drum recording room size

[rems]

Is a 12x10x8 room good for drum recording? What is an appropiate size?

[Sabe]

Of course, the room size will be greatly determined by the size of the drum kit, but a standard 5 piece drumkit will certainly fit in that area with room to spare.

The key to good drum booth, however, is the "amount of" or "lack of" soundproofing applied to the room. Less soundproofing material will gain you a much livlier sound, more soundproofing will gain you a more controlled drum sound via close micing techniques and so forth. Bass traps in the corners are typically desired in a drum booth as well to help dampen "drum overtones" that may bounce around the room.

I play a 5 piece kit (two floor toms instead of two ride toms) and my drum booth is smaller than yours and it works quite well. Plenty of room to add a tom or two, some boomed cymbals, with overhead boomed mics all around the kit.

Also, it is ideal if the room isn't square and the walls are angled for deflection purposes.

[rems]

Thanks for the reply. Where can I find info on soundproofing for drum recording. Also, my concern would be regarding standing, eq, etc due to the size of the room and since the drum produces loud music.

[nikki-k]

Hi! One thing I added to my drum room: I grabbed some "mover's pads," put eyelets in the corners and center of one side, and put hooks near the ceiling on each wall. This way, I can easily change how *lively* the room is, depending on mood, etc. Not as nice as a "pro room," but works for me! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] Roughest thing is ceiling height and overhead mic use (discussed here, to start- search a bit if this isnt enough http://duc.digidesign.com/cgi-bin/ub...c;f=2;t=006966 ). "Portable" soundproofing (bass traps, etc) are out there, although with a bit of time and work, one could build *stands" and mount bass traps, etc to them.
Most important is good instruments to start with of course [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img] Then mics, preamps, ughhhhh....
Nikki =)

[Lowfreq]

That is a pretty tiny room. I have a tracking space of 22x17x13 and I consider that smallish for drums. A large room offers the drum kit to breathe and 'bloom' in the room. As mentioned sound control (not sound proofing) is required. Check the venerable www.acoustics101.com for plenty of info. on controlling sound.