triggering toms: getting a good sound?

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2005 4:18 pm

here is the deal, we are making our second demo and wanted the drums to sound perfect but not to pay hundreds of dollars on mics so got it with trigger, after a long time tweeking i got find sounding snare and bass drums, even the hats and cymbals sound well. But those toms, those damned toms! it always sounds unreal. any tricks?? many thnx!

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2005 5:45 pm

samples

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2005 6:25 pm

its unclear to me whether you miked the toms or not.
if you used stereo overheads, u might wanna try boosting them around 140-175 hz. i dunno, maybe it'll sound like crap, but it works for me sometimes

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2005 8:09 pm

well i didn't mic, i triggered. i have downloaded every samples i could and chose the best samples i have. but the tom samples always sound crap when it's time for a "roll" (u see, 4 hits per beat)
any hints?

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2005 8:19 pm

Are you using dynamic samples?

I used to have the same problem as you until I got sample library's that contained dynamic samples. If your using the same sample for each tom hit, it will always sound fake.

Also, if the tom samples your using have a high pitched slap sound on them you might want to run them through a low pass filter.

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2005 8:48 pm

then what would be the settings for the dynamics, like, hum, suppose it's a 8 hard hits, then how would you change the intensity? something like harder for one hand than for the other or??

and i realised that the tom sounds like we hear the stick too much on the hit, maibe that's a big part of the problem. is it a real problem or?

Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2005 11:40 pm

Well a good sample library will give you multiple hits at the same velocity.

Example:

My Bob Clearmountain Drums II Sample CD is set up like this

High Tom - 3 different hard hits, 3 different medium hits, and 3 different soft hits

Mid Tom - 3 different hard hits, 3 different medium hits, and 3 different soft hits

Low Tom - 3 different hard hits, 3 different medium hits, and 3 different soft hits

Floor Tom - 3 different hard hits, 3 different medium hits, and 3 different soft hits

Now lets say you had an 8 hit tom roll. The roll goes 3 hits on the high tom, 1 hit on the mid tom, 2 hits on the low tom, and 2 hits on the floor tom.

Just insert your samples accordingly.

Use three different high tom hits, 1 mid tom hit, 2 different low tom hits, and 2 different floor tom hits.

Get it?

Posted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 9:43 am

well that's a great explaination, fixed a lot of the little questions i had. Just one left;is it better to place every samples on the same "line" so that, let's say, the first high tom hit is ended by the second high tom hit or to place the samples on different lines so that the first high tom hit keeps fading out while the second high tom hit is being done? This question came to me while doing the snare. You see, when you it the snare for a second and third time it's more like a continuation of the first hit than a closing wave followed of an opening wave.

anyway, many thanx!

Posted: Tue Jan 11, 2005 2:03 pm

By lines assuming you mean tracks.

I wouldn't say that this is always nesassary. I usually don't do it. But if it works for you go ahead and give it a try. I usually don't do this because I'm on PTLE and I only have 32 tracks.

YMMV.

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