CAD PRO or Digital Referance?

Dipschmidt

Senior Member
After Christmas, I'll have enough money to buy drum mics, but I have a dilema. Should i get the CAD Pro-7 or the Digital Reference? Both have 7 mics, 1 bass, 3 toms, 2 overheads, and 1 snare, each the same price, each five stars. The digital refereance comes with a case, snare/tom mounts (don't know how many) and two mic clips. The CAD comes with a nice-looking case, but no clips or mounts. Basically, its sound quality that I really care about. Care to help?
CAD: http://www.guitarcenter.com/CAD-PRO-7-7-Piece-Drum-Microphone-Pack-102796992-i1126745.gc
Digital Reference: http://www.guitarcenter.com/Digital...-Drum-Mic-Kit-with-Case-103727673-i1126622.gc

Or, if you guys know of any other good mics (gotta be under $350, 7 mics needed, but 8 would be great) let me know.
 
I used to have the CAD... dont really recommend them. I ended up going with a pair of Oktava MK012s, Audix D6 & an SM57.

Do you really need 7? You can prolly substitute a pair Karma K10s for the Oktava & that'll be under $350... I think.
 
Price wise it would bother me paying less than $30 USD per microphone. I would believe that there would have to be many short cuts in quality materials in the manufacturing of these microphones. There are good comments about these mics, but they're probably from first time microphone owners that never compared these to other higher quality mics. If your budget is really limited and quality doesn't matter as much as turning acoustical energy into electrical energy, this may be the package for you, I don't know.

Dennis
 
I have the digital reference, I've had them for about a year now, they are holding up really well, sound great. The build quality is really impressive, they are metal housings, and the mounts are audio technica. I haven't had any problems with them. Honestly There isn't a lot of difference between these mics and an sm-57. if you take them apart the capsules look identical, and more importantly they sound just like an sm-57. They have a bass roll-off on the snare/tom mics and they don't go as high as the 57 but I swear I can't hear the difference.

I haven't had any problems with the clips, and I've probably played 150 shows this year, and I have diecast hoops which are bigger than regular hoops.

The only thing I don't really like is the bass drum mic, if you take the grill off it is basically the same mic as the snare/tom mics, it just has a lower response. but it gets the job done for live sound, and with some eq/compression you can get a really good sound. Down the road you can upgrade the kick mic and then use the digital reference for the floor tom.
 
I have the digital reference, I've had them for about a year now, they are holding up really well, sound great. The build quality is really impressive, they are metal housings, and the mounts are audio technica. I haven't had any problems with them. Honestly There isn't a lot of difference between these mics and an sm-57. if you take them apart the capsules look identical, and more importantly they sound just like an sm-57. They have a bass roll-off on the snare/tom mics and they don't go as high as the 57 but I swear I can't hear the difference.

I haven't had any problems with the clips, and I've probably played 150 shows this year, and I have diecast hoops which are bigger than regular hoops.

The only thing I don't really like is the bass drum mic, if you take the grill off it is basically the same mic as the snare/tom mics, it just has a lower response. but it gets the job done for live sound, and with some eq/compression you can get a really good sound. Down the road you can upgrade the kick mic and then use the digital reference for the floor tom.

So you think I should buy it? If i do buy, it'll be the first time buying mics, I just want to get the best quality sound possible for the budget I'm on.
 
Price wise it would bother me paying less than $30 USD per microphone. I would believe that there would have to be many short cuts in quality materials in the manufacturing of these microphones. There are good comments about these mics, but they're probably from first time microphone owners that never compared these to other higher quality mics. If your budget is really limited and quality doesn't matter as much as turning acoustical energy into electrical energy, this may be the package for you, I don't know.

Dennis

I have posted positive results in other threads from the CAD mics and I recommend them with the following considerations. In a studio situation, with varying room conditions, I find it easier to notice the finer points of better quality microphones.

Most gigging situations for me have my drum sound going through a PA. Many of the subtleties of the differences between mics are so much harder to notice. Most of the time an SM57 and an i5 sound the same. Same goes with a D112 and a D6 (or for that matter, my $30 Cad Kick mic) but whatever..

.. I think it's a good way to go to have an inexpensive sub quality set of mics that get the job done. Over time, I try to acquire better mics. If you've ever suffered mic damage, like the "beer cup in the kick mic dance from your singer", then you know it's cool to leave the sweet gear at the studio.

So you think I should buy it? If i do buy, it'll be the first time buying mics, I just want to get the best quality sound possible for the budget I'm on.

If you want to get started a $200 or even a $400 mic pack is going to get you fiddling.

Even though I just spouted off about my rinky dink CAD mic pack, I think the Audix 7 mic pack is the best deal at $299. They're modeled after their Audix pro mic cousins like the i5 and D4 and D6, so you'll get pretty good results right away.

If you get more into it, later you can pick some used SM57s and a Beta or some cool overheads. There is a lot to be said for not getting too thrifty with mic choices. I have two MXL90 ¾in. Hyper Cardiod Condensors that were $100 each. They do the job but they're a little bright and they're nowhere as rich and warm as a $400 SM81. Live, it's not a big deal but in the studio you can tell they're ordinary.

There are so many ways to do it.

Lately, I've been content with just mic'ing my kick and snare and one pencil mic overhead. If my hats seem hard to hear or swallowed up by the room at a sound check, then I just take up one more space on the board with a pencil on my hats. So it's either three or at the most four mics.

In my practice room or at some rehearsals or shows, it's cool to mic everything up but most of the time it'll cost you an extra 30 to 45 minutes to get your sound right. Phase issues suck.

Get a mic pack that has two condensers so you can get a feel for the 1 vs 2 overhead issues and whether you like the sound of mic'ing your hats for the style you play in.

Let us know how you really plan to use them and then you can decide whether you should go with entry level or hold out for a smaller but pro-level set of mics.

You also mentioned in your OP that "8 would be great" and you've got $350 to spend. If you do the Audix pack you still have enough left over to get an MXL91 pencil for your hats. Then you have a condenser for your hats and a two overhead option.

I hope this helps.
 
I have posted positive results in other threads from the CAD mics and I recommend them with the following considerations. In a studio situation, with varying room conditions, I find it easier to notice the finer points of better quality microphones.

Most gigging situations for me have my drum sound going through a PA. Many of the subtleties of the differences between mics are so much harder to notice. Most of the time an SM57 and an i5 sound the same. Same goes with a D112 and a D6 (or for that matter, my $30 Cad Kick mic) but whatever..

.. I think it's a good way to go to have an inexpensive sub quality set of mics that get the job done. Over time, I try to acquire better mics. If you've ever suffered mic damage, like the "beer cup in the kick mic dance from your singer", then you know it's cool to leave the sweet gear at the studio.



If you want to get started a $200 or even a $400 mic pack is going to get you fiddling.

Even though I just spouted off about my rinky dink CAD mic pack, I think the Audix 7 mic pack is the best deal at $299. They're modeled after their Audix pro mic cousins like the i5 and D4 and D6, so you'll get pretty good results right away.

If you get more into it, later you can pick some used SM57s and a Beta or some cool overheads. There is a lot to be said for not getting too thrifty with mic choices. I have two MXL90 ¾in. Hyper Cardiod Condensors that were $100 each. They do the job but they're a little bright and they're nowhere as rich and warm as a $400 SM81. Live, it's not a big deal but in the studio you can tell they're ordinary.

There are so many ways to do it.

Lately, I've been content with just mic'ing my kick and snare and one pencil mic overhead. If my hats seem hard to hear or swallowed up by the room at a sound check, then I just take up one more space on the board with a pencil on my hats. So it's either three or at the most four mics.

In my practice room or at some rehearsals or shows, it's cool to mic everything up but most of the time it'll cost you an extra 30 to 45 minutes to get your sound right. Phase issues suck.

Get a mic pack that has two condensers so you can get a feel for the 1 vs 2 overhead issues and whether you like the sound of mic'ing your hats for the style you play in.

Let us know how you really plan to use them and then you can decide whether you should go with entry level or hold out for a smaller but pro-level set of mics.

You also mentioned in your OP that "8 would be great" and you've got $350 to spend. If you do the Audix pack you still have enough left over to get an MXL91 pencil for your hats. Then you have a condenser for your hats and a two overhead option.

I hope this helps.

Yeah, I think I'll go with the Audix. And for an interface, I'm thinking of an M-audio: http://www.guitarcenter.com/M-Audio-Fast-Track-Ultra-8R-USB-Interface-482555-i1402389.gc
 
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