I like it!

Assuming the pictures correspond with the sessions, the first one's a Royer ribbon and the second is a plain old 57. Both work. The second clip sounds like just the anal mic soloed throughout, and it's picking up a lot of under-snare. I'm going to have to pass this along to a few people.

EDIT: opening the bigger one on Youtube to get the link, that does not look like a Royer. I don't recognize it.

Apparently a Peluso r14 ribbon.

I would very much like to try this micing technique. I am all for good sounding ways to glue drum tracks when they are mostly dynamic close mics with maximum isolation. To record good bleed and reject bad bleed.

Plus, it'd be sweet if we managed to record a fart.

You boys are guaranteed anal mic tests in a good room when I get back.

Consume fibrous legumes beforehand.

I recorded a friend's band about ten years ago- he was actually my 10th grade history teacher back in the day- and his drummer farted so loudly it picked up on the overheads.

We left it in the mix.

Legitimately LOL'd.

So I tried this out today with a 57. It didn't add any ambience really, but it does sound pretty cool slapped with some compression. In this case, I used Reaper's JS/SStillwell 1175 with the ratio at four.

It primarily seems to be capturing the beater side of the kick and the bottoms of my snare and floor tom. A bit of cymbals make it in but not too much... Particularly the hi hat and china, because they are bastards like that.

https://soundcloud.com/geoffhodsman/anal-mic

There it is. The JS 1175 for compression, ratio at 4... and then JS 1073 plugin also, fattening the low end. These freebies are mighty good.

I suppose if I had overheads and such up I'd compress it a lot harder.

Is that just the bumhole mic? I do like what it's doing with the toms in particular.

I am remind of the crotch mic, which Mr. newholland is fond of. Combine the two for the ultimate drum micing experience.

Besides, the best use for a 57 is sticking it up the drummer's arse.

I kid, I kid. You can beat people with them too.

Okay, I've actually taken to using them again recently. They do have a thing.

When you start placing random mics in random places, it gets fun 'cause you're under no obligation to make them sound good in any conventional way. In the right room you could probably slam the hell out of that and get a really cool effect were there something really reverberant behind the kit, too (brick, glass, hardwood) dependent on context.

Also, what direction did you have the mic aimed? Upwards? Toward the kick beater? I think the choice of direction and the pattern of the mic could really change what it does in the context of a mix. A figure-8 or omni is gonna be a completely different animal. (Also, you could use the pattern to change what portions of the kit you want the mic to emphasize.)

Yeah that was just the 57, and it was pointed straight up into the seat towards my butt.

I think a figure eight would be the most interesting other pickup pattern for this.

I actually really like the 57 for drums, to a degree. I like its voicing on the snare. I hate the amount of spill it allows. I guess that's part of its character in the end. Just the voicing of it is very 'rock recording' to me, so I like having a bit of it in the mix. I'm sick of pointing it at drums and getting invaded by hi hats, but if I can just point it at my anus and get my 57 character that way, with some interesting definition added to my snare and kick to boot, well then I say it's a go.

That sounds hella fine for one 57 up the drummer's bum. It really is quite clear and defined.

Agreed on the figure-8. I think you could Do Things with the null spots. Omni, that, I think, would be more if you wanted to smash the thing and were getting cool reflections off the walls.

Agreed as well on the hat thing. The 57 just has a sound to it that nothing else has, for better or worse. I suppose either work with the hats or go for something different. A friend of mine has a Beta 57 kicking around, but I've not A/Bed the two, nor have I with my Beta 58s, the latter of which I know are a different voicing anyhow- totally different top end.

Tonight I setup my drums for a test of this tomorrow. It was too late to actually play, but I got mics in place so I can just jam tomorrow. KSM27s in GJ, D112 in the kick, M179 on snare. I chose to use the RE40 for the anal mic, it is the darker of my two ribbons. I setup the mic further the right of the throne though to further prevent hat bleed and catch more floor tom. Will post tomorrow.

Ribbon eh... which ways are you going to point the figure eight halves?

I was figuring I'd face at the beater and behind the kit. Largely, once again, because of the hi hat and to try to catch a lot of snare.

https://soundcloud.com/cameron-heck/the ... -drum-test

I will post up some variations on iso'd takes in a bit.

And yes, it sounds amazing.

By chance anyone wants a sample of that snare:

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/137 ... 20Eric.wav

M179 on the snare, RE40 anal mic, GJ KSM27s. I could even provide the individual tracks if someone is interested in them, I just recorded this for a buddy who will use it in his drum machine.

I have a snare hit I will trade you for that, but probably not for a bit 'cause I have to track down where I put it. I am all over hell and creation lately, man. My next couple days are all fucker'd as they involve Getting Money from selling my gear, and from my dad. No, not that I'm selling him into slavery or anything; that he has it and I don't. I need my Real Computer and my backup drive.

I was at first thinking I'm not sure if I've much of a use for the sample, but I just realized that is sort of bullshit. Is it of the reallife 808? Because that would be great for certain things that I do.