Mixer question

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AvR
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2007/11/19 23:16:25 (permalink)

Mixer question

Really dumb question here guys, but a drummer friend has 4 dynamic drum mics. I have an little Behringer Xenya 802. This thing has 4 channel strips, 1 and 2 have XLR mic and 1/4 bal/unbal with gain trims, but channels 3 and 4 are line in 1/4 L/mono and R. All 4 mics are 1/4. Obviously needing pre's, I am assuming I would not be able to use this mixer to sum these mics to a stereo mix as channel 3and 4 are line in's. Is this correct?

Thanks.

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    bitflipper
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    RE: Mixer question 2007/11/20 01:26:09 (permalink)
    Plug the mics into 3 & 4 and see if you get sufficient volume. If you have to crank it all the way up to hear them, then yes, you'll need an external preamp.


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    AvR
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    RE: Mixer question 2007/11/20 09:04:00 (permalink)
    Thanks bitflipper. It appears the levels come out about the same using either the mic in's or the line in. So I guess this should work. I was not sure if this would solve my second question. So here goes.
    If I understand correctly, the drum mics are designed to handle rather high SPL, and as a result are not overly sensitive. I can get good tone with mid levels on the mixer , however am having a problem with the attack transients of the kick and snare spiking really high and often pushing past 0 db. If I lower the levels so they don't go over, the result sounds thin and I loose the punch of the kick and snare sounds farther away. I have tried different mic positions but can't seem to find the right spot. Is this now a matter of trial and error? Any advise on where to start etc. Thanks for the help.

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    skullsession
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    RE: Mixer question 2007/11/20 09:49:59 (permalink)
    The transients on most drums are pretty intense. You just have to use an in-line pad (10 or 20 db) to keep in from clipping your input. OR....most mixers have a built-in pad on each channel. However...not sure if the cheap ones do.

    I guess my question is...are you clipping the mixer, or the input of your soundcard? If you're clipping the mixer and it still sounds good, I wouldn't worry about it unless you are overdriving the input of your soundcard.

    Your main goal will be to get all of the sounds to Sonar without clipping the input of your soundcard. If some of the sounds are out of balance after that point, you'll just have adjust the levels - possibly turning everything else down to make the snare and kick sit at the correct level. Low levels do not necessarily mean no punch. If the transient is in tact, you should still be able to get the punch you are after.

    Some compressions with an attack time slow enough to allow the transient through will help to build the sounds back up after recording.

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    skullsession
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    RE: Mixer question 2007/11/20 09:54:59 (permalink)
    Oh....sorry...just realized you are wanting to sum all these drums to stereo before you track to Sonar.

    Ehh....still the same theory. Turn everything else down to balance with your snare and kick....preserve the transient. I'd bet that what you are perceiving as a loss of PUNCH is actually due to a loss of apparent volume more than anything else.

    Preserve the transient and compress the summed result. I'll bet you get close.

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    AvR
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    RE: Mixer question 2007/11/20 11:44:48 (permalink)
    Thanks skullsession. Really appriciate the time you took to explain this. Mixer meter looks ok, singnal is hot in sonar, and my cheap little meter does not have pads. I'll have to give this a go again. Man drums are hard to get right. I thought I was up to the challange, but wow, this is tricky stuff.

    Thanks again.

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