Mono Omni as overhead, am I the only one?

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burn
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Mono Omni as overhead, am I the only one?

Post by burn » Thu Jun 07, 2007 6:04 am

Last session I did, after trying different mics as overhead, I tried a cheap omni (studio project b3) as a single mono OH, and it sounded really good, way better than every other cardioid mics I tried (oktava mc012, AT3035) More natural, open, roomy without too much room, just plain real.

I'm wondering if I was lucky to get a great sound because of different factors ( room, positionement in the room,etc...) or if in general mono omni always give a great natural sound for drums?

Btw, I am recording occasionnaly, mostly when recording friend's albums or my own stuff, that's why I am posting question like that here, because I can't do endless experimentations every week...!

Thanks!
Last edited by burn on Thu Jun 07, 2007 11:37 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Post by purple pie pete » Thu Jun 07, 2007 6:39 am

Omni mics can give you a more natural sound due to their lack of off-axis coloration and flat frequency response. That doesn't mean they'll always be the right mic for the job. It really depends on your drums, the drummer, the room, and where you put the mics. I've used omni overheads many times, and sometimes they sound fantastic and other times they sound like shit. In my experience, the best sound I've gotten from omni's was a spaced pair in front of the kit, rather than overhead.

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Post by logancircle » Thu Jun 07, 2007 7:14 am

Omni mics are especially good if you're limited to, like, 4 or 5 ins. Track some drum wanking, then mix those drums like you usually would. if there's too much room, move it closer (paying attention to phase issues). That functions as your OH and RM tracks when you're limited in ins. If your crash is too violent, maybe treat it by putting things on it (works great in small home studios).
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cyantologist
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Post by cyantologist » Thu Jun 07, 2007 7:20 am

recently i was mixing a project i did for my friends band in which i used a rode nt2 on omni as a room mic (in addition to sdc overheads) but i discovered that i liked the sound of it so much that i turned the overheads way down and used mostly the room track. next time i think i'll spend a lot of time playing around with placement because it turned out to be way more helpful than expected. maybe i'll try your way too just to see.

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Post by mjau » Thu Jun 07, 2007 8:33 am

How many of y'all that are going omni overhead are using stereo room mic's?

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Post by cyantologist » Thu Jun 07, 2007 9:37 am

mjau wrote:How many of y'all that are going omni overhead are using stereo room mic's?
i've never heard of anyone doing that before, but it sounds like an awesome idea. i'd imagine you could get some cool sounds and then there's also the bonus of not having to worry as much about phase cancellation. can't wait to try it out.

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Post by Red Rockets Glare » Thu Jun 07, 2007 9:45 am

I recorded a Jazz group last year and used a mono OH in omni and got one of the most realistic drum sounds I've ever heard.
The mastering engineer really loved it.

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Jeff White
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Post by Jeff White » Thu Jun 07, 2007 9:53 am

I recorded a project last spring where the drums were tracked in a barn with high ceilings. My Oktava MK012s were picking up a lot of RF so I went with a single 414B/ULS in Omni over the kit and then a single Microtech-Gefell UM70s in Omni out in front of the kit. It worked well and the drums sound really good.

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Post by JASIII » Thu Jun 07, 2007 10:46 am

I've used it before, sometimes good/sometimes not so good. Totally depends on the song, drummer, kit, cymbals(!), etc .

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Post by MoreSpaceEcho » Thu Jun 07, 2007 11:23 am

i've had good results with just an earthworks tc30 as overhead and a d112 on the kick. but i usually use the earthworks as stereo room mics, and that's where they are right now. i'm gonna try my shure ksm141's in both cardioid and omni today....once i get done wasting time on the internets...

speaking of drums...allow me to ramble a bit....i was playing mine yesterday, sans earplugs, which i don't often do for obvious reasons, but anyway, playing relatively quietly with no plugs and really listening to how my drums/cymbals sound...i was really digging it, they sound great. and i just thought that man...they never sound ANYTHING like that once they're recorded. and i mean, i think i get pretty good drum sounds, they always turn out well enough on the records, clients are happy, etc. but damn, compared to how they actually sound when you're sitting right there and can really hear the details...the harmonics on the hihat, every last bit of ring on the snare, blah blah...i wanna hear THAT when i come in and listen to the playback. i'm gonna try putting the overheads closer to where my ears are and see how that goes...

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Post by squizo » Thu Jun 07, 2007 11:26 am

i always have one of those cheap mxl 603ss or whatever up over the drummers head.....great 'pinch' mic to have during a thick mix when you need the drums to slim for that huge string section bridge and baritone solo!

teehee

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Post by MoreSpaceEcho » Thu Jun 07, 2007 11:37 am

i find it's usually the drummers themselves that need to slim.

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Post by heylow » Thu Jun 07, 2007 12:49 pm

mjau wrote:How many of y'all that are going omni overhead are using stereo room mic's?
Chris Garges is "long-distace" playing/engineering drum stuff for a new project I'm working on and most tunes thus far have been done using a mono OH, a set of M/S "close" rooms and a set of "far" stereo rooms. This setup has been doing these particular songs great justice.


At the risk of soundy pimpy, the first link of my signature (below) has links to a "Recording Log" which has a lot of great detail by Chris and a "Photo Album" with lots of great shots he took while recording. Lots of ccol drum/gear info involvement!

For those into that kinda thing....enjoy!


Moving on....moving on.



heylow

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Post by Smitty » Thu Jun 07, 2007 1:10 pm

heylow wrote:For those into that kinda thing....enjoy!
i am, and thank you for it.
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Post by JohnDavisNYC » Thu Jun 07, 2007 4:19 pm

the Phonograph LP was recorded with a mono overhead and stereo room mics, not omni, tho... U95 in wide cardioid as the OH, and a pair of Groove Tubes GT44's as room mics about 6 feet out from the kit, about 10 feet wide.

4047 kick, mc012 toms, 57 snare, m160 somewhere, RFT PM750 a few feet in front of the kick.

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