D112s on toms

AKG D112

I've been persistently trying different stock mics on toms. EV's N/D468s, the supercard that looks like a little black egg, isn't bad. 57s are consistently good, with a little EQ work, across many styles and competencies as far as drummers go. But I really want to push for the oft-scoffed D112s.

The AKG D112 looks like a Nerf football, with its (aqua? teal? girly green) stripe across its giant oval grill. Looking at the frequency response of this mic as compared to a 57 shows only minor differences:

• a presence peak from 2-5 kHz instead of 4-10 kHz;
• a huuuuge low end boost.

I found, with a common two-tom setup, that I trimmed a bit of the low shelf on the rack tom, left the mid-EQs largely untouched and didn't need to touch the high shelf. With 57s I find myself peeling back high frequencies, as well as seeking out what I imagine are harmonic overtones of the drums fundamental, and gating and boosting the channels like crazy. I still gated them, but didn't have to drive them as high in the mix, which I believe is a result of the drum's fundamental being so supported by the D112's boosted low end.

As a result the toms felt a lot bigger in their classic boomy sound, and weren't quite as slappy as they can be with a 57. They're not much harder to position than a 57 with its long barrel and XLR coming out the end.

However I did just buy a pair of 906s. The D112s I fear may find themselves back in the drawer pretty soon.