When I listen back to some of the recordings my bands made when I was young, I often cringe at the drum sound (and the drum playing, but that’s my problem!). The arc of my recordings follows the recording technology curve pretty closely over the past 15 years. I have some tunes that were recorded on a cassette four track, then a MiniDisc four track, then in a “real studio” on ADAT, and finally a few on Pro Tools.

The drum sound gets progressively better, having more to do with the engineer on duty than the recording medium. So, their secret to getting a great drum sound? Honestly, I have no idea. The people at Audiotuts+, however, do know. They’ve just published parts one and two of a three part series called “A Guide to Effective Drum Mixing.” This guide covers basics like setting levels and panning to more complex techniques like gating the kick drum and effectively using overhead mics.

For anyone just getting into recording, or for those of you with a home studio, this is a fantastic, easy to understand guide. It also includes a bunch of sound samples, which is a nice bonus.

Check it out: “A Guide to Effective Drum Mixing” Part 1 and Part 2

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