| Drum Microphones |
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If you are a gigging drummer playing in large venues and are considering amplifying your drums, there are many choices available to you in drum mics. For decades the "old warhorse" method of miking drums involved using a bunch of stand mounted Shure SM57's on the snare and toms, and an SM58 (yeah, the common vocal mike) inside the bass drum. This set up works pretty good, in fact the natural midrange boost of the SM57's helps give the snare drum and toms a certain "bark" that helped them cut through walls of amplified guitar sound. An SM58 vocal mike inside the bass drum is definitely a poor choice though, considering that mike has virtually no frequency response in the 20-40hz range where all of a bass drums' low fundamental pitch lies. There have always been other mikes available (to those who could afford them) that provided very good frequency response and could handle high sound levels. The Sennheiser MD421 for instance, is a very popular studio quality mike that has been used for decades in gazillions of concerts and studio sessions, but they are quite expensive (especially when buying 5 or more of them to mike up a drumset). So for the weekend warrior out gigging in the local club scene, the usual route has been to go with the good old "Shure 57's". Today all the best known manufactures produce microphones designed especially for the purpose of miking drums. The frequency responses of individual mike designs dedicated to bass drum, snare, and toms are trimmed to accentuate the most important and desirable frequencies of each so that severe "tweeking" at the mixing board isn't needed to make them sound good. These mikes are also designed to handle the high sound pressure levels encountered when they are placed within inches of a drum. Also, an important feature of most new drum mikes is they have been redesigned to be small, light, and easy to place on the drumset using various forms of clamps, thereby eliminating the "forest of mike stands" around the drumset that were once the accepted norm. The best thing of all though, is, they're affordable! |
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Check out the "Drum Microphones Listed by Price Range" table at the bottom of this page! |
| CAD Microphones - The CAD series of drum microphones was designed from the ground up for drum miking purposes. The bass drum & snare/tom mikes are both Neodymium dynamic mikes, while the ICM 417 "overhead" cymbal mike is an electret condenser. All have integral shock mounting clips, and hardened grill screens to protect them from accidental hits. All the mikes are available separately and also in convenient "pre-packs". We usually stock the PMP-54 "Five Pack" which has the KBM 412 Bass drum mike and (4) TSM 411 Snare/Tom mikes all contained in a really nice foam lined aluminum travel case (with lots of extra slots open to add more mikes or mike mounting clips). The amazing thing about these mikes is that they sound SO good yet are SO inexpensive! Their price is so low in fact, that we have to constantly reassure our customers that these mikes aren't some cheapo "knock-off" mikes that will sound terrible. They do in fact sound GREAT for the money! Sure, if you want ultimate fidelity for live playing or serious recording, you might want to invest in some "high dollar" mikes, but if you are just a regular gigging professional or do occasional recording, these mikes are just right! And don't forget, if you need overhead cymbal mikes, the CAD ICM 417 mikes are outstanding! |
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| CAD KBM
412 Bass Drum Mike (Frequency response: 25Hz-15kHz) |
CAD TSM
411 Snare/Tom Mike (Frequency response 30Hz-15kHz) |
CAD ICM
417 Overhead Condenser Mike (Frequency response 40Hz-20kHz) |
| Audix Drum Microphones |
| Peeler Drum Center carries the full line of Audix microphones. Audix mikes are specially designed to handle the high sound pressure levels encountered when close miking drums. There are models specifically made for snare drum, high/mid toms, low toms and bass drums. One particularly great feature of Audix drum mics is the "tight" pick-up pattern (hypercardoid) they have been designed with which allows for maximum gain, separation and feedback rejection. Audix drum mics also have some of the easiest to use "clip on" mounts to attach them to the rim of the drum. |
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| The original Audix drum mic line up includes the D1 (for snare), D2 (for toms), D3 (high volume snare) and D4 (floor tom or bass drum). | Audix recently introduced their new D6 bass drum mike which has rapidly gained a reputation as one of the best sounding and rugged bass drum mikes available. | The Audix Micro-D drum mike is a miniature condensor mike meant for use on snare & toms as well as on other instruments sucn as guitar, horns and congas. |
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Audix drum mikes are available in several pre-pack configurations. Our favorite one to sell is the DP-5 pack which includes (1) D1 for snare, (2) D2's for rack toms, (1) D4 for floor tom, and the new D6 bass drum mike. |
Audix also provides a lower cost series of mikes for the buyer on a budget. These mikes are known as the "Fusion" series and are very affordable yet have very good quality and sound characteristics. |
| AudioTechnica also produces a really affordable drum mike "pack". Their "KitPak" contains (2) snare/high tom mikes and (2) bass drum/low tom mikes. Both are dynamic type mikes. The snare/high tom mikes have frequency response of 100Hz-12kHz, and the bass/low tom mikes have 60Hz-12kHz. These mikes are very inexpensive but they aren't substandard by any means. They have decent frequency response, rugged construction, and a nice molded plastic travel case. If you want a basic set of drum mikes at a very low price, but still want something made by a name brand microphone company, then the Audio Technica "KitPak" might be for you! |
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| Sennheiser Drum Microphones |
| Sennheiser is one of the most widely recognized names in the microphone business. Their drum mikes are definitely top notch, having a very flat, extended frequency response and an overall high quality of sound. They have solid construction and legendary Sennheiser quality. One really nice feature to the e604 snare/tom mikes are the built in rim mounting clips which make these very light, compact mikes easy and quick to set up and remove from your drums with fewer hassles. These mikes aren't cheap though, expect to pay about double what you'd pay for an economy drumset "pack" like the ones shown at the top of this page, but if you want a really smooth, high fidelity sound they are definitely worth every penny! |
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| Sennheiser Drum Mike Pack |
Sennheiser e602 |
Sennheiser e604 |
| EV Drum Microphones |
| The EV Series of Neodymium drum mikes are truly high end quality microphones. EV mikes are highly regarded as having a velvety smooth frequency response, high sound pressure level handling capabilities and extended range. The N/D868 is probably our first choice when a customer asks us for "the ultimate bass drum mike". It has a great low end all the way down to 20Hz, and has a really nice "in your face" clarity, never muffled or "woofy" like some other brands/models. The N/D 468 is actually quite excellent when used on instruments other than drums such as electric & acoustic guitars, horns and woodwinds. These mikes are ideal for the discriminating player who won't settle for anything less than the best for live playing or recording purposes. Be prepared to dig deep in your pockets for a full set of these mikes though, you'll be paying about 3 times as much as you would for one of the budget oriented kits shown above. |
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EV N/D 468 |
EV N/D 868 |
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Drum Microphones Listed By Price Range The following chart shows the most popular brands/models of drum mikes in their respective price ranges. The prices shown are calculated based on a set of (5) mikes including (1) bass drum mike, (1) snare mike and (3) tom mikes. The prices are shown are at an approximate, everyday "selling price" discounted off the catalog retail price. Since some of the mikes have built in integral mounting clips or have mounting clips included in the pre-packaged mic kits, we have included the cost of (4) "Mike EZ" rim mount mike clips into the price of those mike packs which don't have built in or included clips. The cost of (5) good quality mike cables has also been included in those kits which don't include cables, so that the customer can have an even closer idea of the total cost of a typical mike set-up. All of the bass drum mikes will require the use of either a short boom stand to place the mike inside the drum, or an internal method of mounting (using a standard "Mike EZ" clip and mounting the bass mike off the bottom of the "tom mounting post" which hangs inside the bass drum is a very convenient, effective and inexpensive method!). The price of a bass drum mike stand or clip has not been included. Since there is a very wide selection of condenser type "overhead" mikes for cymbals, and also because many players don't find it necessary to mike the cymbals separately in small to medium venues, we have not included the price of any overhead mikes in the table below. There are many to choose from, so if you are interested in adding overhead mikes to your set up, please inquire! The prices shown below are only approximate in order to allow you to find a mike set of the right quality which fit into a price range which is realistic for you (remember all brands/models of mikes are available individually, you don't have to buy them in sets). Prices shown do not include sales tax or shipping of applicable. |
| Price Range for standard (5) piece drum mike kit, including (1) bass drum mike, (1) snare mike, (3) tom mikes, (4) mounting clips and (5) cables (if not included): | Brand/Model: |
| Under $1000 | EV - (4) 468s, (1) 868 kick mike |
| Under $750 | Sennheiser - e604 4-Pack, e602 kick mike |
| Under $650 | Audix DP5 pack |
| Under $450 | AudioTechnica - Kit-Pak w/Pro 25 kick mike |
| Under $350 | CAD - PMP-54 5-Pack |
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Remember, Peeler Drum Center will ALWAYS attempt to match or beat ANY price from ANY local competitor, mail order or internet dealer, or mass merchandiser! (This does not include inventory
liquidations, scratch & dent items, |