live micing?

[Christiandrummer777]

hey guys what do you use when micing your (or someone your teching for's) drumset? i always mic the bass drum with a standard vocal mic, with the trim at 12 o clock, the mid eq at 12 o clock, the low eq at 3 o clock and the high eq at 10 o clock. in some situations ill also stick a condenser mic on low between my hats and snare. in larger rooms ill use two condenser mic above my cymbals. so what do you guys do?

[Russ]

well, i mic with 4 mics- 2 larger diaphragm and 2 small diaphragm condenser type microphones. the way i go is the small mics go at a steep angle pointing downwards so as not to catch any other instruments' bleed. the larger mics can be tricky, since i dont have dynamic mics for snare/tom/kicks i have them set up at a downward 45 degree angle so as to catch everything.(i kinda guessed my way through positioning them) i noticed it catches the cymbals very well, but the toms, snare, and bass are slightly less present. my stands don't go to any great angles but maybe if i upgrade ill get better results. till i get dynamic mics for the other drums i think i got em sounding pretty good..

[RHD03]

hey guys what do you use when micing your (or someone your teching for's) drumset? i always mic the bass drum with a standard vocal mic, with the trim at 12 o clock, the mid eq at 12 o clock, the low eq at 3 o clock and the high eq at 10 o clock. in some situations ill also stick a condenser mic on low between my hats and snare. in larger rooms ill use two condenser mic above my cymbals. so what do you guys do?

EQing is not my strong suit, but I would have to say that the 3, 12 and 9 o'clock thing would probably not be optimal for every situation. Acoustics change from room to room, and the amount of people in each can also change your sound.

As far as the mics go, I have used the Sure Beta 52 and the Audix D6...the Audix (for me) wins hands down. For my snares I love the Audix i5. and depending on the venue's size, that's all that may get miced. No reason to mic everything and blow people's heads off if it's a small venue...just a touch of kick and snare over the PA.

my 0.02

[xsabers]

As far as the mics go, I have used the Sure Beta 52 and the Audix D6...the Audix (for me) wins hands down.

Can you share your experience with these two mics in greater detail? I am poised to buy a BETA 52 after trying one and reading specs and reviews.

[nucjd]

Agree with RH. I record with Audix mics and love my i5 and D6. They are very good midlevel mics and very utilitarian.

[atomcorr2]

our guys use a sure beta 52, on the kick

sure sm 57s on the snare and toms

and 2 akg im not sure what model condenser overheads

[RHD03]

Can you share your experience with these two mics in greater detail? I am poised to buy a BETA 52 after trying one and reading specs and reviews.

Hey X, don't get me wrong, I have owned the Beta 52 and it's a very good mic. But I switched after playing gigs where one or the other was used and sound was supplied. It just seemed to me that the Audix had a better focused sound, easier to dial in, and articulated the lows a bit better. So I picked one up and tried them both at different gigs when we ran our own sound, and after a few shows I was sold on the D6 and put the Beta up on eBay. The Beta is still an awesome mic and I don't want to discourage you from picking one up, this was just my opinion.

[Russ]

shoot man i wish i could afford quality mics like that! with my budget, ill prolly get stuck with samsons. luckily the room i use is really good for recording in, i imagine it might turn out good no matter where the mics are located?(but ill still put them in the best place i can)

[xsabers]

Looking seriously into the Heil PR48. Great reviews and a quality line of mics. Price is right too!

[funkyruss]

Looking seriously into the Heil PR48. Great reviews and a quality line of mics. Price is right too!

Yay! Someone else who knows about Heil mics- I have the PR48- good all around!
The Heil PR35 is a great dynamic mic, fyi!!
Russ

[xsabers]

Yay! Someone else who knows about Heil mics- I have the PR48- good all around!
The Heil PR35 is a great dynamic mic, fyi!!
Russ

I sent an email to Heil through their website to ask for the specs on the PR48 and got two personal notes from Bob Heil along with some specs and industry reviews.