Capturing The Kit

Finally, before moving on to the outside mic I throw a bit of delay on the inside channel, just enough to push the location of the inside mic to the location of the outside mic. This aligns the two mics, a difference that can be clearly heard if the tops and subwoofers of the PA are aligned properly.

Attention then turns to the outside mic. If the system is running aux-fed subs, once again I spin up the gain and do a minor bit of tweaking, usually adding a gate with a fast attack, mid-fast recovery, along with some minor EQ cuts around 200 Hz and 1 kHz.

Then I take the mic out of the tops to see how well it plays with just the subs and the inside mic. If it’s a particularly hefty PA, I’ll add the outside mic to the tops, but if it’s a more analytical, linear system, I’ve found that sometimes the additional low end in the top isn’t as well translated, adding smear and clutter.

After that’s done, I usually play with the gate release time and range settings to dial in the desired “punch.” Shaping the sound to fade out exactly when you feel is contextually appropriate goes a long way to a kick sound that sits well in the mix.

From there, compressing the kick is a matter of taste and necessity. Generally, yes, you’ll be compressing – and it’s up to you if you want to do a parallel compression situation or compress on the individual channel strip.

Chances are, some sort of compression will be needed to get it to sit exactly where you want it in the mix. I generally start with a compressor at a 3.5:1 ratio, quick attack and recovery for the inside, and a slower compressor at around 2:1 to round the edges off the low punch, as needed. Sometimes compression isn’t needed – I’m looking at you, excellent jazz drummers – but in most iterations of pop and rock music, it helps.

Snare Mics
Working our way down the console, snare is the next part of the equation. This is done with a single mic or more frequently, with two – one on the top to capture the initial “crack” and another on the bottom to capture the sound of the snares against the bottom head, which give the drum a lot of it’s personality. It’s also useful with drummers who go back and forth between hitting hard and playing subtly.

Solid dynamic mics that can handle high SPL are favored for snare. The Shure SM57 and BETA 57 are considered solid choices, favored by many because they handle SPL well and graciously deal with the abuse being struck hard by drumsticks. Other options I see (and frequently use) include the Telefunken M80, beyerdynamic M201, and Heil PR22, depending on the drum and the drummer.

A classic approach on snare and toms.

Mics For Toms
Also getting increasingly more use are miniature mics that clip right on the drum shell, such as the DPA d:vote 4099D and Audio-Technica ATM350 condensers, both of which stay well out of the way and can be flexibly positioned via goosenecks. Many of these choices can also be applied to bottom snare, but I tend to prefer condensers for this application – the pre-polarized nature of the design means that it’s better at picking up subtleties, and many condensers now handle high SPL.

Snare Workflow
Often I choose to gate the top snare mic while keeping the bottom mic open or gated very lightly with a very low range. This lets the soft notes blend through while only opening up the top mic for a more sizeable “crack.” (Remember to always flip the polarity on the bottom mic as well.)

Compressing the top is usually necessary, and the common snare sound most often heard in pop and rock music these days is the product of a 4:1 ratio, quick attack, quick-medium release. But the individual method and amount of compression is mostly chosen based on the “flavor” you’re going for.