic) unless 1) you are very comfortable with what you are doing and 2) if you are in a position to make that kind of decision for the song... If you're not, The band/artist/producer/mixer may kill you later!! tutt

[Jamz]

[eyesore]

Record the drums in a warehouse. This was done a lot in the 80s. I didn't realize it was back in vogue now, though it is a sound I like. I didn't listen to the clip, but just going from the sound you described.