PDC Drums [.co.uk]

In this post I will describe how I use a very simple method to record Stereo drum tracks from my Roland V-Drums into my laptop. There are many guides available online about how to do this kind of stuff but maybe this will be useful too! I won't go into all the technical terms - Google it. Recording drums as a stereo track means you can't fiddle about too much with the recording afterwards. The individual drum sounds and velocities need to be set prior to recording. It is fairly easy to re-record individual parts (e.g. a fill that went wrong during the recording, or trying a different feel) using an overdub and clever cutting/pasting. If you want to mess around with quantising and changing the instrument sounds post-recording then it's necessary to use a MIDI recording technique and VSTs. Gear The hardware I use is as follows: - Roland TD-15 V-Drums - stereo jack cable - Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 Audio Interface (+ USB cable to laptop) - laptop running Digital Audio Wo...

I was recently contacted by a client looking to add some drum tracks to a few demo songs. I was sent some high-quality mp3s and given the opportunity to listen and add something appropriate. The tracks are original compositions with a kind of country/folk feel to them, but I think the ultimate aim would be to take them in a slightly different direction with a bit more energy and a more 'involved' drumming style. After a few listens I recorded a quick playalong using my personal 'default' kit which I built from sounds in the TD-15 brain, and then started working on finding the right drum sounds for the tracks. Given the genre and guitar sounds involved on the mp3s I was sent, I've gone for quite dry and dark-sounding cymbals, with larger-sounding drums tuned fairly low. After recording a few takes I found a way to let the drums stay out of the way of the songwriting and delicate guitar playing, but still drive the songs along with more rhythm. I sent some initi...

Here's a quick overview of my recording setup. This will give you an idea of how easy it is for me to put a drum track together - much easier than carting round a whole drum kit and acoustic recording rig. The Drums The most important part of my setup is obviously the drums themselves. I use a Roland TD15-KV V-Drum kit which is just fantastic. The feel is great, the sounds are natural and it has the flexibility to provide Stereo Aux Jack and MIDI connectivity. Audio Interface For Stereo recording I use a Scarlett 2i2 interface to connect the V-Drums to my laptop. For MIDI recording I wouldn't use this as the V-Drums have their own direct MIDI connectivity. I also use the Audio Interface if I'm recording bass, guitar or keys. The box on top of the interface is just a cheap amplifier I bought for my speakers. Laptop & DAW Software My laptop is nothing overly special - it is a very standard HP Envy laptop running Windows 10 on 12Gb of RAM. This se...