X32 / M32 Snare starting point
Beginner Skill level for the five steps below. Optional intermediate and advanced tips are in Going further.
Dial these in, then adjust by ear in the full mix. Listen for hi-hat getting louder when you push the snare fader; that's bleed, address with mic angle before EQ. Headroom: drum hits peak much higher than they look, so keep the loudest peaks on the main LR a few dB below clipping.
1High-pass filter
80-100 Hz
Illustration in the style of the X32 / M32 low cut / HPF, not a screenshot. Drawn at 12 dB/oct; the shaded area is what gets cut. Drawn at 90 Hz, the middle of the card's 80-100 Hz.
Removes kick bleed and low rumble; a snare has little useful content below ~100 Hz.
On the X32 / M32: Config/Preamp section of the channel strip: press LOW CUT and turn FREQUENCY (M32 label) to set it, 20-400 Hz. Screen: VIEW > Home > config, encoder 2 (also Home > eq, page 1). Need a cut above 400 Hz? Set EQ band LOW to LCUT mode with the MODE button.
2Gate
Attack Fastest · Hold ~40 ms · Release ~120-250 ms (longer keeps more ring)
Illustration in the style of the X32 / M32 gate screen, not a screenshot. The gate is optional here (often skipped); the graph shows it in case you use it. The threshold is an example only; set it by ear.
- Use
- Optional (often skipped)
- Threshold
- Just above hi-hat bleed
- Attack
- Fastest
- Hold
- ~40 ms
- Release
- ~120-250 ms (longer keeps more ring)
- Range
- ~10 dB
Light gating reduces hat bleed; a full-range gate eats ghost notes, so keep the range shallow or leave it off.
On the X32 / M32: GATE section: press GATE to engage and turn THRESHOLD (-80 to 0 dB). Press VIEW for Home > gate: Range 3-60 dB, Attack 0-120 ms (1 ms steps), Hold 0.02-2000 ms, Release 5-4000 ms. Page 2 has the key filter (20 Hz-20 kHz) and key source. The protocol lists the modes EXP2, EXP3, EXP4 (expander 2:1-4:1), GATE and DUCK; check the names on your firmware's screen.
3EQ
- LC 90 Hz, 12 dB/oct
- 1 Bell 200 Hz, +1.5 dB, Q 0.9
- 2 Bell 650 Hz, -3.0 dB, Q 2.5
- 3 Bell 4 kHz, +2.0 dB, Q 1.5
Illustration in the style of the X32 / M32 EQ screen, not a screenshot. Curve shows the midpoint of the suggested ranges; HPF drawn at 12 dB/oct.
| Frequency | Gain | Q / width | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| ~200 Hz | +1 to +2 dB | Wide | Fatness/body of the drum. |
| 400-900 Hz | -2 to -4 dB | Narrow-medium | Boxy honk or ring. Sweep to find the worst spot rather than cutting a fixed number. |
| 3-5 kHz | +1 to +3 dB | Medium | Crack and stick attack. |
On the X32 / M32: EQUALISER section (EQUALIZER on the X32): pick the band (LOW, LO MID, HI MID, HIGH), then GAIN (+/-15 dB), FREQUENCY (20 Hz-20 kHz) and WIDTH (labelled Q on the X32; Q 10 narrow to 0.3 wide). The MODE button, or VIEW > Home > eq, sets the band type: LOW = LCUT, LSHV, PEQ or VEQ; LO MID and HI MID = PEQ or VEQ; HIGH = HCUT, HSHV, PEQ or VEQ. There is no separate low-pass filter on input channels: for a high cut, set the HIGH band to HCUT.
4Compression
Attack ~10 ms · Release 80-120 ms (timing, not shown on graph)
Illustration in the style of the X32 / M32 compressor screen, not a screenshot. The card gives a ratio range (3:1 to 4:1); the graph shows the first value, 3:1. The threshold is an example only: it is set so a −6 dB peak gets about 3.5 dB of gain reduction, the middle of the card's target. Set yours by ear while watching the gain reduction (GR) meter. Drawn hard-knee with no makeup gain. Attack and release shape timing and don't change this curve.
- Ratio
- 3:1 to 4:1
- Attack
- ~10 ms
- Release
- 80-120 ms
- Gain reduction
- 3-4 dB
Evens out loud and soft hits while letting the crack through.
On the X32 / M32: DYNAMICS section: press COMP to engage and turn THRESHOLD (-60 to 0 dB); the LED meter shows gain reduction. VIEW > Home > dyn: Ratio (1.1, 1.3, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 7, 10, 20, 100), Attack 0-120 ms, Hold, Release 5-4000 ms, makeup Gain 0-24 dB, Knee 0-5, Peak/RMS and LIN/LOG. Page 2: pre/post EQ position, key filter and key source.
5FX send
Moderate send to a short plate/room
Short plate / room, about 0.9 s decay, send around -12 to -8 dB.
Illustration in the style of the X32 / M32 sends view, not a screenshot. Bus numbering depends on how the venue file is patched; set the level by ear.
A little short reverb puts the snare in a space; too much washes out a small venue.
On the X32 / M32: Common practice is to feed FX from mix buses (e.g. Bus 13-16, set to pre/post as needed) patched to FX1-4 in the Effects rack, and return them on FX Return channels. Only FX1-4 can be fed this way; FX5-8 are insert-only and can't run reverbs. Check how your venue file is patched before assuming.
🎧 What to listen for
Listen for hi-hat getting louder when you push the snare fader; that's bleed, address with mic angle before EQ. Headroom: drum hits peak much higher than they look, so keep the loudest peaks on the main LR a few dB below clipping.
Going further (3 optional tips)
Not needed to get a good start. Try these once the basics above sound right.
- AdvancedGated reverb for an 80s snare
A big reverb that cuts off sharply gives size without washing out the mix.
On the M32: load Gated Reverb into FX 1-4 (send/return slots) and send the snare to its bus.
- AdvancedParallel compression for a fuller, steadier sound
Blend a heavily compressed copy under the dry sound: more weight, punch stays.
On the M32: VIEW > Home > dyn and use the compressor's Mix control (0-100 %) to blend dry and compressed. Or send to a bus with heavy compression and blend the bus in.
- IntermediateKey the gate from a low-cut key
Stops the kick from opening the snare gate.
On the M32: VIEW > Home > gate page 2: key filter on, low-cut type (LC6/LC12), around 150-250 Hz.
Common gear for Snare
- Shure SM57 · Snare mic
- Sennheiser e604 · Drum mic
Scene / preset file
Coming later: downloadable X32 / M32 channel preset for this card.
Sources
- Sweetwater InSync: EQ Frequencies of Musical Instruments Explained (Music Instrument Frequency Cheatsheet)
- Sweetwater InSync: How to EQ (Almost) Anything
- Shure: Microphone Techniques for Live Sound Reinforcement (PDF)
- Behringer X32 User Manual (PDF, channel strip: Low Cut, Gate, EQ, Dynamics)
- Midas M32 User Manual (PDF; official download on the Midas M32 product page)
- Unofficial X32/M32 OSC Remote Protocol (P.-G. Maillot), parameter ranges, pp.24-26 (not a manufacturer document)
- Sound On Sound: Parallel Compression
- Sound On Sound: Vocal Production (parallel compression, de-essing)
- Sound On Sound: Engineering Drums Live, Part Two
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