Drum mic sets - people's views

[jamesperrett]

You seem to have guessed at all the problems had with mics like that - though not exactly those ones. (Think they were AKG* but I'm not 100% sure :unsure: )

 

Mark - If they're the mics I'm thinking of in one of your previous jobs then they were definitely AKG. I had a clip on sax mic from the same range which was also rather fragile. This has been replaced by an AudioTechnica AT35 which is more rugged and sounds better.

 

Those cheap Yoga mics certainly impressed me with their sound when I used them - although I think the ones I used (which looked identical) were branded T.Bone.

 

Cheers

 

James.

[Noodle650]

I use a D112 on kick, PG56 on snare, Beta 98s on Toms and a LDC as an overhead!

[dbuckley]

I have a few earlier AKG micromics, and although they are old, they've only had light use, but they haven't survived well at all. I originally used them without the foam shield, and they've all lost their top bit of grill. However, you can tie wrap the foam thing to a top-less mic, and it still works surprisingly well.

 

I continue to use the because, sometimes, I just like the way they sound...

[MarkPAman]

Thanks James, now you mention the sax mic (which I still have one of) I remember - they were the AKG.

[TallMike]

The Red5 set was the first I ever bought, years ago.

 

I had a few issues at the start with the condensers not working properly, but they were really early models.

 

Have to say that I got a great sound out of them.

 

I agree that a well tuned kit will sound great with 57's on everything. I think that's the most important thing- spend time getting placement right and tuning the kit and your job will be ten times easier.

 

Mike

[Doug Siddons]

Quick addendum to my post, I am not at all involved with Red5 apart from the fact I have some of their mics and I find the company friendly to talk to, so I sent a link to this thread to them and got this reply:

 

Hi Doug,

 

 

Many thanks for the heads up on this.

 

 

If you want to comment from us directly, the latest batch of RVK7 drum mic sets are now shipping with a much improved all-metal clip, based on the original design that was included in earlier RVk7 sets. As some of the contributors to the post have mentioned, we had problems with this model coming apart - this issue has now been resolved. On a side-note, we did try the Yoga style clip at one point but found that on kits with shallow rims, it was not possible to attach it.

 

 

Best regards,

 

 

Support Team

 

Red5 Audio

[wmcalin]

I would have a serious look at Audix, I use the Audix D6 for bass drum, excellent mic and very well priced.

If you go for clip on mic's for the rest of the kit make sure the fixings are upto the job...

Drummers tend to hit the mic's and damage the clips....

I've used Shure PG and Sennheiser E604's with the Audix D6 on the bass drum and always get good results E604's are well made with good clips.

[Trunker]

Live minimal set up, I always use a Sennheiser e602 on the Kick drum, Shre SM57 on the snare and 1 Audio Technica AT10Ma for overhead. Always get an excellent sound I need from them.

[Jordan]

I know this threads gone cold now but if anyone wants to hear the shure pg mics my son Bren just put these up on youtube. He just did a basic headphone mix through a berry desk with minimal eq and sent it straight out to his laptop through an m-audio usb interface. There is some live band stuff up there also using the pg mics if you search his channel.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCGvyL8ospc

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=am59_Tq0LlI

[Alec]

OK, so reporting back much later in the day...

 

What I've finally ended up with, and am very happy with are the following:

 

Audix D6 kick mic - it is as good as everyone says!

5 x Yoga D606 snare/tom mics with AT8665 clips

2 x FX-510L small capacitors for hi-hat & overhead.

 

The whole set came in at just under £300, which isn't bad for the amount of kit it gets.

Those D606 mics really are the business, and for the price, nothing to argue about. It pains me to have to buy a new mount for them, but the one they come with is pretty rank. But, even with that, they still come in at just under £20 inc VAT if you check the special offers.

And, as well as the smiles when they see the D6, quite a few visiting engineers have been shocked when I've told them how much the D606s cost (which I tell them after they've listened).

 

So a definite thanks to Pete for that recommendation, and to others' input - particularly as it ended up with me mixing & matching, and putting the money where it happened in the end. And made it less of a major investment, buying piecemeal, rather than in one big lump. Though did have a moment after one gig when I thought the D6 had gone walkies...

[Bobbsy]

Thanks for the report back...it happens all too rarely and it's great to hear how somebody has got on with BR advice.

 

Bob

[T.Colwill]

I didn't realise this was an old topic until I got to the end, but I wanted to share a few notes on the clips.

 

As a drummer I've played with a few different types of tom clip. I'd recommend the single piece plastic clip that the Sennheiser range use and the Audio Technica one that the OP ended up getting as a good option. So far I've not made this type of clip fall off even when stuck a good blow, and the shape allows them to attach to most, if not all types of drum rim (and I think even some wooden snare rims.) Sometimes the mic positioning screw will loosen, but that isn't often.

 

The screw types are also good, but with the vibrations caused (especially with a hard hitter like myself) they can sometimes unscrew and more so if they are particularly well used or old, as the threads may have worn down. I've had one come loose and go AWOL mid set before now. The clip that most gooseneck type mics have, a sort of glorified clothes peg (though after a quick search it seems that sort of clip isn't used anymore), as mentioned, isn't great. The gooseneck itself is easily moved if hit. And if caught at the right angle, can ping off and end up flying across the stage (well, falling off at least)

 

Tim

[Simon Lewis]

That bendy small gooseneck clip on (with the green coloured clip and 98m of permanently attached 2.5mm cable, and part of the range by Akustische und Kino-Geräte!) was perhaps the worse microphone I have purchased for a long time. It sounded reasonable, but was just impractical, and unless taken very good care of just ended up getting broken by a drum stick hit, or the cable got crushed in the mics flightcase...

[dbuckley]

I have a set of those mics, and I think one of them still survives in its original state; most have lost the metal grills, so I've just got the foam ball tie wrapped on. The only reason I keep them (as opposed to storing them in the wheelie bin) is I like the sound, just sometimes; they are "fast" compared to dynamics, and if I want toms to bite and cut, then they are a decent answer. Unfortunately, the type of drummers that are in the sorts of beat combos that makes this kind of sound likable are often just the sort that aren't good at avoiding anything, let alone 'ickle fragile mics... Even if I had a set of nice condensors I dont think I'd want them within drumstick range...

[Rob_Beech]

I realise that this is an old topic (I didn't until I got to the end) But I too have used the D606. Sadly I don't think I have any left now. They do fail eventually and fall to bits but generally after a fair bit of work. Decent sound for the money.

 

Very glad to see you're happy, and another thankyou for returning to the thread and letting us know what you went for.

 

I must comment on Noodle650's post half way up the page there. It's wonderful to see with Noodle uses, and what helpful advice that would have been had you had a budget 5 times as big. In the same way, I like my451(ck1)'s on hats, and overheads, or my 414's on overheads etc, I like using beta98's on toms though I too have had damages by drummers hitting them, however none of this is any use to this topic. Sadly our friend Noodle hasn't logged in for a while now, it's a shame as I'd like to point out how useless that post was.