Mic up drums on a budget with the Behringer BC1500 drum mic kit

25 Jun 2021 by Bob Malkowski |

5,0 / 5,0 | Approximate reading time: 2 Minutes

· Source: Behringer

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Are you looking for a solution to micing up your drums, but don’t have the cash for a dedicated drum mic kit? Then the new Behringer BC1500 could be the answer to your cash-strapped dreams!

Behringer BC1500

As a drummer and a sound engineer, I can speak first-hand in saying just how expensive and time-consuming micing up drums can be. A drumkit is, after all, a grouping of multiple instruments, each of which has its own tonality and challenges. As a consequence, it’s a constant compromise between cost and convenience when it comes to micing drums. That’s where dedicated drum mic sets like the Behringer BC1500 come in.

Behringer has packaged everything you need to mic up a drumkit, in one box-set. Open the lid of the BC1500 and you’ll find a selection of seven microphones along with mic clamps. You’ll find a C112 dynamic kick drum mic, four TM1500 dynamic snare/tom mics, and a pair of CM1500 cymbal microphones. In other words, everything you need to mic up a standard five-piece drum kit.

: C112 Kick Drum Mic

: BC1500 Drum Miic Kit

: TM1500 Tom/Snare Microphones

: CM1500 Cymbal Microphones

We don’t currently have pricing on the BC1500, but the preceding mic kit to this, the BC1200, retailed for well under €100. Obviously, that’s an eye-opening price; you’ll struggle to buy a single “name brand” drum mic alone for that kind of money. Surely then, there must be compromises, at this price point? Well, let’s take a look at the specs, shall we?

Acoustically Tuned for Drums

I was pleased to see that Behringer has provided full technical specifications for the BC1500 mic set. Subsequently, we can actually see what we get for our money, and it’s better than I expected. The C112 shows a pronounced peak at between 3-4kHz and a rising boost from 200Hz and below. In other words, tailored for a defined and meaty kick drum sound.

The TM1500 tom mics appear to have a rather more neutral response than I’d expect for drum mics, however. That’s not necessarily a bad thing though, you’ll just have to work a little harder with the EQ.

From the specs provided, perhaps the weak link is the CM1500 condenser cymbal mics. The provided data shows they begin to roll off quite steeply at around 7kHz, which is the exact opposite of what you want in a mic pointed at cymbals! Again though, it pays to consider the price point of this mic pack and accept that there will be limitations.

So does the Behringer BC1500 represent good value for money? Well, it’s hard to argue with the price, especially as it includes drum mic clamps for the money! Without personally trying a set it’s difficult to vouch for their effectiveness; however the specs of the dynamic mics, at least, suggest that they should be capable of getting the job done.