I don't think a mic is going to help you here unless you get one with a super or hyper cardioid pattern. Repositioning the band would be the best thing to do. I know it's not easy but if you want a good recording it's the easiest thing to do.

Otherwise you could have the drummer move his cymbals or use something to dampen them.

Your only options are to;
a) change your stage setup

OR

b) get a drum sheild (do a google search under Drum Shield). This will be a little more expensive than buying new mics but not much and it will be much more effective at acheiving our goals.

Good Luck

Try a headset mic ... that's the best mic solution for this problem ... and as mentioned, drum shields work wonders. Or you could tell your drummer to stop beating the sh*t out of his cymbals. An added benifit of that will be the band will sound a lot better.

The only thing is, once the cymbals are under control, the amps will be a problem as well. That's why I think a headset mic would be the best solution.

As others have said, your best bet is to have the musicians control themselves. If you are in a small room, you don't need a really loud drum kit or guitar amps.

As for mics, you should give one of a couple other mics a try: The Beyer M88 is a great all purpose mic and can be good for vocals (even though it isn't specifically a "vocal" mic). Also, the Audix OM5 or OM6 would also work well. All of these are hypercardiod dynamic mics that IMO sound much better than 58's.

--Ben

microphone

Kurt Foster wrote: I think a headset mic would be the best solution.

Hi Kurt,
Can you please recommend one for me? Or one that you used and had good results with?
Thanks

Pre Amp wrote: [quote=Kurt Foster]I think a headset mic would be the best solution.

Hi Kurt,
Can you please recommend one for me? Or one that you used and had good results with?
ThanksSorry, I have not used any of them except for a Senheiser headset my drummer used in my band over 15 years ago so I really can't offer any suggestions ... AKG, Sennheiser, Shure, ATM among many others all make headset mics ...

The headset was a great suggestionKurt - they take a little getting used to - unlike a mic on a stand or handheld you can't back away when you hit a bad note or if you trying to work the mic dynamically. Those are some of the complaints I have heard but it will certainly help with rear noise rejection.

I think I am more partial to the Drum Shiled idea though. As far as amps go you can always turn down the amps and pump up the monitors which are generally in front of the mics where SM58's will reject the sound nicely. The use of the drum shield also allows your drummer to play like he is used to playing (as opposed to asking him to change) which increases your chances of getting a better performance from him/her.

Good Luck

if its out doors then you could also alleviate some of the other noise by pointing the mic almost straght up. but that wont really help in a room.