Dream Theater’s “Black Clouds & Silver Linings” kick sound…

[metaltyme]

  Ummm…If any of you guys around here have heard Dream Theater’s latest album “Black Clouds & Silver Linings,” you know how amazing Portnoy’s drums sound….particularly on “A Nightmare To Remember” –you know what I’m talking about; when the first double-bass section occurs in the intro.  When you hear it unleash itself, it’s like an amazing assault of machine-gun thunder.  It’s crisp, punchy, deep, and with plenty of low end, but still doesn’t get lost in the bass guitar.  It’s sooo broo-tull, Dimmu Borgir would surly be proud. 
 
Anyway, does anyone have any tips on how to achieve a kick drum sound close to like that on “A Nightmare To Remember?”  I have Superior Drummer 2 with, of course, the Avatar Studio Kit and The Metal Foundry.  Any tips you guys have or can give me to get a kick drum sound like the aforementioned, I would be eternally grateful.  What effects, including EQ, compression, gating, etc. would you aim your attention to, to approach a sound like on “A Nightmare To Remember?”  I’m having a hard time with trying to get that kick sound and feel it’s time to turn to you guys for assistance.  Even, if it requires several instances of SD2 or X-Drum City, I’m all ears.  Please help!  Thanks Guys!
 
Cheers!

CJ

Topic

[Adam Weber]

-Choose the 14×24 kick from the Avatar kit, use the felt beater and lower the pitch to -3.5
-Attack = 6.5ms
-Decay/Sustain = 8.3ms at 15.8%
-Hold = 2.00ms
-Release = 154ms
Set all three mics to output 1 then add
-Compressor: Threshold = -19db, Attack = 15ms, Ratio = 5.0:1, Release = 100ms (no make up gain, auto make up gain on)
-EQ (from left to right): 0 Gain, -15 Gain, 1 Gain, -2 Gain, 2 Gain (leave everything else alone)
-Transient: Attack = 0, Sustain = -1
Should sound close enough. You may need to change a few things depending on the mix for your snare, toms, etc, but I’m sure you can work around it if you really want this kick sound. Good luck!

[metaltyme]

Wow!  Thank you for taking the time out to help me out with this, as I honestly didn’t really know where to start.  I will try this out tonight!  Thank you, thank you! 
 
Best,
 
 

CJ

[Adam Weber]

No problem haha. I was actually kind of surprised I was able to get a base sound since none of the drums they used to sample S2.0 or Metal Foundry have similar shell qualities to bubinga, which is what Portnoy used to record that album.
I’ve done a little more work on it and it also works with the 18×22 kit in Avatar if you lower the pitch to around -8.6 and use the plastic beater. Only thing I’m having trouble with is getting more resonance out of it.

[metaltyme]

Well, I used your suggestions last night while tinkering around with it.  VERY close it is.  I’ll also try the one you just mentioned to see if that gets more closer to the ideal I’m after.  This definitely gives me something to work with at any rate.  Thanks again on your trials to achieve this.  I actually scoured the nets looking for any written clinics by the mixing engineer (I think it was Kevin Shirley) without any luck.  I know…wishful thinking.    I’ll give it a hefty ‘go’ tonight again and see if I can get more resonance out of it like you mentioned.  Of course, to be sure, I’ll throw down some similar guitars to BC&SL’s gits for context of a real mix.  Any findings I may come up with, I’ll be running them by you.  Thanks again!

CJ

[Tomaz Lovsin]

Hi!

Did you manage to “improve” the sound and got what you were looking – or rather hearing – for? If you did can you please write the settings? I also like that particular kick very very much and would really like to use it … but am somewhat of a newbie and don’t really know where to begin…

Thanks. BR!

[Paul Jones Winlund]

Pleaaaazzzzze, can some do this for the snare.

[Author]

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