The importance of a decent room for drums..

Posted: Thu May 11, 2006 8:25 am

Howdy folks.

In case there are any newbs out there wondering can the room really make a difference 2when recording drums or how much of a difference..well BIG and sometimes in a literal sense.

The kit and proper tuning helps and alose playing to click really tighten things ups.

A few months ago I tracked some drums for a band in there finished basement using their drums and no click. Afterwords I sugggested we recut the drums in a better space with another kit.

The results are below. Both clips are dry with no EQ or compression or verb and such.

The first clip is the old drums.

The second is the new drums. We used a click. My 4 pc '67 ludwig champagne gold with new heads (my dad picked the kit up at a yard sale when I was kid for $150 Shocked

) And we recorded in a large room with high ceilings. The only issue with the new drums is that there's a creek in between the snare hits. It was either his stool or snare stand but luckily it can be edited out cuz its exclusive to the snare mic..yippee.

[URL] http://www.jetrecording.com/olddrums.mp3 [ / URL]
[URL] http://www.jetrecording.com/newdrums.mp3 [ / URL]

Posted: Thu May 11, 2006 1:45 pm

Its more than just the room that's changed between those two... I'd even say that the room difference contributes the least to the improvement in sound. BOOOOOO to clicks!!!!!!!!!!!

That aside (happy to agree to disagree... could be wrong etc) awesom post bro, v interesting!!

Posted: Thu May 11, 2006 3:39 pm

yea, it is a cool post. the second track sounds nice. i especially liked the kick and snare.

Posted: Thu May 11, 2006 3:52 pm

How small was the first room and what are the measures of the second?
Actually it seems to me like the player improved a lot from the frist clip to the 2nd. not talking room or gear just the drummer skills!

btw: it really was the same player on the both clips? Laughing

just kiddig.

any gear info?? mics? pres??

Posted: Thu May 11, 2006 4:22 pm

it was the same player. He just played to a click this time before he couldnt. I told him to practice to a click before we retrackt he songs. he did and in fact he did it with no one else playing along.

The first room was about 20x10x7'6' or less

The size of the room in the second clip..hmmm. pretty big. 60x40x15
Drums where on a stage which basically served as a drum riser since the stage was only foot up and was constructed of 2x4 and plywood covered in thin carpeting.

kick=D6
snare=D1
RT=D2
FT=D2
OH=Nt5s
K2 in a half way between omni/cardiod pattern setting as a Spot/Room Mic about 6 feet in front of kit 4 ft up.

Mackie Onyx pres

Posted: Thu May 11, 2006 6:31 pm

Night and day...Way to go. The early track sounded like a box of rocks someone was rattling around...(didnt we discuss this??) the second is something to work with. Still too much spill for me on the cymbals but I like em tight...

Posted: Fri May 12, 2006 5:01 am

Cool post. Very interesting. When you have a few free minutes it'd be great to hear the Ludwigs in the small room and his kit in the big. Wink

jahtao wrote:

.... BOOOOOO to clicks!!!!!!!!!!!

There may be good reasons not to record to a click, but I'll bet most of the improvement in the drummer's playing is that he practiced to a click. The best single thing a musician can do, anywhere, any time.

Posted: Fri May 12, 2006 5:56 am

I remember once, i was recording a rock band playing some kind of Creed but on steroids......

In some song at some moment the song goes from slow to a medium tempo with a different measure. i think the song was on 6/8 then 4/4 in the bridge.
i did hear that the drummer goes a a little slower than the click......and i said in my head "that's a cut" but i heard that the drummer kept his new click on his head ignoring the click, that was amazing!!!!

then i never saw someone like him.......a few years later he won a prize for best amateur drummer at Montreal Drumfest.

Posted: Fri May 12, 2006 7:27 am

Dave, the way kid had his kit set up may had something to do with the cymbals having "too much spill". Not sure. Everything on the kit was set close to the drummer. Hi hat right over the snare. luckily he set it high up. Crash over the high hat and rack tom. and luckily he at least sets it high enough so it doesnt interfer with micing. In fact when we were getting sounds for the hi tom, he would accidently hit the crash some times. I was so close to saying hey isnt that a clue you should move it? Ride and Floor tom tight next to the Kick, ride more over the kick but still in tight range to the drummer. Im not a big guy but a midget could play it if he had blocks on his feet.

I have pics actual on my friend camera. I try to post them eventually.

This topic sponsored by: