Music Lesson: Recording and Mixing Drums

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Overview

In this lesson, we'll discuss the process of recording and mixing drum tracks, with an emphasis on identifying and correcting issues in the sound. We will focus on the kick drum, snare drum, and overhead mics and ensure they are properly aligned and leveled.

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Kick Drum Issues

• We've been recording a segment of the song, and I noticed that the kick drum is overloading quite a bit.

• Upon soloing the track, the peaks of the waveform are heading above the ceiling, which overloads the input on the interface. This is not ideal.

  Steps to Rectify:

  • Gain Down: Lower the kick drum level.
  • Pad Adjustment: Since I play quite hard on the kick for this track, I need to pad it, which means lowering the input going into the preamp.

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Snare Drum Check

• The snare drum appears to have a nice healthy level on both channels:

  • Top Snare
  • Bottom Snare

  Next Steps:

  • Zoom in on the waveform to check phase alignment.
  • It's evident that the waveforms are out of phase. One waveform goes up while the other goes down, which leads to frequency cancellation, making the snare sound worse.

  Solution:

  • Activate the phase button on the preamp for the snare.

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Checking Other Mics

• It's important to double-check all other mics for any odd sounds.

  Process:

  • Solo each drum mic individually:
    • Sub Mic: Sounds fine.
    • Kick Drum Out: Sounds fine.
    • Snare Drum: Sounds fine.
    • Snare Bottom: Sounds fine.
    • Hi-Hat: Sounds good.
    • Toms:
      • Find a spot where toms are played, and do a quick check.
    • Floor Tom: All good.
    • Overheads: Verify phase alignment.
      • They appear to be in phase, both waveforms start down and follow each other.

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Room Mics

• Room Mics: Sound great.
• Hall Micro:
  • Take any processing off. It's very quiet and we can hardly see the waveform.
  • Action Needed: Boost gain to enhance signal.
  • Ensure the pad is not engaged since it's far from the kit, requiring more gain.

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Final Mic Check

• Knee Micro: Has a nice healthy signal with plenty of headroom, so it won't overload.

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Conclusion

• We've listened to all individual channels and corrected a few issues.
• Now, we're ready for another take to see how the drums sound after these adjustments.

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