Recording Drums: The Complete Guide

Description

Recording great drum sounds is one of the most challenging tasks facing any drummer, audio engineer, or music producer. Capturing the variety, nuance, and excitement of the drum kit and other percussion instruments is part art, part science, and part creative experimentation--and there's a lot more to it than simply setting up a mic and hitting the Record button. In this comprehensive book, recording engineer/producer/mixer Mike Major leads you through the sometimes complex and often misunderstood art of recording drums. Along the way, you'll cover all the ins and outs, including establishing the drums' role in the song, preparing the drum kit (and the room) for recording, choosing microphones and getting sounds, and tracking, overdubbing, editing, and choosing the final take. Not only will you find plenty of tips and techniques to help your recordings sound better than ever, you'll also be inspired to examine the philosophies and thought processes that go into creating and capturing drum sounds that are unique, interesting, and powerful. With plenty of helpful illustrations and sample setups, and all of the files you need on the companion website, RECORDING DRUMS: THE COMPLETE GUIDE puts you on the fast track to great drum sounds. Cover Contents Introduction Chapter 1 Getting Started Considering the Role of the Song Having a Plan from the Beginning Drawing Inspiration from Other Artist’s Drum Sounds Consider How the Instrumentation and Genre Influence the Drum Sound Know the Drummer’s Expectations Establish a Vision Early On Methods to Keep You on Track Work on the Drum Sound with the Drummer and the Producer Involve the Drummer in the Drum Sound Establish a Well-Balanced Drum Mix as Early as Possible Summary Chapter 2 A Solid Foundation: The Drummer and the Drums Understanding the Role of the Drummer How Inexperience Can Affect Expectations Great Drummers Produce Great Recordings Understanding the Role of the Drums Buy the Best Drums You Can Afford Make the Most of What You Have Choosing Drum Heads Tuning Your Drums Muffling the Kick Drum Tuning for Pitch or “Spread” Between Toms How the Song’s Arrangement Can Affect the Tuning Choosing Cymbals Choosing Drum Sticks and Bass Drum Beaters The Drummer’s Technique Great Drummers Hit the Drum in the Center Great Drummers Don’t Bury the Stick in the Drum Head Great Drummers Mix Themselves Good Drummers Use Rim Shots Appropriately Setting Up the Drum Kit for Best Results Summary Chapter 3 The Acoustics of the Recording Space How Size Affects the Recording Room How the Floor Affects the Sound of the Recording Space How the Walls Affect the Sound of the Recording Space Wall Construction Types The Effect of Wall Finishes and Treatments How the Ceiling Affects the Sound of the Space Ceiling Construction Ceiling Height How Doors and Windows Affect the Sound of the Space Doors Windows Common Acoustical Characteristics in Rooms Dealing with the Room Acoustics Wall Reflections Temporary Installations for Controlling Wall Reflections: Absorbers Dealing with a Low Ceiling Temporary Floor Treatments Determining the Best Location for the Drum Kit Designing the Control Room Summary Chapter 4 Preparing to Record Being Prepared Won’t Kill Your Creativity! Pre-Recording Checklist Time or Budget Limitations How Important Is the Drum Sound to the Sound of the Project? Other Sources and the Recording System The Size of the Drum Kit and Setup and the Number of Mics Use of Preamps, Console, or Patchbay Recording with a Click Track Drummer Is Tracking with Other Musicians Preparing the Recording Medium Analog Recording Preparing to Record Digitally Summary Chapter 5 Choosing Microphones Understanding What the Mic Brings to the Table Mic Choice Philosophy 101 The Simple Approach to Miking Understanding the Different Microphone Types Condenser Mics Dynamic Mics Ribbon Mics Understanding Polar Patterns Understanding Frequency Response Other Considerations in Mic Choice Off-Axis Response Using “Standard” Microphones Setting the Tone with Microphone Selection Looking at the Standards from Another Perspective The Importance of Using Good Mic Stands Mic Stand Isolation Devices The Importance of Good Mic Cables Summary Chapter 6 Microphone Placement Using the Directional Characteristics of Microphones Choosing the Best Location to Place the Mic Understanding Where the Drum’s Tone Comes From Location, Location, Location Adjusting the Mic Angle Vertically Adjusting the Mic Angle Horizontally Distance = Difference How Mixing Can Reveal Problems with Ambient Bleed Using Multiple Mics on a Drum Point: One Mic Is Better Than Two Counterpoint: Two Mics Are Better Than One Multiple Mics and Phase Cancellation What Do Phase Problems Sound Like? Using Phase Anomalies for Tone Shaping The 3:1 Rule The 1:1 Rule? Miking a Drum from Top and Bottom Disadvantages of Using Multiple Mics on One Drum Multiple Mics and Multiple Arrival Times A Comprehensive Approach to Successfully Combining Multiple Mics Miking the Kick Drum Placing a Mic Inside the Kick Drum Placing a Mic Outside the Kick Drum Using Multiple Mics on the Kick Drum Are Three Mics Better Than One? Summary Chapter 7 Stereo, Mono, and Multi-Mic Techniques A Brief History of Stereo Recording Stereo Recording and Drums Some Common Stereo Mic Techniques Coincident Pair or X/Y Technique The Blumlein Pair The Spaced Pair The ORTF Technique Mid-Side Technique Recording Drums in Mono Mono with One Microphone Mono Mic Placement Mono with Multiple Mics Recording Drums in Stereo Recording Stereo Using Only Two Inputs Using Stereo Miking Techniques to Supplement a Multi-Mic Setup Using Room Mics Summary Chapter 8 Microphone Selection Guide Mic Options for the Inside of the Kick Drum First Choice: The Shure Beta 52 Second Choice: The AKG D112 A Few Other Choices for the Inside of the Kick Drum Mic Options for the Outside of the Kick Drum First Choice: The Neumann U47/U48 Tube Mic Second Choice: The Neumann U47fet A Few Other Choices for the Outside of the Kick Drum Best Choices for Miking the Snare Top First Choice: The Shure SM57 Second Choice: Heil PR-31 Third Choice: Neumann KM 84 Other Choices for Miking the Snare Top Best Choices for Miking the Snare Bottom First Choice: Sennheiser MD 441 Second Choice: AKG C 451 B/EB/C 452 EB A Few Other Choices for Miking the Snare Bottom Best Choices for Miking the Hi-Hat First Choice: Neumann KM 84/KM 184 Second Choice: Audio-Technica AT4041 A Few Other Choices for Miking the Hi-Hat Best Choices for Miking the Toms First Choice: Josephson e22S Second Choice: AKG C 414 (EB, B-ULS, B-XLS) Third Choice: Sennheiser MD 421 Other Choices for Miking the Toms Best Choices for Miking the Overhead Mics First Choice: Telefunken ELA M251 Second Choice: AKG C12 Third Choice: RØDE Classic Other Choices for Miking the Overhead Mics Best Mic Choices for OH Mics: Small Diaphragm Condensers (SDCs) First Choice: Neumann KM 84 Second Choice: Mercenary Audio KM 69 Third Choice: AKG 460 Best Room Mic Options First Choice: Coles 4038 Studio Ribbon Mic Second Choice: Neumann/Telefunken U47 Best Specialty Mic Options Granelli Audio Labs G5790 Yamaha Subkick The Crown PZM The Placid Audio Copperphone Summary Chapter 9 Understanding Consoles, Recorders, and Levels Recording Console Basics The Importance of Console Labeling Common Console Labeling Understanding Gain Structure Following Good Level Setting Practices Special Considerations for Analog Tape Analog Tape “Warmth” Digital Audio Basics Digital Resolution and Quality Hyper-Limiting and Distortion Setting Levels While Recording Digitally Differences in Level Setting When Using Mix Busses The DAW Mixer Maintaining Headroom in Your DAW Mixer Summary Chapter 10 Mic Preamps How Important Is High-Quality Gear? Mic Preamp Types Discrete, Transformer-Coupled Mic Preamps Tube Mic Preamps Transformer-less, Discrete Transistor Mic Preamps IC-Based Mic Preamps Preamps: It’s All in How You Run ’Em Choosing Mic Preamps Using the Same Type of Mic Preamp on Everything Using Many Different Types of Mic Preamps Pairing Mics with Mic Preamps Summary Chapter 11 Tracking Mixes Patching and Routing Mics to the Recorder Monitoring Through the Recorder Some Tracking Mix Guidelines Maintaining Balance and Perspective Creating a Good Tracking Mix Another Residual Benefit of a Good Tracking Mix Summary Chapter 12 An EQ Overview The Fletcher-Munson Equal Loudness Contours Monitor Volume and How It Can Affect Your Results and Your Hearing Monitor Volume and How It Can Affect How You Use EQ How the Intended Audience Can Affect Your Monitor Levels Using EQ Training Your Ears to Identify Frequencies Defining the Frequency Ranges EQ Guidelines EQing Specific Drums Other Considerations When Using EQ Choosing EQs First Choice: OH Mics Second Choice: Snare Drum Top Third Choice: Kick Drum Inside Fourth Choice: Toms Last Choices: Hi-Hat, Snare Bottom, and Room Mics Summary Chapter 13 Processing Drums Dynamics Processing Compressor/Limiters: A Primer Common Compressor Parameters Gain Reduction Circuit Types Why Compressors Sound the Way They Do How Attack and Release Times Affect the Tone of the Drums How the Compression Ratio Affects the Sound of Compression Common Over-Compression Artifacts Two Cool Compression Techniques Using Noise Gates Threshold Range Ratio Attack Hold Release/Decay Key Source (Internal/External) Key Filters Tips for Using Noise Gates Common Errors When Using Noise Gates Using Transient Shapers Phase Manipulation Summary Chapter 14 Creating Cue Mixes The Balancing Act of Creating Cue Mixes One Cue Mix for Everyone Personal Cue Mixers Sweetening a Cue Mix The Importance of Quality Headphones The Subjective Sound Quality of Headphones Choosing Headphones for a Specific Task Headphone Impedance Design Differences in Headphones Durability and Serviceability of Headphones Comfort Is King In-Ear Monitors Using Click Tracks When Not to Use a Click Track Setting Click Levels in the Headphones Keeping the Click Out of the Mics Summary Chapter 15 Tracking and Editing Tracking Alone or with the Band Tracking as a Band Tracking Each Player Separately Together or Alone: Which Approach Is Best? Getting a Good Take Defining a Good Take Listening to the Take Putting a Master Take Together The Advantages of Building a Master Take The Disadvantages of Building a Master Take Editing Drums: A Basic Overview Tape Editing Creative Analog Tape Editing Techniques Using Samplers to Edit a Performance on Tape Problems with Using Samplers Editing in the Modern DAW Editing for Feel or Editing to the Grid Replacing Single Hits Drum Overdubs Checking the Final Take Summary Chapter 16 Real-World Example Mic Setups Elevated Basement Recording Studio The Gear The Session The One-Mic Setup One-Mic Setup #1 One-Mic Setup #2 One-Mic Setup #3 One-Mic Setup #4 The Two-Mic Setup Two-Mic Setup #1 Two-Mic Setup #2 Three- and Four-Mic Setups Three-Mic Setup #1 Three/Four-Mic Setup #2 Three/Four-Mic Setup #3 Three/Four-Mic Setup #4 Three/Four-Mic Setup #5 Larger Multi-Mic Setups Eight-Mic Setup Ten-Mic Setup Twelve-Mic Setup #1 Twelve-Mic Setup #2 Summary Index A B C D E F G H I K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X