Cheap Drum Recording

davidlujan

Junior Member
Hi all,

I've saved up a bit of money and I want to start recording my drums. I'm gonna start making some tracks with some friends and I want them to sound good, but I know I'm not gonna receive commercial-type recordings.

I have around $250 and I'm open to buying used gear, but I'd rather have the safety of knowing everything is reliable. I really only need one or two mics to get started, and I'm looking for suggestions as to what interface and mics to get. If you have any recordings with the mics that would be great! I've looked on recording forums like gearslutz but what they have in mind for a budget is quite a lot more than what I have. I'm in high school, and I'd rather not go over my budget...

Thanks, David
 
Honestly, when you get into mics/recording gear, $250 isn't going to get you very far at all. That stuff (even used) is NOT cheap. Your basic run-of-the-mill bass drum mic (Audix D6, Shure Beta 52, AKG D112) alone is around $200.

Also, be VERY cautious when buying used electrical gear. You never know what kind of issues may be lying in wait to show themselves down the road. And it's not like drums, where you can easily (and usually cheaply) replace a bent tension rod, or a broken lug, or whatever.

I'm not trying to discourage you at all. Just throwing in my 2 cents.
 
I'd grab a Presonus or Focusrite 2-channel interface and two used hi-spl LDCs.

When you decide you want more channels, sell the 2-chan interface at a $50 loss and pick up a R16 and some decent dynamic mics.
 
Hi Cutaway, I'm not really going for the full mic setup with close mics, I've heard a lot of mono drum recordings with sounded great to my ear, so I'm going more with something KamaK has recommended.

KamaK, do you think the AT2020s are the best cheap condenser out there? I've seen some people mention the AKG P220s, MXL V67s, MXL 990s. etc.. Just wondering if you have any experience with these other mics or if it wouldnt really make a substantial difference between these mics.

Destroyer, I've seen that mic pack and it seems extremely cheap, but I might look into it after hearing the demo.

Thank you all for replying, I really appreciate it!
 
KamaK, do you think the AT2020s are the best cheap condenser out there?

All the others are pretty much the same. Bo on the forum uses P220's I believe. The AT2020's only distinction was that it was probably the first inexpensive hi-SPL LDC to really gain traction in the market.

I think I solo them toward the end of this practice loop so you can hear what they sound like just set up as overheads.
 
No worries, you can get this Sabian outfit that has the mics, mixer and built in recorder for $269.
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-audio/sabian-sound-kit--4-piece-drum-mic-and-mixer-set

The Sabian mic kit is a great value for a first purchase, and I was going to recommend it also. But you still need to buy three mic stands and cables, which will put the cost of the system over $300.

To hit the $250 price, you'll have to look at a device such as the Zoom H4N:
Zoom H4n Pro Handy Recorder
https://reverb.com/item/2315254-zoom-h4n-pro-handy-recorder

Between the two systems, I'd save money until you can afford something like the Sabian rig as it will give you much better results.
 
On your budget, maybe check out the Zoom cameras and recorders. I have a Q4 video camera, it has two built in stereo mics
and does a nice off the floor recording with video.

Me too. I've got a Q3 and it's not bad. Plus you can make videos. I got mine used from guitar centers' used gear web site. If you get one with out a camera on it, it would be pretty cheep used. There are several brands of those recorders. Zoom is the only one I had had any experience with.
 
Hi DavidLujan, take a look a Karma's DM7 mic set. Four different mics that work on snares and toms, one base mic and two overheads at about the $250 range. And look at KAM Instruments D7 mic set. Same number of mics and about $30 more.
 
The Sabian mic kit is a great value for a first purchase, and I was going to recommend it also. But you still need to buy three mic stands and cables, which will put the cost of the system over $300.

Indeed. I'd probably recommend a single AT2020 in TCHAD before I recommended the Sabian kit. I would love to hear an A/B comparison between the two before giving that advice though.
 
Ok, I'm definitely not going for the Sabian kit since it only records MP3s and it's not really versatile for recording other instruments.

Right now I'm torn between the Zoom H4n and a Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 with a used LDC. I can always add another mic to both of them, but I'm sure the Focusrite has way better preamps and the LDC is a better mic than the onboard zoom mics. The good thing about the Zoom is I can easily take it to band practices or performances, but I'm not sure if it's worth the drop in sound quality.

What do you guys think, have you ever used one or the other?
 
Ok, I'm definitely not going for the Sabian kit since it only records MP3s and it's not really versatile for recording other instruments.

Good catch.

Right now I'm torn between the Zoom H4n and a Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 with a used LDC.
. . .
What do you guys think, have you ever used one or the other?

I used a Zoom H4n for several years to record audio for videos I was producing. I always used the XLR inputs: a wireless lavalier mic in one input, an overhead condenser shotgun in the other. I achieved excellent results for the price (several thousand less than a Sound Devices field recorder, the industry standard).

As a test, I did use it to record my drums a couple times and the results were good. Are there better mic pre-amps out there? Yes, for much more money.

You can record at high sample rates to the lossless WAV format, a requirement if you want to fiddle with the sound files:
https://www.zoom-na.com/products/field-video-recording/field-recording/zoom-h4n-handy-recorder

For field recording, I now use a Tascam DR-70D, which is giving me great results. Here's an example of using four mics to record one of my favorite snare drums:
https://youtu.be/48NWpQh2LOI
 
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I have an R16, with has a similar preamp to the H4N.

While I do not consider the preamps "great", the upside is that they're relatively quiet. This allows me to colorize things after they're recorded without much noise or other fuss.

The last comment is....

If you're in a band, sometimes it's easier to coordinate these things with other band members. Online collaboration is generally easier when everyone uses the same DAW. You can distribute the financial load a bit as well. Drummer gets a AT2020, the guitarist gets an SM57, bassist gets a good DI or B52, etc. Occasionally, you can form Voltron.
 
You have lots of options. I would go with a low end interface like a Presonus USB (assuming you have convenient access to a computer), Reaper as a DAW and a mic like the AT2020 or similar LDC.

I'm a new drummer so my playing shows it. For this recording I am using an AT2020 in front of the kit, Sterling S31 overhead into a Zoom R8. No effects. Not too bad by my ears for an under $200 set of mics and I'm sure with more work and mixing effort it could be way better. I've also had decent sounds from a Zoom H2 by itself.

https://soundcloud.com/user-313384997/urthing
 
What goals are you going for exactly? Just recording your drums? recording your band? Demos?

Do you have a computer capable of recording? Any software?

Recording sucks man, it's expensive and requires a lot of gear, not discouraging you just adding to what's been said.
 
I recorded with two AT2020's for a while and a Presonus Audiobox and got very good results. And remember, "overheads" doesn't imply they must be above the kit. When I used this basic setup, I got the best results with one mic to the front left of the kit, horizontal at just above rack tom height. The other was horizontal to the right of the kick drum and just above it.

Since then however, I've gone bonkers and now use 12 mics with a PreSonus AR16. Sounds better obviously.....BUT, that 2 mic setup was surprisingly very good.
 
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