Do i stick with it or switch?

[drummerfreak33]

Hello everyone. My current configuration is an mbox, running on my fully sufficient fast laptop. I have recorded some stuff with my band. However, this past week I met a guy on the campus I go to who has recording asperations as well. He used a delta 410, and ran an rca cable to a mixer, and also had i a mic preamp rack. All I can say is he had a remarkably good sound for this amount or price of equipment. and by the way he was using cubase sx. It had a very good mix, do to his good ear, but the drums sounded great, and the volume levels were all set really well. Im just really distracted right now. my setup is the mobox, and some sm 57s to record guitars (which end up coming out good), and an at3035 to record vocals. Than for drums I submix from a behringer mixer. I use beta 52, sm57s and the 3035 as on overhead as of right now. can anyone give me advice. Im so discouraged about this right now. I want a decent sound. Im not looking for like mind blowing because I know that costs money, but I have been told I can get a really good sound using pro tools and the mbox. I was also looking at the aardvark Q10 today, and thought that looked like it might be somthing decent, being that it has 8 quality preamps along with 8 xlr's which is perfect for drums. If I should stick with the mbox tell me why and how. if you think I shoudl switch tell me the same. thanks!

[spkguitar]

It had a very good mix, due to his good ear

While good equipment certainly helps, it's not really what makes the recorded material great; the person behind the gear does.

My recomendation: stick with the gear you have and work on your skills. You can get good sounds with the mBox, but it's you that has to make it happen, not the gear.

Just my 2¢

[bigbubbaj]

I agree.

If anything, more inputs would help.

BUT remember

Great performance in a great room captured by a great engineer with great mic placement on great mics and preat preamps = great recording.

ALL of your gear would be considered great BTW.

[drummerfreak33]

Ok, I appreciate the help guys. Now I know part of my drum problem is that I have to submix, and cant isolate every track to be edited and mixed and stuff, but I would think I would at least be able to get a decent sound. I seem to always end up with a real "airy" sound with a lower volume. I am pretty decent at getting a good guitar sound. And than my other issue is vocals. Im not exactly sure how to describe it, other than that it sounds like the vocals arent part of the mix. Its like 2 layers. It sounds like theres the music mix in the backround, and than theres the vocal mix, which usually is more pronounced and loud, and sounds like its in front of the music. Any suggestions for that? I really appreciate this help, and I hope this forum will be able to help me on my way to a successful mix. thanks

[bigbubbaj]

Practice,Practice,Practice dont be afraid to fail learn from your mistakes.

Listen to other music and try to make it sound like that.

Audio engineering is something that many people do for a living.

Getting pro results is an art and a craft that takes skill and practice.

If you are good enough, people will pay for your skills because it is so tricky to figure out.

The internet is a great resource.

Try marsh.prosoundweb.com, gearslutz,recording.org,mix magazine, eq magazine, tapeOP.

You will get there.


-Bigbubbaj

[superpenguin79]

if you have issues with drums sounding airy and want a different sound, try reading up on some of the placement techniques on homerecordingconnection.com which are pretty good. Also, about a month or two back now there was an issue of tapeOP magazine that had an excellent article about recording drums and all the ins and outs of it. Try different things like tuning of the drums, different mic placements..etc... Most people do not know that you have to actually know how to tune a drum properly before you can get it to sound good. Work on getting the sounds that you want outside the box from the equipment you are working with, and then you will get what you want inside your computer because it will be what you want coming into the mics in the first place. Goodluck and stick with it. Honestly Engineering takes a while to perfect techniques on. If something doesn't work one way, try it another. One thing that a famous engineer told me when I started out is that it is not the equipment that matters, but it is the ears that are recording it and the knowledge of how to get good sound out of the equipment that works.

[GothicV]

I agree with all that was said above. If you record drums that sound like crap, don't record that way again! try something new! If you have a system when you record, then you need to make some changes.

Also have you ever thought about using samples? Sometimes I'll throw in a sampled kick or snare when my results are less than fantabulous (added to the original kick and snare sound) just to bring in a better sound. It usually sounds natural.

[drummerfreak33]

Thanks for the help so far guys. I am definitely going to be trying what you guys are telling me, and using those sources. Does anyone have any advice about my vocal recording problem that I spoke about above? Also, any tips as far as EQ on the mixer for my drum submix? And on top of eq is panning a very important part of the drum mix? Cause that is somthing Ive been listening for in mixes lately, and some of them i dont really notice a difference. For isntance I can hear the snare just as good on the right speaker, as i can on the left. Im sorry that I sound so retarded, but I thank you guys for taking some time out and trying to help me get up and running. id love to hear some of your guys work too. Do any of you have an examples of some decent recordings using similar equipment to mine, like the mbox, and submixing drums and stuff. id love to hear a good drum recording from an mobx with the submix cause i think it would give me some ideas, and also give me some motivation and hope!

[superpenguin79]

for a suggestion, pick out your fav. cd and pop it in to play it through your current setup and close your eyes and let your ears hear where everything is placed in the mix. This will help you ear train to get a better mix on there for everything.

As far as a generic mix for drums, you could try something like snare and kick up the center of the mix, and then pan the toms and cymbols from either the perspective of the audience or the perspective of where the drummer hears them when he/she is playing them. The reason I say to place kick and snare in the center is because you can put the bass slightly off center and then layer a couple of vocal tracks later when you are recording and it sounds pretty fat in the mix this way.

Of course, you could try something completely different like the Beatles used to by panning kick and snare off to one side and the rest of the kit and what not over to the other. Its really all a matter of perspective and what sounds best. At the end of the day, remember that you should try your best and consider it an art. You will find yourself trying to always make it better, but if we all did that all the time, we would never get anything done. lol Don't forget to give your ears a rest every now and then too in the studio. Sometimes a fresh set of ears is the best solution to a mix. As I mentioned above also, I would read up on the articles I had mentioned and you'll get a really good idea of what I'm talking about. Goodluck

[drummerfreak33]

Thanks! that will certainly help me sample things around with my drums. Any advice on my vocal problem at all? I talked about it in my first post, thanks