80's Snare Sound

[Almost Human]

So I've been listening to a handful of 80's albums lately, and the snare sound always strikes me. Then, I heard a commercial for an 80's hair metal compilation cd, and the snare was virtually identical on every track for every band...

So, how exactly does one achieve that 80's type snare sound?

[lobsterinn]

I believe a buttload of gated reverb was the formula. I think Phil Collins might have been the first one to do it. Thanks Phil...

[mixerguy]

Originally Posted by Almost Human

(snip) ....So, how exactly does one achieve that 80's type snare sound?

Publison Infernal Machine 90 (an early sampler) or perhaps an AMS with the memory option. You could put the snare track in sync (not repro) on the 2" machine - and then feed it to a gate, then a DDL - to be able to delay the trigger the right amount - to get the snare sample in time with the snare in the rest of the kit. You had to do it this way, as the samplers were slow - and couldn't trigger fast enough if triggered off the snare off the repro head.

[Sounds Great]

Originally Posted by lobsterinn

I believe a buttload of gated reverb was the formula. I think Phil Collins might have been the first one to do it. Thanks Phil...

Yup, gated reverb.



"something in the air, tonight" -snap-pop- "oh lord".... -snap-pop-


or

"I know, that your not alone" -snap-pop- "there's somethin' goin on" -snap-pop- "there's somethin' goin on" -snap-pop-

[stevep]

Drum booth.....sm57.....gate.....gated reverb......lexicon small plate= 80 snare


We almost never used the big room, unless we were replacing the drums.

I would have inserted the compressor in the chain but i usually would wait till mixdown to see if i wanted to use it.

You almost have to gate the mic or you send all the other drums to the gated reverb.
That can be cool to...... even on the kick and toms.


I would usually print the open snare mic and add the gate during mix.
We would still hear the reverb sound for recording so we had the feel and (close) to the final sound.



steve

[raal]

Originally Posted by Almost Human

So, how exactly does one achieve that 80's type snare sound?

AMS verb (ambience) - as overdone as the hair.

[Drumsound]

Originally Posted by Almost Human

So, how exactly does one achieve that 80's type snare sound?

Why, have Michael Wagener produce it of course!

[b-magical]

Drum Triggers with the Roland R8-M Drum Module. I still have mine

Warrant
Winger
Motley Crue

[picksail]

RMX -16 (*Non-linear #2)

[raal]

Originally Posted by b-magical

Drum Triggers with the Roland R8-M Drum Module. I still have mine

Warrant
Winger
Motley Crue

forat was the fastest sampler/trigger around - still have mine too.

forat + ams = def leppard, slaughter, etc.

[RadioMoo]

Where's wittman? He did The Outfield's "Your Love."

[Lindell]

Don't forget the trigger tom sample ON the snare....."spaaaaaahhhnk"

[Cujo]

Also, I think when it is a "real" snare, it sounds like no rim at all on the hit.

[mwagener]

Originally Posted by Drumsound

Why, have Michael Wagener produce it of course!

Hey, my motto is: "Everything worth doing, is worth overdoing!" And they just had invented all those nice expensive digital reverbs, so we had to use them, right?

I normally used a "Large Hall" in the Lexicon 480 or a large room in the Quantec QRS. Remove most of the early reflections, so all thats left is a smooth reverb tail, then eq the send to the verb so it's not too splashy. Make sure your predelay is set to about 30-40 ms, so the snare doesn't move totally into the back of the mix. In some cases I triggered a Simmons module and used just the low thump to send into verb. Never really gated the verb much.

On Skid Rows first album I (over-) used the "Listen comp" in the SSL with a 57 over the drummer's right shoulder. The drums were set up in a monsterously big convention center (the room fit 120 cars) and what you hear is mostly the actual room, very compressed.

Come to think of it, the last 10 years in mixing have been way too dry for me, time to put some heavy reverb back on the drums

[BevvyB]

Interesting on the low thump simmonds thing

What do you do similar to that nowadays? What's the 2006 equivalent?

Bev

[Bob Olhsson]

Of course there is also that snare sample that Clearmountain used on all of his mixes...

[Benjy King]

Bob Olhsson wrote: "Of course there is also that snare sample that Clearmountain used on all of his mixes..."

...and drum tech Paul Jamieson's snare(s) which were rented by the producers of the day.

[Bishbashbosh]

Originally Posted by raal

forat was the fastest sampler/trigger around - still have mine too.

forat + ams = def leppard, slaughter, etc.

Don't forget the Wendell. That's the snare sound that's all over Thriller!

Tuning the drum played a big part too. I remember using Clear Pinstripe/ CS heads tuned REALLY low. 421 on top, 57 underneath. ROCK!!!

[blackcatdigi]

Originally Posted by BevvyB

What do you do similar to that nowadays? What's the 2006 equivalent?

Trigger an 80Hz sine wave?

[mwagener]

Originally Posted by BevvyB

Interesting on the low thump simmonds thing

What do you do similar to that nowadays? What's the 2006 equivalent?

Bev

I record the snare with three mics to separate tracks, two on top and one underneath. On top I use an Octava (sp?) mic for the clean track and a Beyer 201 into an old, err vintage GrooveTubes MP-1 mic pre on stunn. That thing really distorts nicely and creates this fat overdriven snare tone. Cut some top end off and send that into the verb, similar to the Simmons setup. You can get similar results with running the top mic through an SPL Transientdesigner with attack to the left and decay to the right.

But sofar (during the last 10 years or so) I kept the drums fairly dry, because everybody hated "that 80s sound". Nor more of that, back to reverb, Phil Spector for President !!!

[mitchell]

Originally Posted by BevvyB

Interesting on the low thump simmonds thing

What do you do similar to that nowadays? What's the 2006 equivalent?

Bev

I wouldn't trigger an 80hz sine wave... might be kinda of intrusive (and not all that audible). If you want the boom, go with an 808 kick.

But the Def Leppard sound (think "Pour Some Sugar on Mehhhhh...."), as well as a million new wave songs (thing every other snare on the Talk Talk "Talk Talk" song) is a low Simmons tom. Best just to get a sample (I think you could Google one, can't remember where I got mine) and trigger it.

[Zeppelin4Life]

lots of compression, a good meaty low end (de-tuning and muffling of the drum, too), and of course that classic gated reverb.

[SiliconAudioLab]

Linn drum. Gated reverb (usually a 224 ort 480). Triggered as mentioned above.

[Bishbashbosh]

Don't forget the Wendell!!
That was the snare sound all over Thriller.

[PRobb]

Actually, "In the air tonight" was mostly room sound. The Townhouse in London had (has?) a drum room that is sort of a stone chimney. When you clap your hands in there, it sounds just like the ITAT verb. The "room mics" are very high. The key to that sound is no cymbals. The kit is just kick, snare and toms.

[SiliconAudioLab]

Rodger might have named his Wendell but the rest of world new them as Linn Drum Machines.

[waveterm]

Originally Posted by SiliconAudioLab

Rodger might have named his Wendell but the rest of world new them as Linn Drum Machines.

I take it that you´ve never seen a Wendell Labs sample player.........

WT

[SiliconAudioLab]

Why? I was a little busy working for Emu Systems at the time developing the Emulator I ~ IV

[PRobb]

Originally Posted by SiliconAudioLab

Rodger might have named his Wendell but the rest of world new them as Linn Drum Machines.

Two entirely different beasts.

[waveterm]

Originally Posted by PRobb

Two entirely different beasts.

Exactly.

WT