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Hey guys i was just wanting some opinions on what your guys fav way to mic a kick drum with a hole. And what mics do you normally use. Ive been using a D112 little more than halfway in the hole. I can quite get the results i want tho. also what preamps are you guys using

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moonbaby Mon, 03/06/2006 - 07:22

Depends on the kick, the kicker, and the kickee. I don't really care for the D112, but when some kicker insists on it, I've had to put it in pretty far to appease him.
Personally, I like the A-T ATM25, the E-V RE20, and the good ol' Sennheiser MD421. All of these mics also work well on other sources, too. Like horns, toms, and guitar amps.

Davedog Mon, 03/06/2006 - 14:37

I've never been a real fan of the D112 either. Its parent mic, the D12 is quite another story.

I also like the ATM25, as well as the EV and theres never a bad situation for an MD421. I also like the MD409 on kick thats going really fast...ala speed metal with a double pedal..

Pres are quite subjective and many will work for many different situations. I did a session last year with a TL Audio British Strip on the kick. Quite nice and very versatile though I'm sure that not many use it for that application or any others.. Its not getting high reviews... I'm not sure why.

MadMax Mon, 03/06/2006 - 16:40

The mic I choose depends upon several things, as has been mentioned, including the style of music.

All time fav combo for R-n-R; 22" Yamaha Recording Custom w/wooden beater, 1st Mic; D112 about 3" off the inside head, 2" off center of the beater, 2nd Mic; AKG414 about 3 feet in front of the kick, just off center. Both into a Great River MP2MH - dbx 160X's breathin' fire on the inserts. (Although this setup would probably be better with a 44 instead of the 414... but I ain't got one yet...)

Jazz; Rode NT2 or AKG414 about 2 feet in front of the kick, off center (Royer SF12 on OH) 20" Sonor Hilites Bubinga - This kit gets me hot jus' thinkin' bout it!! (Man, I wish I had that 44...)

2nd Fav setup for Rock is; 1st Mic; RE20 in the hole by 2" and pointed at the beater. 2nd Mic; MD421 on the backside - even with the beater, between the beater and the floor-tom straight at the head. - Good for any ol' junky DW, Pearl or Tama kit.

Still want to snag an Audix D6... seems like a good number of folks agree that it's a perfectly acceptable mic for a lot of different applications.

I've only done one session with a Beta 52, and it was acceptable enough that either that or a D6 will be my next kick mic purchase. We use 91's and the 52's for live quite a bit and seems like they could do a nice job in place of the D112 for most styles of music... except maybe bluegrass.

Hey amish... Man, I heard that 512c's just a big ol' waste o' money... if I send ya' 50 bucks and a UPS label, would you pack it up and send it off to me?? I'll suffer along and take that hunk of metal off yer hands... whadaya think - deal?!?! 8-)

Max :wink:

StevenColbert Tue, 03/07/2006 - 03:30

Eleganceofadream wrote: your fav way to mic a kick drum with a hole. And what mics do you normally use. Also what preamps are you guys using

I did not like the D112 either. It sounded like a basketball bouncing. I've been using my Audix D6. I am going to order an Earthworks Kickpad, and see what that will do to my kick drum sound. I like my mic in the hole, reguardless of how far. But with a different placement, for different drummers, and different kits.
As far as pre amps, my first goto for drums is the API

moonbaby Tue, 03/07/2006 - 06:22

Steven:
You'll like the Kikpad. I've used mine with a 421 and it fattens it up. Haven't tried it with an RE20 yet, and I like my ATM25 just the way it is.
I have been considering the D6 to add to my arsenal because I like the OM6/7 vocal mics, but....BTW, has anyone told you that you look like Phil Hartman?

Jim "So Many Mics, So Little Bucks" Mooney

AltheGatman Wed, 03/08/2006 - 18:38

I have a D12 (swapped it for a D112 :lol: ) that is always my first pick, but I'm curious about the ATM25 -

I have an ATM25HE which I have never really rated, it tends to get demoted to talkback mic reasonably often, Never tried it in a kick though. is the HE a similar mic, or a bit like the Beta '57 - newer but not necessarily better.....

anonymous Fri, 03/10/2006 - 13:43

To those who are knocking the D112: have you tried pointing it backwards? I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

I have the D112 but I am also considering getting the D12. For my type of music though I need that "basketball dribbling"-type sound to cut through. But again I am getting a really good sound from pointing it backwards...try it. I dare you :)

Wow, it's been a while since my last post. Feels good to be back :)

anonymous Wed, 03/15/2006 - 04:13

Definately feeling you guys on the basketball analogy! That's spot on. "LOL"

djrr3k wrote: Just a question, but are you familiar with polar patterns? I personally don't like the D112 unless I'm looking for that muddy horribly kick sound. Turning it around doesn't seem like the answer.

Cheers,
-Ryan-

That sounds like you didn't try it. I don't love the mic so far either, but this sounds like a really cool idea. If I'm not mistaken, the back of the 112 is a rejection anode. A big old fat one giving it the cardioid pickup pattern. When you put it inside of the kick drum, especially by the beater, you are rejecting a lot of the body sound of the drum. So turning it around from that position would probably pick up a lot of the body resonance, but not a lot of the beater "tack".

Whether or not this idea appeals to you is definately subjective. The guy's name is "funk bomb" for crying out loud which would explain that. One thing is for sure, I am certainly going to try that technique next time I mic up a kit, and definately will be trying it waaay before possibly commenting that it is a bad idea.

Anybody else had a problem with the d112 feeding back in the low midrange (in live applications)?

anonymous Wed, 03/15/2006 - 06:43

If its feeding back, check your gain structure first. All too often, feedback in live situations is due to not having unity gain throughout the system. For example, for aesthetic reasons in our church if you had an imaginary plane between the speakers the mics are in front of that plane. That's always asking for feedback, but when I decided to take the time to reorganize and rewire all of the equipment, I decided since I was going to be alone all night in the church I might as well set up the gain structure for the system. Where before we could barely get any real reinforcement before feedback, now we can barely turn up the amp before it is unbareably loud (even for me, and I LOVE Rush concerts) and even at those unbearable levels, guess what, no feedback (under normal conditions). Anyway, you using stage monitors? Check their dispersion in the low mids and try to keep the mic outside of the angle where they lose 10dB (if at all possible). Also, I like to keep mics a minimum of 18" off the ground, simply because low frequencies tend to float on the floor or stage. Also, check for drums resonating while they are at a normal level in the sound system. Sometimes, you might generate more of a resonance after the sound has been amplified.

Randyman... Wed, 03/15/2006 - 19:58

As far as feedback in the kick mic - if the drum is in close proximity to a sub or monitor speaker, it will cause the head to rsonate and perpetuate the feedback issue. Damping the kick with pillows/deadners and gating the kick should kill this issue - and some EQ Cuts in the mid band where you are experiencing the feedback will also help. I run dual 18" JBL's right behind my kit at practice - like 5 feet away (ohhh, feels so good :) ), and I don't feedback at all.

:cool:

anonymous Wed, 03/15/2006 - 21:14

getting a great kicksound

to get a great kick sound,this is what you do.22"kick
1.tune the beater head to F
2.tune the resonate to E
3.get a SANDBAG let it touch the batter head slightly.the sand bag is
as important as the microphone,the weight of it stabilizes the drum
as well as giving you the real solidness that people run around with different microphones trying to achieve!
4.get a sennheiser md 421 or a sm57 or whatever you got.stick it about
half way into the kick at the point where the beater hits but about
3 inches to the side.experiment with moving the mic closer for more attack or back for more ring.
5.get a converted to microphone yamaha ns 10 speaker.
see recordermans post on the forum about it.
6.read recordermans post about overhead micing technique!
read all his posts!saved my life,good luck!

i would suggest a powerstroke batter head and an aquarian resonant
with a 5 inch hole set to the side,although taking of the resonant head would give you a much better cleaner sound.