Tips for Drums

Tips for Drums
(update 25/07/2000)

Drums are perhaps the most difficult set of instruments to record, since the final mix of the individual elements is generally supposed to sound as if it had been recorded by a single, punctual, stereo microphone array. There are a dozen things a drummer can neglect that will considerably increase the difficulty of the sound engineer's work, which will result in a poorer sound than what was expected.

Global Tips | Bass Drum | Snare Drum | Tom-Toms | Cymbals

First, let's talk about the kit in a global way :

First of all, the quality of the instrument is just as important as the musician's skill. But... There is often no point in spending hundreds of dollars on the rental of a top quality drum kit if the drummer doesn't feel comfortable playing on it. And a lot of times, these rental kits need a lot of fine tuning (half a day, even an entire day sometimes) before they can be expected to sound better than what you consider a 'piece of crap' (your drum kit), but spent years getting the most out of.

Generally speaking, the sound engineer and drummer will often disagree on the amount of muffling necessary. The engineer will want to stick tape on the toms, snare and sometimes bass drum, whereas the drummer will want things to resonate (decay) naturally.

What you should remember, as a drummer, is that the microphones are going to pick-up the sound at a position where no human being would dare stick his ears ! The resonance that may sound right acoustically, when you're standing in the studio, is most of the time way too much once you hear things in the control room through the microphones, only inches away from the skins.

No ! Changing the microphone positions will not solve the problem, that's a myth !!! If something resonates too long, it will do so even if the microphone is 10 feet away.

The idea is to try to get things to sound as you'd like it to sound on the finished album. If you want quick decaying toms with a resonance that doesn't exceed 1/2 second, why record with toms that resonate for 5 seconds or more ?

Below, we'll discuss several other minor (or major, depending on your kit and style of play) changes you may want to bring to your kit prior to the recording sessions. Try to make these changes early-on, during the rehearsals, or, if you accommodate quickly to new conditions, during pre-production work, that way you won't feel uncomfortable once in the studio.

Check the kit for parasite noises a few days before you bring everything to the studio. I mean by that little ringing noises produced by loose screws, or other weird things that can happen. I've had (and so have others) screws break inside the shells, shards on the skin perimeter that vibrate against the inside of the drum, even aluminum scraps loosening inside the tubing of cymbal stands, rattling like crazy ! And that last one occurred on an $8 000 kit !!

Don't forget to bring Gaffer tape and a roll of tissue paper (for muffling purposes, most studios are always out of tape !), some sort of lubricating oil (for annoying pedal squeaks), and make sure you've got that stupid non-universal key if you don't want the engineer to help you tune your kit with a plumber's wrench ! A better alternative is 'Moon Gel", which you can buy in any serious music instrument shop.

Finally, I know most of the serious drummers reading this will laugh, but do bring extra drums sticks (there are countless anecdotes concerning studio assistants trying to find drumsticks at 1 AM on a Sunday because the drummer thought he would never break his).

Bass Drum (or Kick Drum ; when will you guys settle on one name ?) :

No, you won't get that incredibly defined 'modern' sound if you keep the front skin on (I mean by that, the one away from you when you play) without a reasonable size hole cut out in it. Try to make the hole big enough for the engineer to be able to get the microphone in there ! A 6 inch (15 cm) hole should do. If you're looking for a rather short, dense sound, the hole should be centered. On the contrary, for a longer decay, you'd better place it closer to the sides. Any intermediate position should be carefully studied.

Except for certain styles of music, you'll need some muffling. Either those found in shops that are inserted between the body and the skins, or a blanket (or piece of heavy foam) will do. Often, you'll see that it can only sound right, on lousy kits, with both methods combined !

Don't make the confusion between a beater that sounds good to your ears, and one that sounds good, once again, for the microphone. Too often, drummers who want a lot of 'clic' (high-end frequencies) on the attack of the sound (PANTERA style) use a metallic beater, sometimes combined with a metal pad stuck to the drum skin itself !! Even though this may produce the desired sound in the rehearsal room, you might not have noticed the little parasite noises due to the beater rebounding after each impact. The microphone will pick this up 'nicely' (yuck !!!), unless you've developed a drum technique where your foot applies a lot of pressure after each beat, to prevent those rebounds. Very few drummers master this, especially at high tempos.

It might be better to use a wood, rubber or even felt beater, whichever prevents these annoying rebound clics, and let the sound engineer produce the required attack through sound processing. A lot of times, I actually had to cut back on the EQ to get the desired sound, because there was too much attack high-end acoustically... And EQ doesn't get rid of the rebound noises !

This is a MAJOR change that should be undertaken several months before going to the studio, as it obviously greatly modifies the drummer's playing techniques.

Don't forget to bring some sort of lubricant to get rid of all the pedal squeaks ! Especially if you use a double pedal system.

Snare Drum :

You would've guessed this one, but anyway : bring several snare drums, that way you and the engineer can discuss which suits the song best. Unless you want the same sound for each song, but then, maybe that metal body snare you like less acoustically works out best with the microphone !

In 'Snare Drum', one may find the word 'Snare'.

Most sound engineers will stick a second microphone underneath your snare drum, that they'll later blend in with the top microphone to get more "high-end" in the attack of the global sound. There is no point in sticking a microphone there if the snare rattles on and on after each impact. Try to keep the snare from reacting too much with the high toms, usually a good clue to 'is the snare tight enough ?'

Make sure the top skin on your drum isn't too worn out before going to the studio. There are several videos on Youtube (I've got Dave Weckl's in mind, for instance) that show you how to 'break in' new skins (and also tune a drum!) if you've never done that. It does require about 10 minutes PER skin. So I don't recommend waiting 'til everyone's ready to record to decide it's time to change them!

About ghost notes :

If you decided to play ghost notes on the snare drum between each regular hit, don't be too shy on them. If you play them too softly, they'll quickly disappear once all the other instruments are in the mix. The engineer will kill himself trying to pick them out of there. If you play them, PLAY them. A good reference for what I mean by that is (the alas late) Jeff Porcaro on ROSANNA (TOTO IV)

Also, you should know that more and more now, drum parts are tweaked (sometimes one impact after another, instrument by instrument) on digital editing systems (like Protools), making the drummer sound incredibly good when you actually know the guy sucks from seeing him play live. A lot of "copy/paste" must have been going on to get all these ghost notes on the album in there perfectly, loud enough so that they're audible in the mix.

One question you should therefore ask yourself is : Are these ghost notes really necessary for the song ? If not, leave them out, the regular snare drum sound will greatly benefit from that. If they are necessary, PLAY them openly, even if it sounds a bit exaggerated acoustically. Remember, the microphone isn't listening to things the same way you are.

Tom-Toms :

Are you really going to use all the tom-toms for the songs you are about to record ? Considering the engineer might spend a half hour (no exaggeration there !) trying to get the sound right for each of them, no point in keeping the ones you know you won't use. I know it looks cool to have 5 toms around you, but keep it down to what is essential for the song. Notice how a tom resonates to outside vibrations ? I'd get rid of any parasite element from the kit straight from the start.

Tuning of the toms regarding each other as well as the bass drum and snare drum is essential, but really up to you. The tuning should suit the song.

One thing, though, I've noticed that if your kit is based on a 12", a 13" and a floor 16", you'll never get that f... 13" to sound right. Why do they bother selling rack toms that are so close in diameter anyway ?

If they're tuned right, the sound difference between the 12" and 13" is so little they can't be correctly discerned in the mix. If you try to tune the 13" so it's far enough from the 12", you're out of the range in which the manufacturer managed for it to sound good !!!

Remember that little bit concerning resonance, in the General Tips ? Toms are the elements that produce maximum ringing (resonance), so you might want to consider this when choosing your tuning.

The same thing concerning the snare drum skins should be applied here. They shouldn't be 'right out of the wrapper', neither 'right out of 2 months of touring' !

Cymbals :

This is the tough one ! For most engineers, it's a pain trying to fit the microphones they have in the studio on the tom-toms, between the top skin and your cymbals, if these cymbals are set really low. Unless you go to a really expensive studio, where even there, they might not have miniature microphones that solve (partially) this problem, you'll make things 10 TIMES harder for the sound engineer. He won't be able to separate the spill of the cymbals from the tom-tom microphones, resulting in a sloppy overall tom sound. This is most often the case between the ride cymbal and the floor tom.

Therefore, try to get used to playing with cymbals at least 6" (15 cm) from the top of the Tom-toms. This is a MAJOR change for a drummer used to playing differently for several years.

While you're revising your cymbal array, you might as well check the position of each cymbal, in order to balance the different tones around the kit.

What I mean is : How will the song sound if, for example, all the cymbals but the ride cymbal are on the left side of the kit, along with the high-hat ? Basically, your drum-kit will sound a bit dull on the right side. Try to balance each type of cymbal left and right. Have for instance a crash cymbal on each side, and try to alternate during the song, or again, the kit will sound dull on one side.

You might want to adapt the tones of your cymbals to each song, so bring several with you to the studio, you and the engineer can discuss which suits the song best.

Generally, it is best to leave these awfully loud cymbals designed for concert sound behind, and prefer the more subtle type. Whatever suits your style of music...

	No, you won't get that incredibly defined 'modern' sound if you keep the front skin on (I mean by that, the one away from you when you play) without a reasonable size hole cut out in it. Try to make the hole big enough for the engineer to be able to get the microphone in there ! A 6 inch (15 cm) hole should do. If you're looking for a rather short, dense sound, the hole should be centered. On the contrary, for a longer decay, you'd better place it closer to the sides. Any intermediate position should be carefully studied.
	Except for certain styles of music, you'll need some muffling. Either those found in shops that are inserted between the body and the skins, or a blanket (or piece of heavy foam) will do. Often, you'll see that it can only sound right, on lousy kits, with both methods combined !
	Don't make the confusion between a beater that sounds good to your ears, and one that sounds good, once again, for the microphone. Too often, drummers who want a lot of 'clic' (high-end frequencies) on the attack of the sound (PANTERA style) use a metallic beater, sometimes combined with a metal pad stuck to the drum skin itself !! Even though this may produce the desired sound in the rehearsal room, you might not have noticed the little parasite noises due to the beater rebounding after each impact. The microphone will pick this up 'nicely' (yuck !!!), unless you've developed a drum technique where your foot applies a lot of pressure after each beat, to prevent those rebounds. Very few drummers master this, especially at high tempos. It might be better to use a wood, rubber or even felt beater, whichever prevents these annoying rebound clics, and let the sound engineer produce the required attack through sound processing. A lot of times, I actually had to cut back on the EQ to get the desired sound, because there was too much attack high-end acoustically... And EQ doesn't get rid of the rebound noises ! This is a MAJOR change that should be undertaken several months before going to the studio, as it obviously greatly modifies the drummer's playing techniques.
	Don't forget to bring some sort of lubricant to get rid of all the pedal squeaks ! Especially if you use a double pedal system.

	You would've guessed this one, but anyway : bring several snare drums, that way you and the engineer can discuss which suits the song best. Unless you want the same sound for each song, but then, maybe that metal body snare you like less acoustically works out best with the microphone !
	In 'Snare Drum', one may find the word 'Snare'. Most sound engineers will stick a second microphone underneath your snare drum, that they'll later blend in with the top microphone to get more "high-end" in the attack of the global sound. There is no point in sticking a microphone there if the snare rattles on and on after each impact. Try to keep the snare from reacting too much with the high toms, usually a good clue to 'is the snare tight enough ?'
	Make sure the top skin on your drum isn't too worn out before going to the studio. There are several videos on Youtube (I've got Dave Weckl's in mind, for instance) that show you how to 'break in' new skins (and also tune a drum!) if you've never done that. It does require about 10 minutes PER skin. So I don't recommend waiting 'til everyone's ready to record to decide it's time to change them!
	About ghost notes : If you decided to play ghost notes on the snare drum between each regular hit, don't be too shy on them. If you play them too softly, they'll quickly disappear once all the other instruments are in the mix. The engineer will kill himself trying to pick them out of there. If you play them, PLAY them. A good reference for what I mean by that is (the alas late) Jeff Porcaro on ROSANNA (TOTO IV) Also, you should know that more and more now, drum parts are tweaked (sometimes one impact after another, instrument by instrument) on digital editing systems (like Protools), making the drummer sound incredibly good when you actually know the guy sucks from seeing him play live. A lot of "copy/paste" must have been going on to get all these ghost notes on the album in there perfectly, loud enough so that they're audible in the mix. One question you should therefore ask yourself is : Are these ghost notes really necessary for the song ? If not, leave them out, the regular snare drum sound will greatly benefit from that. If they are necessary, PLAY them openly, even if it sounds a bit exaggerated acoustically. Remember, the microphone isn't listening to things the same way you are.

	Are you really going to use all the tom-toms for the songs you are about to record ? Considering the engineer might spend a half hour (no exaggeration there !) trying to get the sound right for each of them, no point in keeping the ones you know you won't use. I know it looks cool to have 5 toms around you, but keep it down to what is essential for the song. Notice how a tom resonates to outside vibrations ? I'd get rid of any parasite element from the kit straight from the start.
	Tuning of the toms regarding each other as well as the bass drum and snare drum is essential, but really up to you. The tuning should suit the song. One thing, though, I've noticed that if your kit is based on a 12", a 13" and a floor 16", you'll never get that f... 13" to sound right. Why do they bother selling rack toms that are so close in diameter anyway ? If they're tuned right, the sound difference between the 12" and 13" is so little they can't be correctly discerned in the mix. If you try to tune the 13" so it's far enough from the 12", you're out of the range in which the manufacturer managed for it to sound good !!!
	Remember that little bit concerning resonance, in the General Tips ? Toms are the elements that produce maximum ringing (resonance), so you might want to consider this when choosing your tuning.
	The same thing concerning the snare drum skins should be applied here. They shouldn't be 'right out of the wrapper', neither 'right out of 2 months of touring' !

	This is the tough one ! For most engineers, it's a pain trying to fit the microphones they have in the studio on the tom-toms, between the top skin and your cymbals, if these cymbals are set really low. Unless you go to a really expensive studio, where even there, they might not have miniature microphones that solve (partially) this problem, you'll make things 10 TIMES harder for the sound engineer. He won't be able to separate the spill of the cymbals from the tom-tom microphones, resulting in a sloppy overall tom sound. This is most often the case between the ride cymbal and the floor tom. Therefore, try to get used to playing with cymbals at least 6" (15 cm) from the top of the Tom-toms. This is a MAJOR change for a drummer used to playing differently for several years.
	While you're revising your cymbal array, you might as well check the position of each cymbal, in order to balance the different tones around the kit. What I mean is : How will the song sound if, for example, all the cymbals but the ride cymbal are on the left side of the kit, along with the high-hat ? Basically, your drum-kit will sound a bit dull on the right side. Try to balance each type of cymbal left and right. Have for instance a crash cymbal on each side, and try to alternate during the song, or again, the kit will sound dull on one side.
	You might want to adapt the tones of your cymbals to each song, so bring several with you to the studio, you and the engineer can discuss which suits the song best. Generally, it is best to leave these awfully loud cymbals designed for concert sound behind, and prefer the more subtle type. Whatever suits your style of music...

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Tips for Drums (update 25/07/2000)

Tips for Drums
(update 25/07/2000)