Room Mic Alternative Suggestions for extra Drum Channels

[Blizzy-Blim]

So, I've got 16 channels to work with, which usually means when recording drums, I've got an extra 2-3 open tracks depending on the song. Initially, I thought, "Just throw up some room mics...", but none of the stuff I did worked -it all just ended up being "clatter" that muddied up the mix. I ran a lot of tests and used some very nice mics, too... I find this is typical for me when it comes to room mics -they just don't find a place in the mix. They don't work...

I think the thing that I dislike the most about room mics is the delay in the snare hit - No matter how low I've got them going in the mix, they always seem to detract from the impact. I know some people who can't LIVE without room mics, but for me, I really couldn't care... I do like the added 10% of ambience one can get from a room mic, but the loss of impact is a deal breaker for my mixes most of the time.

Any idea what I should do with my extra channels?? I've already got all the mics I want on snare and kick... Tried a few iterations of mono kit mics, but didn't fancy any of those, really... maybe I could try a few more?? I remember doing a behind the drummer stereo pair once that seemed to work out alright... Really, I've got all I need with my 3 overheads going... Just looking for suggestions/ thoughts outside of the box, maybe... This is not a professional environment, fyi...
Thanks.

[lfm]

So it's not the room itself, rather than the mikes?
- usuall thing, switch phase on room mikes one by one and listen again
- do it in daw later is fine

Tried carpets hanging from ceiling, on the walls etc?
- lower unwanted reflections

With acoustic instruments it takes a lot of experiments to get what you hear by ear into a recorded mix.
- you can even move tracks with room mikes in time to check differences

And last, did you make a analog loopback test and re-record and check out that everything is sample accurate. Not all interfaces report the correct delays to daw. It does not take much to start sounding off and boxy.

Just a couple of things...

[Blizzy-Blim]

So it's not the room itself, rather than the mikes?
- usuall thing, switch phase on room mikes one by one and listen again

Tried carpets hanging from ceiling, on the walls etc?
- lower unwanted reflections

With acoustic instruments it takes a lot of experiments to get what you hear by ear into a recorded mix.
- you can even move tracks with room mikes in time to check differences

And last, did you make a analog loopback test and re-record and check out that everything is sample accurate. Not all interfaces report the correct delays to daw. It does not take much to start sounding off and boxy.

Just a couple of things...

What do you mean by "sample accurate"?

Appreciate the suggestions.

[lfm]

I had three different converters on a setup, built in AD converters, an addon card and also a rack over ADAT.

They all had differences of a couple of samples, 3-6, how long an AD converter took.
- so did a nudge of clips of those so they sample accurate, meaning a re-recorded clip and zooming on to sample level, will show on the same spot in timeline for both original and re-recorded.

Since I have now no converters on interface itself, ASIO cannot know how long converters take to convert audio. I currently add 42 samples so recorded clips end up on the spot if I make a analog loopback I record again.

Recording everything on same interface AD converter this is less of a problem for your drums done simultaneously, but overall a good thing to have calibrated.

[Blizzy-Blim]

I had three different converters on a setup, built in AD converters, an addon card and also a rack over ADAT.

They all had differences of a couple of samples, 3-6, how long an AD converter took.
- so did a nudge of clips of those so they sample accurate, meaning a re-recorded clip and zooming on to sample level, will show on the same spot in timeline for both original and re-recorded.

Since I have now have no converters on interface itself, ASIO cannot know how long converters take to convert audio. I currently add 42 samples so recorded clips end up on the spot if I make a analog loopback I record again.

Ahhh, right, right, right - I suspected something as such...

I don't think that's my problem (although, admittedly, I have not done such a test...) I think my thing might be more of a creative oriented dilemma; No matter what the room circumstance is, if you've got two mics at different distances from one source, there is always going to be some type of delay in the signals... I think, for my mixes, this delay does not enhance, but rather, it detracts...

So, yeah. I'm kinda thinking room mics just aren't my thing at the end of the day, and maybe I'm better off just using some valhalla room emulation or something. If I've got some extra channels that aren't being used, it's whatever...

[lfm]

Test changing phase of room mikes if they blend better.

How far from kit are room mikes, 1m is already a near room mike.

But yes, the speed of sound is 34 cm( about a ft) every ms. So 1m is 3 ms.
- just bring it a bit closer as a start
- it could be combination of room reflection and where mike is

Unwanted reflections can be the room itself is not optimal. I remember a comment from Dave Grohl as former drummer in Nirvana, he said the SoundCity studio room was his favorite. Just right for drums to decay in a good way.

[Blizzy-Blim]

Test changing phase of room mikes if they blend better.

How far from kit are room mikes, 1m is already a near room mike.

But yes, the speed of sound is 34 cm( about a ft) every ms. So 1m is 3 ms.
- just bring it a bit closer as a start
- it could be combination of room reflection and where mike is

Unwanted reflections can be the room itself is not optimal. I remember a comment from Dave Grohl as former drummer in Nirvana, he said the SoundCity studio room was his favorite. Just right for drums to decay in a good way.

Alright! I'll mess around with some closer locations!

Thank you for chiming it!