Drum Track Processing Tips, Part One: Gating
Now that you’ve received your raw drum tracks as WAV files from an online recording studio, how should you proceed when it’s time to mix? In this series of brief articles, I will outline several processing concepts. Keep in mind that if you ask 101 Engineers how to mix a drum track, you’ll definitely receive 101 differing opinions on what’s right and what’s wrong. The bottom line is that if it sounds good, it is good. Whatever you have to do to convey the emotion of a performance is the right thing to do with your drum tracks. I will also assume most of you will be using a DAW (Pro Tools, Logic, Digital Performer, Reaper, etc…) of some sort. With that said, here are some tips on gating drum tracks.
Gating is essentially silencing sections of audio that have no pertinent information (aka bleed) so as to present a more cleanly defined track. For example, you may want to gate the tom tracks so that they are heard only when they are hit, as opposed to howling sympathetically whenever the snare is hit. If this bothers you, simply gate the toms. You’ll produce a cleaner and tighter drum track overall by silencing audio on the track when the toms aren’t being struck. You can do this by using a noise gate as an insert (hardware or software plug-in) or by drawing down the volume via automation in a DAW or even muting whole sections in between actual hits. Each technique produces a different effect on the overall sound, so experiment with your drum tracks and see what works for you. Some will gate all drum tracks but the overheads, room, and hi-hat mics. This can be great for R and B, Funk and Progressive Rock. Always take time to experiment.
Conversely, some engineers feel that drums should ring freely and by gating you run the risk of killing the “vibe” of a drum kit being played by a real drummer in a real room. I won’t argue this point as it’s a valid one and the decision to gate drum tracks or not depends entirely on the type of material being performed and what aesthetic you are going for. Having said that, I generally wouldn’t gate anything for a traditional Jazz number or anything requiring a Bonham-type vibe. In this case, the overtones and ringing produced by having all the microphones wide open contribute to the overall presence of the kit and the air that surrounds each element can make for a gigantic sounding drum track. Although no approach is ideal for all situations, this is certainly the most “natural” sounding approach. You could think of gating as tight and dry, and not gating as big and airy. Have fun and experiment.
Look for more of my drum track processing tutorials on this site. These articles provide an artistic and practical approach to drum track processing.
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