DH,
The 451 is a great hat mic. Doubles as an acoustic guitar or acoustic instrument mic.. Also think about an AKG 414. Great hat mic.. the other uses are many. Has a hyper cardioid pattern setting. Very tight and great on hi hats. A little more than $500. You can usually find one for $600 used ... Kurt

I have always wanted a 414 anyway!!! :)

ditto on 451 .. works great, and will blend in with whatever other mics you use or set you mic. I use the 451 or my schoeps .. the schoeps for jazz stuff, it picks up a gnat fart at 100 yds...

Try the MXL-603S. Very good mic for overhead. About $100 each one.
http://

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http://www.graffittistudio.com

No, go with the 451's. The SM81's are not ideal in my opinion, unless you like your cymbals sounding like sheetmetal.

I have a Shure endorsement deal, and they sent me the KMS109's. They sound pretty good, and they are pretty cheap. I have also used a KSM32 on hats.

I asked this question on another forum as well, and it is amazing that the overwhelming majority seems to vote for the 451! Funny how that works, isn't it???

I would agree that the 451 is a great choice. They make a great stereo XY pair too if ya get 2 of em. Used them on a Xylaphone once and sounded great! I also prefer small diaphragm condensers on hats. Octava MC0-12 works pretty good too. You can get one for $200 at GC. Not a bad mic for the price. Depends on your budget I guess. 414's are great all around mics (esp w/ the selectable pattern feature) but are more pricey as was mentioned above. So there you have it. Another vote for the 451.

The Octava MC-012. Get a matched pair with all the capsules and you can use them for a lot more stuff too. I'm very happy with mine. As a bonus you can get and put Lomo capsules to them getting a pair of high end microphones.

Hans,
http://www.hagen.nu

KM184
GT AM 40
DPA 4015
royer for darker sound

what is a Lomo capsule. I have a couple MC012's.

Nick

Some info about the Lomo capsule:
http://www.oktava.com/test012m1319.html

Hans

I used an AKG C535 for Hi Hat this weekend and it sounded perfect for the balance I was going after.

My favourite high-hat mic has always been the Neumann KM-86.
It's bright but even sounding.
I hate the presence peak sound of the C-451 (on anything).
KM-84's also work well (i don't like the 184's much).
And from a different perspective, Beyer M-160's are excellent High-Hat or cymbal mics. They add a lovely smoothness to the sound without losing any top and their hypercardioid pattern helps you zoom in on what you're after.

does it have to be condenser??
my fave mics on hat are sm7,sm 58, or beyer 160.
most hi-fi queer condensers and pencil mics
tend to distort so easily on hats - especially if
its loud music. eq the piss out of a dynamic or ribbon,
mic it up a touch closer than you normally would,
and take the money and buy yourself a drink.
the beyer 160 is a genius guitar amp mic , and
the sm7 is probably the greatest lead vocal mic
on the planet.
p.s.: a 451 with 2 or 3 of those screw on pads are
still a joke with the distortion issue.

LOL! stealthbalance's answer to everything "EQ the piss out of it" Hee,hee,hee. :tu:

OK, this is more that $500, but well worth it. The DPA Compact mic. It is basically the same element as the Bruel Kjaer 4006, but with a new miniaturized preamp. I am doing a review of the DPA's for experiencingworship.com. Check out that site in June.

kurt-

don't you hear often the distortion i hear so often
on hat tracks?

stealthbalance,
What I usually hear is when the drummer beats on the hat with it partially closed ... that sounds like distortion to me .. but really most condenser mics will do 125 or better dB without distorting. I seriously doubt that a hi hat can distort them. I think it's what I said, the drummer not closing the hat all the way and the cymbals ratteling .. it's an ugly sound but drummers seem to like anything that is obnoxous sounding. It draws attention to them. Like snares that go "poink" instead of "thwack". :D Kurt

Originally posted by Kurt Foster:
It draws attention to them. Like snares that go "poink" instead of "thwack". :D Kurt

What about techno drums? Kicks that go "uup" instead of "dook"

Originally posted by falkon2:

Originally posted by Kurt Foster:
It draws attention to them. Like snares that go "poink" instead of "thwack". :D Kurt

What about techno drums? Kicks that go "uup" instead of "dook" Aren't those electronic? :D

Never saw the point of all those subsonics... But then again, I'm not a hardcore clubber. :D

But I digress... back to the topic at hand.

Hey stealthbalance, it is unlikely that the condensor mics you have used in the past are distorting, my guess is that it is your preamp, or the mic is too close. The Dynamic mics you suggested are more appropriate for live work and under a recording apllication, they simpley don't have the definition you are after.

I would have to agree with the majority that a 451 is a good choice. If you budget is limited you may consider akg se-300b. If you purchase this preamp unit, multiple capsules are available from cardioid, hypercardioid, figure 8 etc. It will work wel on the hats with a hyper-capsule, or cardiod, and add ons of new capsules will help in the studio as well as live for overheads, choirs, room mics, whatever. see also c-391-a package including ck-91 cardioid capsule.

"keep doing what you're doing and you'll get what you've already got."

Originally posted by Doublehelix:
Any suggestions for a good high-hat condensor mic? I am thinking about using a small-diaphragm condensor, but I am open to any other suggestions. My price range is about US$500.

This is not a mic I will use very often for high-hats (rarely will it be needed, but when it is needed, it *is* needed!). It would be nice to obviously use it elsewhere as well, but I don't want to rob the bank to pay for it since it will be a sparsly-used mic.

I am thinking about maybe getting an old standby Shure SM81, or possibly an Audio-Technica AT3031, or AT3032. AKG has the 451, but I am not sure how it would sound on a set of hats. There are obviously several possibilities here... although I know I can't really go wrong with an SM81, I was just looking for any other suggestions.

Thanks!