As far as mic selection goes, my preference is to use a large diaphragm mic on the kick drum – either a dynamic mic like the Shure Beta 52 or the Sennheiser E602II, or a large condenser mic like the CAD E100.
Dynamic mics tend to capture the “boom” of a kick drum well, and condensers can capture the “snap” of the sound.
Audio Technica makes a mic (AE2500) that has both a condenser capsule and a dynamic capsule in it. Be sure that the mic can handle the high sound pressure levels of a kick drum closely miked.
Your first choice for a snare mic is a simple dynamic microphone, with the ubiquitous Shure SM57 being the most popular. It’ll take a number of accidental whacks from overly-enthusiastic drumsticks and keep working well.
Dynamic mics can also be used on the toms, but there are several very nice tiny condenser mics that have become popular, like the AKG C418 or the Audio Technica PRO 35.
Sennheiser makes a small dynamic mic for this purpose, the E604. These small, specialized mics generally come with their own mic clips which attach directly to the drum itself, reducing the number of stands and cables sticking out of the drum kit, and allowing the plexiglass drum shield to be brought in nice and tight.
In a large room, you’ll want to add a pair of overhead mics, to capture the overhead cymbals and the overall ambience of the drum kit. Small condenser mics like the entry level AT Pro37R or the higher priced Sennheiser E914 are common choices.
Recently, the trend has been moving towards large-diaphragm mics overhead, including the inexpensive CAD GXL2200 or the versatile AKG C3000B. Be sure to experiment with mic placement, listening closely to the sound of each mic, to determine best placement on your drum kit.
Once you route the new mics to your mixing console, you’ll need to consider monitoring for the drummer.
The simplest way to give your drummer the ability to hear what he needs to hear is to use an unused Auxiliary Send from your mixing console. Send that aux to a headphone amp (there are many entry-level manufacturers including Samson, Behringer, Rolls, and Carvin).
Headphones with significant isolation help ensure the drummer will get the reinforced sound and not just bleed from around the ear muffs, and some drummers like headphones that emphasize low frequencies. In-Ear Monitor models which produce extended low frequencies (dual driver models) are also an option.
Beyond this simple setup there are many other more advanced monitoring solutions such as a separate monitor console or personal mixing devices from folks like Aviom, Hear Technologies, Furman, and MyMix.
If you have the room, I prefer using a compressor on both the kick drum and the snare, and an ideal world would call for gates on the toms, the snare and the hihat, to tighten up the sound, but most churches will stop before that point.
The main goal is to prevent the acoustic sound of the drums from either overpowering the rest of the band, or reverberating around the room, by bringing the drums into the sound system with the rest of the band. You’ll be surprised how much cleaner your band sounds, and how much easier it is to keep the volume under control.
Check out more from David McLain at the Church Soundguy blog.