You can learn to play the drums as expertly as any professional drummer. But if you want to sound good on a recording, you have to learn how to set up a professional-sounding recording.
A lot goes into a good drum recording, from the placement of the mics, to the connection between the mics and the pre-amps, to the recording software you use. Mastering all these elements isn't difficult, but it does take time and practice.
If you play as part of a band, you know that the drums are the most challenging instrument to record. Guitars and vocals need only one, at most, two mics. Drums are usually miked all over, from the bass to the snare to the cymbals.
If you know how to set up your own drum recording, you'll be an asset to any band or group you play with, whether in the garage or a studio.
What Do You Need to Record Drums?
Take the time to get all your recording equipment together before setting it all up. Nothing is more frustrating than setting up 95% of what you need and realizing you have to run out for one more thing.
Make a list and cross off each item as you acquire and set it up.
A Drum Set
The first item might sound obvious. But it's not about just having any old collection of drums. Understand what sound you're aiming for in advance so you can build a drum kit that will suit that sound.
Do you need multiple crash cymbals? How should your snare be tuned? These are questions you need to ask yourself before recording.
Above all else, ensure that you have tuned your kit correctly. Recording engineers will all tell you that tuning is the essential step in the recording process.
Insulation
Why bother if you don't have insulated paneling covering every inch of your recording space?
That's a bit hyperbolic, and you don't need to overdo it. Still, insulation is something that should be top of mind. The concern here isn’t about protecting your neighbors from the sound of endless takes, either.
If you don't insulate your recording space well enough, you'll pick up terrible quirks in the recording, like rings, echoes, and tinniness.
Look for soft, absorbent material like foam or fabric. Use this to cover the harsher surfaces like glass and metal.
A Rug
It's ideal to have a rug under each musician so that scuffs and steps don't get picked up in the recording. But this is especially important for the drummer.
Drummers usually mount their instruments on blunt metal spokes that can scrape loudly against hard surfaces. If that happens in the middle of a sound recording, you'll have to do it all over again.
Also called “anchoring mats," drum rugs help anchor the instrument and absorb any downward-bound sound. A good drum rug will have a non-skid rubber bottom so that you aren't sliding around as you thrash.
Microphones
The mic is the most important piece of recording equipment, bar none. The unfortunate truth is that there is no way around the fact that more expensive microphones produce a better sound.
Microphones are highly sophisticated pieces of technology. Things like positioning and mixing can improve their sound quality to an extent. But if the mic itself isn't up to snuff, your recording won't be either.
You could more easily pass off a cheap set of drums on a good recording than you could a cheap set of microphones. You'll want ribbon mics, ambient mics, floor tom mics, and mics for all your drums, snare, bass, and more.
Cables
Cables are essential because they connect your mics to your DAW. You can purchase recording kits that come with mic stands, cables, mic preamps, and other assorted recording hardware.
Mic cables don't have to break the bank. These are pieces of equipment you can shop on a budget. All that matters is that they're sturdy enough so they won't fray and that they're long enough to reach your recording hardware.
Mic Preamps
Mic preamps perform an under-appreciated role in live sound recording. You can boost any instrument or sound output projecting at a low level to the “line level” or the proper level of all the other sound outputs.
You'll want to look at several things when shopping for a preamp:
- The number of inputs and outputs
- Whether it's a tube preamp or a solid-state preamp
- The form factor (whether it's Rackmount, a 500 Series, or Desktop)
- The channel strips (whether or not it has mic preamplification and processing in one box).
Recording Hardware
The audio interface is how all the cables will connect to your mics. Everyone sets their hardware up in a different way. There's no one size fits all way to do it.
But you need to make sure you have an interface with at least eight inputs. You'll need to plug in your vocals, guitar, bass, and drum mics. If there are multiple vocalists or multiple guitarists, you'll need a board with even more input capability.
Computer with Recording/Producing Software
You can't just have a preamp, a soundboard, and some recording hardware. All this information has to be processed into something so that you can save it and create the master recording.
A high-functioning computer with robust RAM is necessary for the recording process. You'll want some kind of recording/production software. Garage Band or Adobe Audition are fine to start if you’re setting up a home recording studio.
A Hard Drive
If you're going to be recording all this material, you need to have somewhere to save it. Audio files take up a lot of space, especially when you have each musician's sessions and multiple mixdown tracks.
Nowadays, 500 gigabyte hard drives are easy to find and not too expensive. Organize the folders so that it’s easy to locate each session track and mixdown.
How to Record Drums: Step-by-Step
Now comes the hard part. You've gathered all the proper equipment. You've assembled the musicians. You've laid the rugs and set up all the installation.
Now, time to record.
1 . Set Up the Recording Space
A recording session is always going to feel a little chaotic. You're in a cramped room with no ventilation. You can't hear each other outside of your headphones. Wires are crisscrossing all over the place, and you can't find that natural harmony you so easily find on stage.
Accept that the recording process isn't going to feel natural at first. But as you adjust to the chaos, you'll see that you won't notice it as much.
First, you'll want to plug all your outputs into your soundboard inputs. Inputs 1 and 2 need 48v phantom power, 3 and 4 are for the kick in and out, 5 and 6 go to the snare top and bottom, and 7 and 8 are a bit freer. You can use an ambient mic, floor tom mic, or other drum mics.
2. Adjust Your Build / Tune Your Drum Kit
As you play and listen back to the recording, you may want to alter your drum kit. You may find that you’ve miked your crashes and floor toms too closely. Or you may find that the levels on your bass drum aren't coming through enough.
Before adjusting your sound as a band, make sure your isolated sound is perfectly calibrated.
3. Arrange the Recording Equipment
Miking is the most critical step in the process.
- Snare: The snare is the heart of your sound. It actually produces sound from two different sources—the head (a crack) and the snares (a rattle). The balance of these sounds can shift the entire recording. Mic the top head and the bottom head of your snare. You want the mic to be no more than two inches above each head. As you listen back to the mix, remember to listen for phase issues—having two mics on the same drum can cause phase cancellation, which sounds terrible.
- Toms: You can mic your toms the same way you miked your snare. If you're using a high tom and a low tom, you can just mic both on the top to avoid running out of microphones. If you don't have enough mics to cover all your toms, pick the most important one for the recording.
- Kick Drum: You want a kick-in mic and a kick-out mic for the kick drum. The kick-out mic will be set close to the ground and pointed directly at the drumhead. This mic will get the “boom," whereas the kick-in mic will get the “click.” You’ll need to set up the kick-in mic on a boom mic stand. Angle it into the circular hole cut into the kick drum.
- Cymbals: Last but certainly not least are the cymbals. Whatever mics you have left after miking your drums can be arrayed around your various cymbals. The cymbals are where overheads come into action. You can space overhead mics between cymbals if you want a more diffuse sound or arrange them directly over your crash cymbals if you want a raucous, punchy sound.
4. Test Out Your Sound
You won't know if you have the right mix until you play and run it back. This process can drag out, but it's also the most fun.
If you've only had experience playing live or jamming in your practice space before, the recording process might give you whiplash. It's incredibly different from playing live. You'll play a few seconds of a song, stop, play it back, and adjust.
Repeat that process again and again until you get it right. Communication between musicians here is critical. Remember these three tips in particular:
- Check the levels: It doesn't matter if everything sounds crisp and balanced. Is it loud enough? Make sure your levels are hitting the correct range.
- Adjust the kicks: You can insert a trim or gain plug-in to your drum channels to help with kick adjustment. A combination of digital tuning and in-person adjustment is vital.
- Sort the overheads: Overhead mics are easy to overlook. But if those cymbals aren't cracking correctly, adjust the setup ASAP.
Record Drums with Different Mic Setups
You won't always record with the same mic setup. Bands regularly shuffle the mics around depending on the sound, tone, and style they're aiming to achieve. There are two basic types of recording mixes:
Live Mix
First is the live mix. This mix is the one you're going to set up when you want to record a live show. There are fewer cables, fewer mics, and sometimes no preamp—basically, less of everything.
You want the sound to be raw, real, and punchy. Don't mic too close, or you might overload the input.
One trick is to add room reverb to the second aux return. It will add a distortion effect that will make your sound more “finished” than it might be.
Studio Mix
This mix is the one most bands looking to record are going for, even if they’re recording in the garage or basement at home. For the studio mix, go full lux. Use as much high-quality equipment as you can afford.
Mic every drum and cymbal. Mic every vocalist, even if there's an overhead mic catching their thrown-off vocals. Play slowly and deliberately at first, fine-tuning with each take.
Find the Perfect Sound
When you listen back to a full band recording, it's easy to tell who wasn't properly miked, and with amateur recording sessions, that often ends up being the drums. You have to pay careful attention to the drums, whether you're setting up a live mix, a studio mix, or something with two, three, four, or even five mics.
Drums are the backbone of any band's sound. Learn how to mic your drums for your own sake and the sake of your band. Check out Drum Center of Portsmouth for all your microphone, recording equipment, and drum needs.