Recording drums with a vocal condensor mic

fabbydabby

Hi

Apologies if this is the wrong forum. Was just wondering if this would damage my mic. I got it for vocals and would like to be able to record my drums with it, for use in a funky house track but I don't want to wreck it.

I understand these mics are generally used more for acoustic guitar / piano type stuff.

Would the loudness of the drums overload it and blow it up???

DamagedTrax

theres no such thing as a "vocal" condensor mic. a condensor is a condensor and will work on any source. as with any recording you shouldnt be putting too hot a level into the mic in the first place. if you find you're going in too hot then theres usually a pad switch on the mic to take the input down.

fabbydabby

Thanks for the reply.

Just checked the mic there. There is no switch of any kind on it. Would it be OK to just reduce the level on the mixer so that it is not peaking out?

DamagedTrax

fabbydabby wrote: »

Thanks for the reply.

Just checked the mic there. There is no switch of any kind on it. Would it be OK to just reduce the level on the mixer so that it is not peaking out?

no. if you're overloading the mic then it needs a pad before the sound hits the capsule.

id be very surprised if you overloaded it though. i use condensors all the time on overheads and never need to pad them. just dont stick it right on the snare!

kfoltman

DamagedTrax wrote: »

theres no such thing as a "vocal" condensor mic.

What about handheld condensers like Shure SM86 or AKG C5? I don't think it's what fabbydabby had in mind, but those would fit the name "vocal condenser mic" pretty well.

fabbydabby

Excuse my ignorance here people, I am much moreso a musician than a producer! The mic is a generic Thomann job, bought with vocal recording in mind and it's serving that purpose quite well.

Basically I just want to know if I can hang it over my drum kit and record myself playing hard without damaging the mic with the volume. I can't afford another mic specifically for drum recording.

So I can do this no probs and the mic will work fine, yeah?

kfoltman

fabbydabby wrote: »

Basically I just want to know if I can hang it over my drum kit and record myself playing hard without damaging the mic with the volume. I can't afford another mic specifically for drum recording.

Do you have a Thomann link for the mic? You didn't say what kind of condenser mic it is - there are plenty, directional or omni, small diaphragm vs large diaphragm, etc.

If it's a directional one (cardioid etc.), you probably want to hang it far enough from the kit. Otherwise, you may get different "colouring" for each part of the kit depending on mic's frequency response at a given angle.

PaulBrewer

fabbydabby wrote: »

Excuse my ignorance here people, I am much moreso a musician than a producer! The mic is a generic Thomann job, bought with vocal recording in mind and it's serving that purpose quite well.

Basically I just want to know if I can hang it over my drum kit and record myself playing hard without damaging the mic with the volume. I can't afford another mic specifically for drum recording.

So I can do this no probs and the mic will work fine, yeah?

Yup - at worst you'll get distortion - at best it will sound great !

fabbydabby

Thanks for the replies people!

Here's the spec:

the t.bone SC400 large diaphragm studio microphone with
6dB 100Hz low cut switch (requires phantom power).
Frequency Response: 30 Hz - 20 Khz, 48V Phantom Power
required,


gotta love the gmail. Never need to delete anything! here's the link:

http://www.thomann.de/ie/the_tbone_sc400_grossmembranmikro.htm

DamagedTrax

kfoltman wrote: »

What about handheld condensers like Shure SM86 or AKG C5? I don't think it's what fabbydabby had in mind, but those would fit the name "vocal condenser mic" pretty well.

true but what i meant was that the actual mic itself isnt specific to vocal recording, plus i was just thinking the usual suspects, 414, 87 etc

Bluebirdstudios

Ye like others have said If your going to spot mic part of the kit I wouldn't on that mic ,very few condensers are happy 1-2" off the snare .Its not so much a question of will the mic get damage on the first hit of the snare its more the life of the mic being shortened by giving it very hard homework. The physical condition of the diaphragm will soon become compromised and the mic will start to loose amongst other things its frequency response characteristics - sounding duller at the top end and woolly at the low end.
Overheads ye no problem.
Cheers - Dec

Fstudios

Hey Fabberdaddy,

You surely can use your mic to record a kit, you might find you get the best results if you don't place it too close to the kit, when you have only one mic it's even more important to place it in exactly the right place to get a good balance of the main elements (Kick & Snare).

Take your time finding the best spot for your room and kit, I couldn't tell you exactly where to put it (depends on far too many factors like where is the kit in the room, how big is the room, how loud are you playing etc, etc, etc....) but I'd suggest trying in front of the kick first...


Have a good time with it, it's a fun challenge.

fabbydabby

Thanks all, really appreciate the help. I was in the process of soundproofing my music room this evening. Hope to finishe this week.

I'll let yiz know how I get on with the tunage

Fstudios

fabbydabby wrote: »

Thanks all, really appreciate the help. I was in the process of soundproofing my music room this evening. Hope to finishe this week.

I'll let yiz know how I get on with the tunage

Just a quick note on that, if you dampen the room too much the drums can sound kinda crap, if you don't have to proof it (neighbors) then I might test and record as you proof so it doesn't become too dead (dead drum room sounds very box like.)

Oh, also I know this is hopelessly obvious. Make sure your drums are tuned nicely.