Any secrets to recording real drums?

[stevecollom]

i'm in the middle of recording drums for my new project and i've changed all the heads, using some middle of the range mics (akg 451b, 57s etc)
i have a great drummer and clean levels, but it is just missing that something that i hear in top studios. i really like to record clean into PT and then add all the colors.

what tricks do know that have pulled a killer sound (other than the obvious "better mics, better kit, better drummer")

steve

[elser]

Drumagogue drum replacement software.

Really, it gets used all the time, it's really tough to beat the current offering of sampled drums. You can use it to trigger samples on kick, snare and toms and blend the samples with the real drums, especially the overhead mics.

Engineers with great mics in world class rooms with all the coolest outboard gear still will spend days just getting a great drum sound before they even start recording.

It's just something you might consider.

[stevecollom]

yeah that's very true,

i use sound replacer a lot.

Does anyone know of a great pop/rock/singersongwriter drum sample library?

steve

[bigbluebarry]

There are several options out there for you depending on your budget and how much you want to tweak things. Around here, the majority of folks seem to use one (or more) of the following 3 choices: EZ Drummer, Addictive Drums and Superior Drummer 2

I actually own all 3 but Superior Drummer 2 is definitely my favorite. But here are some links to some discussions here on the forums about those three so you can get some feedback from various users to help you decide what might be best for you.

1) EZ Drummer - http://forums.taxi.com/topic22612.html

2) Addictive Drums - http://forums.taxi.com/topic22382.html

3) Superior Drummer 2 - http://forums.taxi.com/topic22083.html

hth,
- Big Blue

EDIT: If you go the EZ Drummer/SD2 route, they also have some MIDI packs that you can purchase separately (under $30 i think) and the newest one is geared towards songwriters.

[elser]

I'm in the middle of a project and I'm using Steven Slate drums which are sounding really good. I got them cheap in a group buy and wasn't crazy about them soloed, but they work really good in a mix very quickly. The included midi patterns are pretty lame but for drum replacement or creating your own parts they're another good option.

[llama]

Hey Steve,
I just received this months copy of "Recording" Magazine yesterday. On it's cover it says "how to record better drums". There's a bunch of info in there on the very subject. As well as drum replacement and how to use drum loops and make them sound better...Don't know how helpful it would be for you. But maybe you can check it out next time you hit the magazine store.

Derek

[rkat]

I use steve slate drum samples also and love them. Though I play on a roland electronic set and midi, I did see once before they had some sort of drum replacement software too but don't recall the name.

[waltzmastering]

Getting the source sound spot on has a lot to do with capturing a great sound. Once the source sound is on there is a lot information to consider that involves micing and recording techniques.

These videos might help:
http://www.recordproduction.com/ken-sco ... rding.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AP5exS6lzFk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MP2w3wbk ... re=related

Interesting that most tips posted so far involve replacing the drum sounds be for they are even recorded....

I would take well recorded natural drums over samples any day. Recording is an art, sound replacement is a crutch. ymmv.

[Fullertime]

You would be amazed if you heard how crappy some of the "naked" drum sounds off of hit records sound when you solo them and listen to them before some amazing Mixing Engineer got through with them. I'd say that 25% of the "Polish" comes post production. EQ's, compression, fx... etc...

Although remember the golden rule... "The better going in= better going out"

I gave up on recording live drums about 4 years ago once the Drum Software got so amazing. I use BFD 2 a lot but the one's Bigblue mentioned are good too. It's cheaper, faster... (and you can tell it what to do -lol)

I heard that Mutt Lang spent over 3 weeks straight trying to find the right "Snare sound" for Def Leppard....

Good luck. Post some samples when you're done.

Fuller

[mojobone]

Tom and Fuller are both right, samples are a crutch, but if you don't have a better kit(s), mics and room(s) than the sample maestros, (not to mention kickass analog processing/preamps, tuning chops and mic technique) it's unlikely you'll beat their sound. If there's a secret, it's that most rock records use triggers and layered samples, these days, particularly for those 'larger than life' sounds. Steven Slate Drums is probably in the top tier for processed ready-to-mix or layer rock drums. They may not be quite as tweakable as AD, but there's plenty of variety with the Platinum set, with it's multiple ambiences per mic position; it's designed for layering.