Originally posted by coldsnow:
What compression settings do you use for tracking drums?
Kick
Snare
hat,crash, ride
toms
Thanks, Mike

I don't know, what's your favorite colour?

I'm trying to achieve a natural drum sound (like a counting crows or Black crows sound) with tape head type sounding compression (recording on a HD which makes this imposible but I'm trying to get close). I'm using a Purple Audio 1176, a Peavey VCL2 (LA2a type, all tube and transformer el op style comp.), Avalon 737, and an FMR RNC. Is that what you mean by which color?

I am recording on hard disc.

Kick - Tube Tech LcA2A (sometimes additional DBX 160VU)
Snare - Tube Tech LcA2A (sometimes additional DBX 160VU)
Overheads - SSL compressor
Room mic's - Distressors on NUKE or Opto
mono room - Sometimes TLA 5051 (HHB Radius 40)
Toms, HH, Ride, nothing

Settings? - All hand tweaked to my satisfaction, no 'learned' or memorised 'pre-sets'

Note - the Lca2A compressor has a bad rep amongst golden eared pro's.But perhaps it's own 'crappy crumble' of drum transients is what make this model most resemble tape compression to my ears. I heartly reccomend it for digital kick n snare recording...

Fatso is on the shopping list...

Originally posted by coldsnow:
I'm using a Purple Audio 1176, a Peavey VCL2 (LA2a type, all tube and transformer el op style comp.), Avalon 737, and an FMR RNC. Is that what you mean by which color?

Yeah, it's at least at start.

I'm partial to a DBX160VU on inside kick, a Manley ELOP on the front of kick. I've been using a Distressor on top of snare with a 4:1 ratio, attack 4, release 3 (you could do this with your 1176), a dbx160xt on bottom of snare, Manley V-MU on tom submix, nothing on o/h's or hat.

The compressors are all pulling a max of about 3-4 db so I'm not piling it on. I'll probably add some different flavors of compression in the mix.

I'm tracking to a JH24 @ 30 IPS and I'm not hitting the tape real hard except for the kick and toms which I'm pushing a bit. Hope that gives you a starting point.