In this kick drum mic shootout the three mics were lined up inside the kick drum and two loops were recorded. The first loop is just 5 kick hits. The second is a simple kick/snare/high hat groove. 

All the mics/tracks in this mix are raw, no eq or compression. The three kick mics were all recorded through a Sebatron VMP-4000e preamp and were normalized to be at an equal volume.

The kick drum was a 22x14 A&F raw steel kick. In this test the DrAlienSmith Alien8 is set to 'Both Capsules On'.

Mics used
Inside kick - Alien8, Akg D112, Sennheiser E602
Snare top - SM7b
Snare bottom - SM57
Overheads - Spaced pair of Beesneez Lulu Fets
Toms - Rack and floor 421's but gated so no spill between hits

Times
00:00 Kick loop, Alien8 solo'd
00:04 Kick loop, D112 solo'd
00:09 Kick loop, Alien8 solo'd
00:14 Kick loop, E602 solo'd
00:19 Groove loop, Alien8 with snare and overheads on
00:28 Groove loop, D112 with snare and overheads on
00:38 Groove loop, Alien8 with snare and overheads on
00:47 Groove loop, E602 with snare and overheads on
00:57 Groove loop, Alien8 solo'd
01:07 Groove loop, D112 solo'd
01:16 Groove loop, Alien8 solo'd
01:26 Groove loop, E602 solo'd
01:35 Outro, Alien8 with snare and overheads on

You can download this test file as the original 48khz 24bit wav.

Alien8 vs D112 vs E602 Kick Microphone Comparison

This is a sound test file for the DrAlienSmith Subkick Microphone. As of August 2021 the DrAlienSmith Subkick-01 has been discontinued. The speaker that we use inside the mic is no longer being manufactured.

***The Subkick adds mostly low end to sounds so you'll need to listen to this audio test with full range speakers or good quality studio headphones. Nouse listening to it through your phone or laptop speakers, you won't hear the changes properly***

This is a drum recording using 2 overheads, an 'inside kick' mic and the Subkick. There are no snare or tom mics used. This is also not mixed or mastered so it has zero processing, its 100% raw apart from the LPF used on the Subkick on some of the loops (as stated below). The two overheads consist of a Rode NT1 and an unbadged ribbon mic set up in a Mid Side configuration, over the drummers shoulder. The 'inside kick' mic is a Sennheiser E602.

You'll hear a 15 second loop go through 8 repeats with different mic combinations to show what the DrAlienSmith Subkick can do. Here is a list of the times and variations.

00:00 Overheads and inside kick mic
00:15 Overheads and inside kick mic with Subkick (no eq)
00:30 Inside kick mic only
00:45 Inside kick mic with Subkick (no eq)
01:00 Inside kick  mic with Subkick (LPF @ 300hz 24db/octave)
01:15 Subkick by itself (no eq)
01:30 Overheads and inside kick mic
01:45 Overheads and inside kick with Subkick (LPF @ 300hz 24db/octave)

DrAlienSmith Subkick-01 - Test On Drums

*** The DirtMic-01 is now available to buy from Reverb reverb.com/au/shop/draliensmith ***

This is an audio example of the DirtMic-01 being used on drums. The recording session was for the band Rinehearts and the song is 'I'm Not There'.... https://www.facebook.com/Rinehartsband

This is a 13 second loop pulled direct from the mix session to show you how the DirtMic-01 sounds, various mic combinations are used as the loop repeats. This is what you're hearing....

00:00 All Instruments, DirtMic-01 On
00:13 Solo'd DirtMic-01 In Mix with EQ and ADT effect
00:26 DirtMic-01, No EQ, No Effect
00:40 Drums, DirtMic-01 Off
00:53 Drums, DirtMic-01 On
01:07 All Instruments, DirtMic-01 On
01:20 All Instruments, DirtMic-01 Off
01:34 All Instruments, DirtMic-01 On
01:47 DirtMic-01, No EQ, No Effect

In this mix I am using the DirtMic-01 to add some 'excitement and roominess' to the drums. By adding an Automatic Double Track or ADT effect with the TDR Proximity plugin, it also provides some width.

The picture is of Ross the drummer for Rinehearts and the setup we used to record his drums. Its a unbranded ribbon mic as the overhead centre and a pair of 12 Gauge Microphones 12G50 omni's as the 'side' overheads. No snare or tom mics and the kick has an E602 inside and the DrAlienSmith Subkick-02 outside.

DirtMic-01 Test on Drums

*** The DirtMic-01 is now available to pre-order from Reverb https://reverb.com/au/shop/draliensmith ***

This is an audio example of the DirtMic-01 being used on a bass amp. I'm using the original 2013 mix session for the band The Devil Rides Out and the song is 'Ugly Creatures'.... https://thedevilridesout.bandcamp.com

I've taken a 12 second loop from the song and taken out all of the original mix bass tracks apart from the clean DI. I have then re-amped the DI and recorded the bass amp with a DirtMic-01 and a CAD M179 (which is the clean mic). The DI was then also removed from the mix. There are no distortion pedals involved and the DirtMic-01 track is completely dry, no eq, no compression. This loop plays through 11 times with different combinations of the instruments and the mics so you can hear how the DirtMic-01 works on a bass amp. This is what you're hearing....

00:00 Both mics on Bass Amp with Drums and Guitars
00:12 Bass only, DirtMic-01
00:24 Bass only, Clean mic
00:36 Bass only, both mics
00:48 Bass and Drums, DirtMic-01
01:00 Bass and Drums, Clean mic
01:13 Bass and Drums, both mics
01:25 Bass, Drums and Guitars, DirtMic-01
01:37 Bass, Drums and Guitars, Clean mic
01:49 Bass, Drums and Guitars, both mics
02:01 Same again but Guitars 2db louder

The bass amp used is a Fender Rumble 350 and the cab is an Ashdown 1x15. Both mics were plugged straight into the preamps on my M-Audio Profire 2626 interface.

DirtMic-01 Bass Amp Test with The Devil Rides Out

This is an audio example of the DirtMic-01 being used to record a re-amped guitar track. I'm using a 20 second loop from the original mix session of the song Playing With Fire by the band Tartarus https://soundcloud.com/user-520523433/sets/tartarus

The purpose of this test is not to replace the original sound but to enhance it by adding some depth/excitement to the guitars with the DirtMic-01. 

The original guitar sound was played live with the drums and bass through a Marshall MA100H head and a 1960 quad box, recorded with a Shure 545 microphone. I've edited in a second rhythm track from later in the song so there is a left and a right guitar part. The Re-Amp sound was recorded through a Pisdiyauwot distortion pedal into the clean channel of a Bugera 333xl-212 combo and mic'd up with the DirtMic-01 placed 46 cm, 18 inches, from the speaker (see the picture).

The loop is repeated 10 times with different variations of origianl and re-amped sound. This is what you'll hear...

00:00 	Band and both guitar sounds on		
00:19 	Solo'd original guitars 		
00:39 	Solo both guitar sounds together 		
00:59 	Solo re-amped DirtMic-01
01:18 	Band and original guitars		
01:38 	Band and both guitar sounds 		
01:58 	Band and original guitars		
02:18 	Band and both guitar sounds 		
02:37 	Band and original guitars 2db louder		
02:57 	Band and both sounds 2db louder

DirtMic-01 Guitar Re-Amping With Tartarus

This is an audio test for the DrAlienSmith DirtBox, a phantom powered analog distortion effect for microphones. Head to www.draliensmith for more info.

This test features a 10 second drum beat recorded with normal mics plus a Ribbon Microphone plugged into a DirtBox with the distortion set at 5.5. As the loop repeats, the ribbon mic is dropped in and out of the mix so you can hear how it adds punch and grit to the drums. In the second half, an ADT (automatic double track) vst effect is added to the Ribbon and DirtBox combo to show how the distorted ribbon can add roominess to the drum sound. The following is what you hear....

00:00 All mics in
00:10 No ribbon mic + DirtBox
00:20 All mics in
00:30 No ribbon mic + DirtBox
00:41 Ribbon mic + DirtBox Only
00:51 All mics in
01:01 No ribbon mic + DirtBox
01:11 All mics in with ADT on ribbon + DirtBox + volume drop
01:21 Ribbon + DirtBox with ADT Only
01:32 No ribbon + DirtBox with ADT
01:42 All mics in with ADT on ribbon + DirtBox + volume drop

The loop was played by Olie Rundgren during a soundcheck for a Total Defeat recording session.

The other mics used were
Overheads - Line Audio CM3's
Snare Top - Audix I5
Snare Bottom - Lewitt 240
Kick Inside - Sennheiser E602
Kick Outside - DrAlienSmith Subkick-01
The Ribbon Mic is an unbranded version of the Apex 205.

The ADT vst plugin used is Proximity by Tokyo Dawn.

DrAlienSmith DirtBox On A Ribbon Mic Recording Drums

Just a quick little song with all instruments recorded with the DirtMic Clasic 55

DirtMic Classic 55 On Every Instrument

This is a demo song for a one off Custom DirtMic-01 Distortion Effect Microphone made from a Vintage 1940's Turner 22X. It's available to buy here https://reverb.com/item/33480108-custom-dirtmic-01-made-from-a-1940-s-turner-22x-microphone

All instruments in the music are recorded with this Custom DirtMic-01
The Beat - Beatboxing into the mic with the gain on full
The Bass - Clean bass amp recorded with gain on two thirds.
The Vocals - Whisper style vocals recorded with the gain on full.
The Cymbals - Hit with hand, 4 foot from mic on full gain.
The bass line is from one of my favorite bands, Nerve Quakes https://nervequakes.bandcamp.com

When I got this 75 year old Turner Microphone, it was in great physical condition for its age (it has been a film prop for the last part of its life) but it had been stripped out and had nothing inside it.

My restoration started with installing  a capsule and transformer from a Superlux D109. I then put a volume pot inside,  added the XLR connector and installed the DirtMic-01 distortion circuit. The mic sounds great, just like a normal DirtMic-01 but it has a bit more low end in the sound. This Custom DirtMic also comes with its own mic bag.

Demo Song for a Custom DirtMic-01 made from a 1940's Turner 22X

A quick speech test of the mic on 3 different gain settings

DrAlienSmith Custom DirtMic Turner 22X Speech Test

This is a test recording to show how the DrAlienSmith DirtBox and the Subkick-01 can add punch, width and depth to drum recordings, even when only 3 microphones are used.

As of August 2021 the DrAlienSmith Subkick-01 has been discontinued. The speaker that we use inside the mic is no longer being manufactured. For more info on out products head to www.draliensmith.com

In this test, none of the drums mics has any processing, they are 100% raw as they were recorded. The mics used are...
Mic 1 = Line Audio CM3
Mic 2 = CAD M179
Mic 3 = DrAlienSmith Subkick-01

Mic 1 is split with a Y cable, one split is sent straight to a mic input (Clean), the other is sent to a DrAlienSmith DirtBox with the gain on 5 and then to another mic input (Dirty). 

Mic 2 is set on a figure 8 polar pattern and plugged into a DirtBox (gain on 5) and then sent to a mic input. This mic is then configured as a 'side' signal in my DAW to go with Mic 1 which is the 'mid'.

This song starts with drums and instruments. It then drops out to just drums, running through how each mic adds to the recording. It then runs through the same pattern of drums while the instruments are playing.

This test song demonstrates how the DirtBox adds punch and grit to the clean Mic 1 when blended in. It also shows how the DirtBox adds width and excitement when used on a 'side' information mic. The Subkick-01 adds the low end depth.

Here is the running order of what you hear.

0:00 All in
0:19 Drums CM3 clean
0:29 Drums CM3 clean + Subkick-01
0:38 Drums CM3 clean + Subkick-01 + CM3 DirtBox
0:48 Drums CM3 clean + Subkick-01 + CM3 DirtBox + M179 DirtBox
0:57 Drums CM3 clean
1:07 Drums CM3 clean + Subkick-01 + CM3 DirtBox + M179 DirtBox
1:17 Instruments + Drums CM3 clean
1:26 Instruments + Drums CM3 clean + Subkick-01
1:36 Instruments + Drums CM3 clean + Subkick-01 + CM3 DirtBox
1:45 Instruments + Drums CM3 clean + Subkick-01 + CM3 DirtBox + M179 DirtBox
1:55 Instruments + Drums CM3 clean
2:05 Instruments + Drums CM3 clean + Subkick-01 + CM3 DirtBox + M179 DirtBox
2:14 Instruments 3db Louder + Drums CM3 clean + Subkick-01 + CM3 DirtBox + M179 DirtBox

DirtBox + Subkick-01 - 3 Mic Drum Recording for Punch, Width and Depth

Studio Tools for Recording Musicians, made by DrAlienSmith. Our products include the Subkick-02 and the DirtMic-01 microphones and this page features soundclips from these microphones.

DrAlienSmith products was started by Australian producer and mixing engineer Al Smith, who over the last 20 years has worked with more than 400 bands from Australia, Germany, Japan and the USA.

Popular tracks by DrAlienSmith