Gruuve Posted December 22, 2004 Share Posted December 22, 2004 Hey guys: Next question: what's the best way to mic a Djembe? Mic in front of drum, slightly above, aimed at head? Or mic underneath? Seems like more low frequencies come out the bottom, while most of the attack is above the head. Maybe mic'ing both is best, but if you only have one, what's the norm? Thx! Dave Old bass players never die, they just buy lighter rigs. - Tom Capasso, 11/9/2006 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee Flier Posted December 22, 2004 Share Posted December 22, 2004 Depends on how good the mic is. If you have a really nice large diaphragm condenser, that's usually all that's necessary. I tend to place it anywhere from 6" above the head to halfway down the drum (depending how hard the drummer's playing and how much bottom you want), and angled toward the floor. If all you have are crappy condensers and a few dynamics (including cheap large diaphragms), then place your crappy condenser near the top and put something like a Sennheiser MD421 or Beyer M88 on the bottom (or a 57 if that's all you have), and blend to taste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruuve Posted December 22, 2004 Author Share Posted December 22, 2004 Thanks Lee. I've got an MXL 990 at home (which should be decent for recording), but I believe the live sound rig uses Shure SM-58's...I think...I'll have to check. My default position would probably be on top, pointing at the head. That way the mic should be "hearing" roughly the same thing I'm hearing...I think...I hope! Thx, Dave Old bass players never die, they just buy lighter rigs. - Tom Capasso, 11/9/2006 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee Flier Posted December 22, 2004 Share Posted December 22, 2004 Oh sorry, I didn't realize this was for stage and not recording. If using 58's then I'd say you will probably need both top and bottom... a single 58 is not likely to pick up enough low end. And when recording you will probably need a bottom mic to go with the MXL, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidereal Posted December 22, 2004 Share Posted December 22, 2004 Depends on how good the room is. If it's a good room, djembes sound great with some space between the instrument and the mic when using a good large-diaphragm condenser mic in an open pattern. But yes, Lee's right... you're way ahead of the game with good mics. In addition to her advice, you might want to experiment with these options... If the room is good: SM-58 4-6" above and away from the head angled 45 or so degrees toward the center or edge of the drum. Condenser straight above pointing down at the drum. Position the player where it sounds best in the room. Mix to taste. If the room is not so good: Close miking is probably better and there Lee's first suggestion sounds like an excellent approach. Also, try and experiment with the condenser placed underneath the hole. I once found great success with this approach using an AT AE2500 dual-element dynamic/condenser feeding mostly the condenser element. This was complemented with an AT 4060 tube placed about 12" from the top head angled in the way I mentioned before. Just for the record. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidereal Posted December 22, 2004 Share Posted December 22, 2004 Originally posted by Lee Flier: Oh sorry, I didn't realize this was for stage and not recording. oops! me neither. sorry. If they've got a spare D112 lying around, that would also work well as the bottom mic to complement the 58 on top. Just for the record. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruuve Posted December 22, 2004 Author Share Posted December 22, 2004 I'm using this in church, and generally the only thing we mic is vocals...everything else runs direct only (including electronic drums). So, I doubt we have anything other than SM-58's available, but I may take my MXL 990 with me...or do you think that would be too sensitive for live? This week we're doing an "unplugged" type thing...vocalist, acoustic-electric guitarist, and djembe. Ought to be pretty cool...(I'm the bassist, but I also happen to be a drummer too...it's turning out pretty cool to switch up instruments occasionally!) Thx, Dave Old bass players never die, they just buy lighter rigs. - Tom Capasso, 11/9/2006 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidereal Posted December 22, 2004 Share Posted December 22, 2004 Um, in that case you might not want to mic it at all. If it's a church with high ceilings, that will provide plenty of bottom end and plenty of volume. Just for the record. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruuve Posted December 22, 2004 Author Share Posted December 22, 2004 Actually, it's a very new church without a permanent building yet....meets in a movie theatre for now! They generally record the music (just dumping the live mix to disk, nothing fancy) so that's actually the primary motivation for miking...as well as not having to overplay to balance with an amplified acoustic-electric and amplified vocals. Dave Old bass players never die, they just buy lighter rigs. - Tom Capasso, 11/9/2006 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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