First time recording drums, help!

GingerJack

Junior Member
Hi, this is my first post on this forum, forgive me if I've done anything wrong!

Recently I have decided to bite the bullet and get some drum mics and a mixer. However I'm not too familiar with the process and need some outside input!

I intend to record primarily for use in demo recordings and to be able to play about with setups to see what affects what - basically to become familiar with the recording process. Therefore I'd like to be able to multi track each drum individually, rather than the whole thing being through one output.

After many hours of scouting around for something to fit my criteria I have come to the conclusion of buying (This is about the extent of my budget):

iSK 7 Pc DRUM MICROPHONES MICS plus XLR leads plus Drum Clamps
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI....akeTrack=true&ssPageName=VIP:watchlink:top:en

AND

Behringer X1222 USB Xenyx 16 Channel Mixer
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Behringer..._DefaultDomain_3&hash=item19e6ded8a3#rpdCntId

I have listened to the drum mics and they are just what I need for sound quality. I've chosen a mixer with 6 XLR inputs with the plan of micing up: snare, 2 toms, bass and 2 overheads. I wasn't too fond of making do with 4 inputs.

I'm quite sure I would like to buy these two pieces of equipment, I'm just hesitant on spending £300 on something I'm not 100 percent sure will work! So, If I hook this up to my computer with Ableton as my DAW will I get my separate drum channels? Do you have any other input?

Cheers!
 
*edit* just read the whole post.

The only way to multi-track and get each drum on each channel is get an audio interface with an input for each mic. You will need to use fire-wire as USB isnt wide enough for 8 separate tracks and your processor will need to be pretty beefy to handle all of the separate frequencies.

If you use the mixer into a single or two channel interface all of the drums will be on the same track, your mixer only has the main and monitor outputs which summs all of the inputs into a common output. There is no way to send each input out on its own channel. This is the method I use and it works well enough. You cant EQ each drum individually in pro-tools with this method, so you can only achieve a certain level, but it is good enough for demos.
 
*edit* just read the whole post.

The only way to multi-track and get each drum on each channel is get an audio interface with an input for each mic. You will need to use fire-wire as USB isnt wide enough for 8 separate tracks and your processor will need to be pretty beefy to handle all of the separate frequencies.

If you use the mixer into a single or two channel interface all of the drums will be on the same track, your mixer only has the main and monitor outputs which summs all of the inputs into a common output. There is no way to send each input out on its own channel. This is the method I use and it works well enough. You cant EQ each drum individually in pro-tools with this method, so you can only achieve a certain level, but it is good enough for demos.

So essentially I won't be able to multi-track at all?

Will I need to get an audio interface as well as the mixer in this case? The mixer can't output straight to a computer even with USB functionality?
 
I always say the same thing - try getting the drums sounding ok with just a single mic first.

Mic positioning and all of that are a huge part of recording, and experimenting with one mic only can teach you a lot.
Then it's a lot easier adding mics as you go on.
I've found that I can get a pretty good basic capture of the set with just two mics, even with no processing and only minimal eq:ing

You need to learn to crawl before you learn to walk etc
 
So essentially I won't be able to multi-track at all?

Will I need to get an audio interface as well as the mixer in this case? The mixer can't output straight to a computer even with USB functionality?

If your main priority is recording get an audio interface and skip the mixer. I did see that the mixer has inserts for the first four channels, but I have had very little success with mixer inserts. You are trying to send four individual tracks through a USB. It is a challenge very few computers are up to. You will need a dedicated recording computer with a processor and sound board set up to handle that type of load. Plus its only four tracks that you can multi-track ( I guess five if you count the main out). I also cant speak to how it will work with you DAW, I've never even heard of Ableton, so I cant help you there.
 
I use six mics into an analogue mixer then into one of my Focusrite scarlet channels and the kick goes into the other Focusrite channel. The scarlet has two pre amp channels. Focusrite do an 8 track but it's expensive.
 
I use an Akai EIE interface, Reaper software, and the Glyn Johns microphone technique.
 
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