A large part of the recording process is knowing what you are going for. I remember the first time I recorded electric guitars. The guitar player was well known for having great tone. He fired up his amp and I slapped a mic in front of it.

I remember listening. It was a single track. I had no idea of what that guitar was supposed to sound like through my monitors. I was totally clueless. I wondered if I should be doing something to it. We both listened to the recorded tracks and weren't sure if that was how we should be doing it.

Obviously, over time I've gotten a little better at that. Now, I always check my guitar tracks by recording a verse and chorus over the drums and bass that we already have (although I don't always do bass before guitar). More importantly, my ears know what to expect a little better and I can make comments or decisions with a lot more confidence.

Back to snare drum tuning

I've struggled to get the right amount of crack out of my snare drum. I always seam to have problems making it sound aggressive and snappy without sounding too thin like many cheap 1983 recordings.

After mixing a band the other day that had some obvious snare drum tuning issues and attending a real deal Nashville mixing session, it occurred to me that a tuned snare drum does not sound dull even when listening to just the snare top mic.

I was there when the band being mixed was tracking drums. I don't recall any crazy EQ settings on the snare. They used a SM 57 through an API lunchbox preamp. They did add a little EQ to brighten the snare, but nothing crazy. Well, I was amazed when I heard the snare drum solo'd. It was crazy just how bright and clear it sounded. To me, it sounded a lot more like a snare bottom, but without the fizz and rattles you often get with the snare bottom. In other words, the snare track by itself had 1,000 times the crack that my snares typically do.

So What Was The Secret To Getting This Kind of Crack In The Snare?

 

First, the drummer was hitting is mega mega hard. Producer, Malcolm Springer, wanted him to literally destroy the snare constantly. The drummer used rim shots on every single hit. The idea was to crush the snare with ferocity to get the most attack and crack in it.

Secondly, the snare was retuned after each take. Just like a guitar, snares go out of tune when you play them (especially with new heads). The snare was tuned up to make it bright and have that magic crack. As a snare falls out of tune, it can totally lose that magic crack. So tune your snare drums to give a wicked high end snap. You'll be amazed at how big and thick they sound in a mix.

As The Drum Slips Out of Tune

The other day, the concept of a drum getting duller as it falls out of tune was confirmed for me. I was mixing the songs very quickly. You could hear a gradual decline in the crack of the snare as I went from song 1 to song 5. It was clear that by song 5, the snare was totally out of tune and no EQ would fix it. The fact that the snare on song 1 sounded pretty good (and knowing that I tuned the drum right before that take) tells me that drum tuning is the difference between me smiling at my drum sound, and reaching for an EQ to suck out 400Hz and burrying my hands into my face out of frustration.

Conclusion

Your snare top tracks should be very very aggressive sounding. By the time you slap all your other instruments into the mix, the snare will appear to be thicker and thicker. It's just the nature of the mixing beast. So listen. If your solo'd snare track doesn't sound super clear with lots of high end attack, you may need to retune.