Recording Drums with Dead Soul Revival

Recording Drums with Dead Soul Revival

If you’ve been following my “first single release” journey for my new band deadsoulrevival.com you know I’ve been examining how we recorded our upcoming release. Today let’s talk about recording drums and some ideas you can use yourself.

We wanted a punchy drum sound with clarity, that really cuts through dense guitars. I’m very happy with the results we captured. We used a DW kit that worked out great. When I’m recording drums or anything else for that matter, I’m looking for something that not only sounds awesome but also will require the least amount of work after the fact (“in post”) to make it sound killer under the mixing microscope.

To achieve this I would rather take more time at this stage getting things to sound great in the room. The right performance is also key. We will take 2 or 3 hours or more to really tweak out the kit and get the tuning right for the song.  This is the time to get rid of any weird resonances, hums, rattles, etc. That kind of stuff can really mess up a great performance.

Generally speaking I’m using dynamic mics for shells (kick, top of snare, toms) and condenser mics for overheads, hi-hats, ride, room mics, and under the snare.  I’ve also had success with using a condenser on the outside of the kick for capturing the boom.

You’ll need preamps with 48v phantom power for condensers. You can spend lots of money on condenser mics, but it is not necessary if you’re on a tight budget. A pair of Rode M5‘s or NT5‘s can certainly handle the job. I’m using 2 ADK 3 Zigma C lollipop mics with the C-12 capsules for overheads. If budget is not a concern I’d suggest something like Neumann U-47‘s. or Coles 4038. Those are pricey.

To record a full drum kit you will need an audio interface with probably 8-16 inputs. On these songs I used a Presonus RM16. I like it because it has 16 inputs to mic up drums and run an ethernet cable only to my control room. So no long xlr snake is needed. 

On kick I used a Audix D6 for my close mic on the inside and a AKG 414 on the outside. Snare was a Shure 57 on top and a small condenser for the bottom. Rack tom was a Heil mic that is a lot like a Sennheiser 421. On the floor tom I used a AKG D112. Hat and ride I used Shure 81’s.

For rooms I had a couple of Rode M5’s and a Shure 57 pointed into a back corner.

Can it be done with less? Absolutely. More mics give you more control and the ability to balance the kit out more precisely. You can also tweak individual elements after the fact because they can be processed separately. If you are going the minimalist route of say 4 mics (kick, snare, and overheads), having the drummer balance his performance becomes even more critical.

I like to edit my drums after the fact so that shells are only heard when they are played. Kind of like a gate but much more precise and the tone doesn’t get affected. This is a bit of work but plugins make the job easier. This is key to getting big, punchy sounds. 

So you’re aware, drums have the majority of high end frequencies in a typical rock recording. This is primarily from the cymbals. Recording at a high a sample rate as possible will capture the drums with more detail (high end). So, if possible record at 96khz/32 bit for example.

On the back wall of my drum room I’ve got absorber/diffusor panels that I point my Rode M5’s toward. I find this gives a nice balanced sound. It also helps cut down the cymbal wash I don’t really like in room mics. This has the added benefit of making the room mics work better when I mix.

If you’d like to read more about how to get great drum recordings check out my course the Sound Visualization Method.

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