Audio Recording Tips

One of the most wonderful sound in the drum are the hi hats and cymbals. Without them, the song sounds dull and ugly. They define the brightness, air and level of professionalism of the produced track. It is because if you cannot hear the cymbals/hi hats very clearly or it sounds too loud, it drastically affects the whole mix, not only the drums. Mixing them is not hard unlike bass guitars or kick drums. However, this underdog in the mix is sometimes what defines a good mix – an essential balance between bass and treble.

In recording production of drums, you need to know that there are actually 4 parts of cymbals and hi hats used. They are:

1. Crash cymbal – this is the cymbal that will be hit very hard by the drummer.See picture below:

(photo by: Stephan Czuratis)

Important Mixing definition for crash cymbal:
Panning: Right, 9.375 units
Details: How to pan drum instruments

Frequency:
High pass filter at 500 Hz (means allowing only above 500 Hz to pass, cutting below).
Cut 3dB at 3000Hz, Q = 1.4
Boost 3dB at 12500Hz Q=1.0

Note: Some drum kits have only one cymbals, so in this case, it functions as both ride and crash cymbals. For mixing of this type of configuration, refer to ride cymbal tips below.

2. Ride cymbal – this is the soft sound of the cymbal, as opposed to crash cymbal this is located to the left of the drummer instead to the right.

Panning definitions: Left, 12.5
Frequency: Same with crash cymbal

3. Open hi hat – this gives a crashy sound of the hi hats, typically used for rock alternative choruses.

Panning definitions: Right, 12.5
Frequency: Same with crash cymbal

Picture of pedal and open hi hat:

(photo by: Stephan Czuratis)

4. Pedal hi hat- this is the soft equivalent of open hi hat. Typically employed in song stanzas.

Panning definitions: Right, 12.5 (the same with open hi hat, since they are same structure, played in different style – open or closed)
Frequency: Same with crash cymbals

Overall note: These are not strict rules, and this is more inclined to rock and pop mix. So I suggest to start with these settings and then tweak your sound to perfection.