Drum overhead mics.

[Bellringer]

Does anyone have an affordable favorite (say no more than $700 for a pair) mic for drum overheads. I'm looking for a mic that will give a smoother attack on cymbals. I still want a nice crash but feel like the tone is a bit brittle. Right now I manage the situation by rolling off some highs. It does vary by the drummer and his cymbals and drums. Just wondering if someone has a favorite (affordable) overhead? If it has other good uses, let me know!

[dagosto]

I like a pair of SM81's. You could get those for under $700. They have a very nice tonal accuracy and smoothness. I usually have them in a spaced array over the cymbals.

[johnS]

I have a pair of Crown CM700s that work well as drum overheads. Definitely not too bright. They sound "good" (i.e., they don't do anything bad to the sound), they have a three-position high-pass filter, and I'm sure I paid less than $500 for a matched pair.

Only minor downer is that they have a bit lower output compared to my other condensers, but they're fine for drums.

[johnS]

Actually, this guy also likes the high end on the CM700s for drum overheads.

http://www.prorec.com/prorec/article...2567AE0050A4B5

[lukedavo]

C451's are very good. They may be out of your price range, but IMO they will provide you with more fullness than the 81's, everytime I use 81s they always seem too much, like this annoyingly thin brittleness (with those shure overtones), which I love for hihat, but loath in overheads.

[Nubus]

I've been borrowing the tube mic made by Nady lately. For a cheap mic I really like it on drums. It did exactly what I wanted it to do by smearing out the cymbals a little and adding a bit of fullness into the low mids of the snare. They are not available as matched pairs though. It does figure 8 and omni as well as cardiod.

[dagosto]

Originally Posted by lukedavo

C451's are very good. They may be out of your price range, but IMO they will provide you with more fullness than the 81's, everytime I use 81s they always seem too much, like this annoyingly thin brittleness (with those shure overtones), which I love for hihat, but loath in overheads.

I like the 81s because I usually rely on my close mics a lot more than my overheads and the cymbals seem to stay out of everyones way a lot better. The rolloff on them does not souynd bad so I end up using that. I never have to eq them or worry about phase the way I use them in my room.

[Nubus]

Originally Posted by dagosto

I like the 81s because I usually rely on my close mics a lot more than my overheads and the cymbals seem to stay out of everyones way a lot better. The rolloff on them does not souynd bad so I end up using that. I never have to eq them or worry about phase the way I use them in my room.

Chuck Uchida used to use the exact same thing at his studio Attica. He was the first guy to explain 3:1 rule to me, and it was in refrence to his cymbal mic technique.

[dagosto]

Originally Posted by Nubus

Chuck Uchida used to use the exact same thing at his studio Attica. He was the first guy to explain 3:1 rule to me, and it was in refrence to his cymbal mic technique.

Cool. Glad to know I'm not alone in the sm81 camp. Do you happen to know what kind of preamps he used. I use some Presonus Blue Tube dual channels circa 1999.

[Nubus]

He recorded everything in the same room in an attic, mattresses around the drums and guitar amps. It was kind of like a fort that you might build as a kid. He had made a control room at a point for his monitors, console; and yes, ADATs. I don't know what kind of premaps he used on the overheads, but I bet we could go up to Club Foot sometime and ask him!