Actually... What's the best setting for the Over Heads Mics during recording. Left above the ride, right above the crash, as a weird AB couple, or a XY couple?? (the precison is important, there will be room mics)
In other terms, the question is should i mic the entire Drum Kit or just the cymbals with my OH mics...
Music is Hardcore, with the ride and the HHat beeing hit heavily.

I was never happy with spaced pair.

Same types of mics? Then I would go with X-Y.

skatingbasser wrote:I was never happy with spaced pair.

Same types of mics? Then I would go with X-Y.

Agreed. I do not record hardcore or really loud music most of the time... but I do use a pair of ribbons (Beyer M-500s) in an x-y position.

skatingbasser wrote:I was never happy with spaced pair.

Same types of mics? Then I would go with X-Y.

Thirded, especially with the addition of room mics.

I also usually count on a lot of the drum sound coming from the overheads; theyre not just there for cymbals.

endofanera wrote:I also usually count on a lot of the drum sound coming from the overheads; theyre not just there for cymbals.

Also good point. Many times I'll actually end up muting the toms.

if you have a nice room, its all about the overheads to achive the bulk of your drum sound. Or at least thats how i feel about them... but yes XY is better i've found.

Hi McNoodles from Josh,
I'm from France too (Dijon).
I do the same type of music (post hc with some pop)
I would go for X/Y ... more accurate but it's usefull to use some ambiance mic with this. And no phase problem with X/Y.
A/B is less accurate but give a good feeling of space & if you don't have any room mic it's maybe good.

Most of the time I use X/Y.
Bye. Peraps see you on stage one time. Nick.

The whole depth thing reminds me...

I've been sketching out some setups as I await my new mic to come in the mail, and I've been wondering if anyone has tried it.

It's basically like M-S but instead for one carioid, two. Tilted, not quite in XY, but getting there. I'm just trying to fix the problem of not being able to pan M-S, but still keep it's depth picture.

Tried it? Bad idea?

if the drummer is a monster cymbal basher, then in certain cases i find it works well to try using the overheads as a spaced pair of "underheads".
in other words spacing the mics about 5-10ft. on either side of the kit around waist height. or sometimes doing an X/Y or stereo mic in front of or behind the kit about waist height.
when this works, you get more drum and less cymbal, which is usually what i'm trying to do in these situations.

also playing very close attention to close mic placement and pickup pattern is also key- as that confounded 22" ride being smacked with the shaft of the stick will wind up EVERYWHERE if your not careful!

good luck.

for hardcore and other heavy stuff i really like spaced pairs. It's important to get a lot of definition and clarity with that stuff, especially with blast beats.

I like to use the overheads as spot mics for the cymbals, one on each side of the kit. Placement is pretty crucial though and heavily dependant on the drummer's style and cymbals. I generally use directional mics and keep them relatively close to the cymbals to avoid too much room sound. I usually end up moving mics around to get a good balance of high hats/ ride/ crash. These mics are mixed in pretty low, just enough to give definition to the cymbals. The stereo pair for the room takes care of providing a more realistic representation of the kit.

I rely a lot on close mics for the kick, snare and toms, use the overheads for cymbal definition and a stereo pair for the room mics (usually spaced omnis) to provide realism and depth.