Coles 4038 + Beyer m160s on drums

[mikoo69]

About to get a pair of Beyer m160s to use for drum overheads. I own a pair of Coles 4038, which I've been using on OH up until now.

Been doing a lot of live one-room studio recordings, mostly loud rock music, so I like that the Beyers are hyper-cardiod and will most likely give me less bleed/more focus on the kit, especially in the large, reverberant live room I am moving into (35'x37' w/ 10' ceilings).

Anyone ever use a combination of the m160s and the 4038s? I was thinking of trying an LCR kind of setup with a m160 mono overhead, and the 4038s as R and L. Or the m160s in ORTF or XY and then the 4038s as room mics facing the drums (amps set up in their nulls). Anyone have any luck using both these mics at once, and any tips?

[Ryan Silva]

Funny I have the m160/m130 set and I just recently ordered a pair of 4038s. Once I start experimenting I will surly try the LRC approach and let you know.

[JohnDavisNYC]

i'm in the middle of tracking the new London Souls record, and a huge part of the drum sound is a pair of m160's about 10' in front of the kit, and a 4038 over the drummer's right shoulder. in a room that sounds as good as our rhythm room, that's a drum sound right there.

having some other mics up certainly helps to give options, and close mics certainly give the overall drum sound more power, but that trio of ribbons is a huge part of the character of this record so far.

john

[mikoo69]

Awesome. I dig the London Souls. Any pictures of the drum set up? Why the decision for 2 160s in front of the kit, and one over the right shoulder? I've seen the right shoulder thing when used in "recorderman" setup with a mono overhead, but never heard this position.

[fossiltooth]

[quote="JohnDavisNYC"a huge part of the drum sound is a pair of m160's about 10' in front of the kit, and a 4038 over the drummer's right shoulder. [/quote]

I love both parts of this sentence, John.

[JohnDavisNYC]

thanks justin! good to see you the other night, thanks for coming to the party!

as for the choice, it was exactly for that reason: choice.

i wasn't trying to go for an idealistic minimal setup, but i wanted to have aspects of different drum sounds that i can combine in the mix. didn't have enough time to change setups for every song, so the setup allows for a few different vibes depending on which faders you push up.

complete setup was:

kick e602 > neve 1084(sometimes inside if the drum had a hole, sometimes just up on the head)
kick out 4047> neve 1084
snare top sm57> neve 1084
snare bottom m201> neve 1084
floor tom 414> eisen audio 500 series (john hardy 990)
rack tom 414> eisen audio 500 series (john hardy 990)
overheads U87's > eisen audio 500 series (john hardy 990)
front rooms m160's > api 512c > Drawmer 1968
over shoulder Coles 4038 > neve 1073lb > 1176
live room ceiling mics (pair of oktavas in xy at 23' up)

plenty of options, and a few different vibes.

john

[trodden]

Thanks for the info John. Are the 160's a spaced pair then? I want to try a spaced pair in front of kit next time I track at the larger studio I sometimes work out of. Usually just a mid/side and a mono room mic and mono hallway mic when tracking there. my mid side usually consists of a 4033 for the mid and either a 414 or 87 in figure 8. Which I guess is still kinda mid/side even though the 4033 is also figure 8.
If tracking at my place, it's a beyer 260 over the shoulder and modded chinese ribbons for rooms along with the usual close mics and ortf overheads.