Hi there old man, need your help bad!
Stay right there, “J”! I’m riding toward you across the prairie!
There’s one problem – the Count Basie Orchestra is in my way!
I’m a drummer and a little ahead of myself. To try and make it easier for you, here’s what I have.
“J” goes on to list his kit, his power amps, his speakers, his mics, his reverb and his stereo comp/limiter/gate/expander…
Here is my question, I know it’s hard to explain simply by email. I’ve been playing for 8 years, and never had to set all of this stuff up, and make it sound good.
Now you see why we of the sound world are necessary, don’t you! Yeah! R-e-s-p-e-c-t!
On a more serious note, it is important that you tune your drums correctly. You want to avoid notes that resonate, and hang in the air longer than they should.
When you are playing in an acoustic music setting, there are no rules like that, but when you are amplifying your drums, you do not have that luxury.
Remember that it is the bottom head that truly determines the note. Bet you didn’t think I knew that, didja?
1. What is generally the best setting for the compressors, or just gate, or just limit?
Well, that all depends on your actual need.
Compression and limiting become useful when a person is wildly uneven in the volume they are giving you, and you need to even it out. Only you can determine if any of your bandmates misbehave this way.
I am sure that you play the same throughout the set, you seem to be a pretty even-tempered lad.
Gating is used to make a mic only be open when you are hitting that particular drum. If your band does not play too loud, it is possible that this is not necessary.
If John, Paul, and George are wailing away on large amplifiers and you have a tidal wave of drum fill washing over you, you might need to think about gating things.
With the stereo unit that you own, one would tend to apply it first to the kick and the snare.
2. For the money, are there any better mics, or is it not that big of a deal for playing live?
What you have is quite usable, “J”-man. You would have to spend quite a bit more money to get significantly superior mics to the ones you own.
3. Do I have too much equipment (I doubt it but I had to ask), or are there important components I’m missing?
No, to both questions.
4. Any good advice for a newbie? Anything you can tell me is much appreciated.
Thanks,
J. Donahue
Work your sound up gradually. Most people get in trouble by trying to be too loud too soon. Also, and I’ve said this before, identify what is most important, and do not try to add too many more other things that will mask that.
Rock on, “J”-dude!
Luv –
The Old Soundman
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