Guide to Recording Drums

A drumset is certainly one of the more difficult instruments that you will deal with as a recording engineer. There are many ways to approach recording drums, and the method you use will depend at least in part on the style of music you're recording.

One of the things that makes recording drums so difficult is the fact that there are so many pieces on a drumset. But, you may not need to mic each drum individually. It all depends on the sound you're after.

Micing with Limitations

You may be limited by the amount of microphones, preamps, and/or input channels you have at your disposal. In that case, you can take a minimalistic approach to recording.

A drummer with great control becomes very important with limited microphones. For example, if you're recording a guy who bashes the cymbals you'll have fewer options for dealing with that.

One Microphone

Walk around the room and find out where the drums sound the best. Put the mic there. Record. It's that simple. You might also try the single mic above the kit (overhead), though you won't get much kick drum this way.

You're going to get a very old-school sound with this technique, as this is the way drums (and the rest of the band) were recorded in the days before multitrack recorders.

Dynamic microphones usually require too loud of an input to work for this, because of the distance from the kit to the microphone a condenser or ribbon microphone usually sounds best. Refer to their individual pages for info on the different sounds they produce.

Two Microphones

Two Overhead/Room Mics

This is very similar to the one-mic technique, but gives you a second mic for a stereo image. Most common forms of this are an AB Pair, or a Mid-Side technique. Another technique is to go mono but use two mic's, put one microphone lower down and only a few feet from the kick, while another mic farther back and higher up, this will get you a better room sound and more cymbals. the problem with this is that your snare might be lacking in attack.

Overhead/Room and Kick Mic

Place your room mic as with the one-mic technique, and put the second mic on the kick drum. The kick drum is often not strong enough in the room mic, so give the kick its own track.

Three Microphones

Two Overhead/Room Mics and Kick Mic

Gets you the stereo image of the overhead/room mic pair, along with the separate mic on the kick drum. Some very effective recordings can be made with this configuration, though you still do not have the ability to balance the kit the way yo do with close micing. Thus the drummer will have to do more to adjust the loudness of his hits to control the volume rather than adjusting levels later in the mix.

Glyn Johns' Micing Technique Placement Diagram.

A common technique is the "Glyn Johns" setup, which is named for its creator. This setup was used to record John Bonham on many Led Zeppelin albums. One mic is placed in front of the bass drum, usually 6" - 1' from the resonant head. It is placed further than usual because it is mostly there to pick up the attack of the drum as opposed to the low end. Then two matching overhead mics are placed in positions equidistant from the snare drum. (By making the distance to the snare uniform, you prevent phase problems on the snare drum.) One of the "overheads" is usually placed about 4" above the floor tom pointed directly at the snare drum, and the other is usually directly over the #1 mouted tom and pointed straight at the snare, and once again, both are the same distance from the snare drum. The key is that the mics can go anywhere around the kit as long as they are the same distance from and pointed directly at the snare drum. Small cymbals may help when using this technique, as they can become overbearing if the drummer plays them hard. When mixing, pan the overheads as far apart as possible until they begin to lose focus, and bring the bass drum up as necessary to add presence to the kick. A common addition is one more mic on the top or bottom of the snare for additional mixing options.

Overhead/Room, Snare, and Kick Mic

With this method you lose the stereo image, but gain more precise control over the snare drum.

Individual Micing

Most modern recordings--particularly pop, rock, and country--use close mics in addition to overheads and/or room mics. It's not uncommon to see twelve or more tracks devoted solely to the drum kit. A typical session might look like this:

1. Kick, inside/front
2. Kick, back (for the attack/hit)
3. Snare, batter (top) head
4. Snare, snare (bottom) head
5. Rack Tom 1
6. Rack Tom 2
7. Floor Tom
8. Hi-hat
9. Left Overhead
10. Right Overhead
11. Room close
12. Room Far

Phase Problems with Multiple Mics

Micing the drums in this manner gives you a great deal of flexibility at mix time, but it can introduce some phase problems. Any time you have more than one microphone, you could be subject to phase problems, but when you have 10 or 12 mics on a single kit, there is more chance of phase cancellation. Be sure to listen for phase problems when recording this way. If you use a microphone on the bottom and top of the snare, or front and back of the kick try flipping the phase on one or the other and see how they fit in with the rest of the kit. It is usually best to go with the combination that gives you the most bottom end because it is more in phase. If you are running into consistent problems look at the 3 to 1 Rule

Drum Micing Techniques

This section discusses different ways of placing the mic on the parts of the drumset, as well as naming some mics that are typically used.

Kick Drum

There are essentially three ways to mic a kick drum.

Inside the shell. Put the mic literally inside of the kick drum. This either requires a front head with a small hole in it, or removing the front head entirely. Typically, you should aim the microphone roughly where the beater hits the drum head but have someone slowly move it around while listening to find the "sweet spot".

Outside, aiming at the resonant (front) head. The microphone is placed in front of the kick drum, roughly 8 inches away. The actual distance will depend on what sort of sound you want and your mic, but 8 inches is a good starting point. A microphone in this position can pick up a significant amount of bleed from the rest of the kit, which is why you will sometimes see a heavy blanket placed over the kick drum and mic. Sometimes using a ribbon (be careful its back far enough to avoid damage) or high quality condenser a few feet away can give you a good sound while picking up some of your room.

Outside, aiming at the kick head. The microphone is placed behind the kick, aiming at the kick head. This can pick up noise from the pedal, so be sure it's in good condition and isn't squeaking, clicking, etc.

It's common to use multiple mics on a kick drum, which are blended together on the recording. One of the most common methods is to use an inside mic and an outside mic. The inside mic typically picks up more of the beater attack, and the outside mic gets the resonance of the drum.

Microphones typically used on a kick drum include:

AKG D112
Audix D6
Beyer M88
E/V RE-20
Shure Beta 52
Sennhieser 421
Neumann U87 (placed a few feet back from the front of the drum)

Snare Drum

Top head. This is by far the most common method for micing a snare drum. The idea is to get as good a sound as possible while keeping the microphone out of the drummer's way. One way is to place the microphone at a 45° angle, near the edge of the head, approximately one inch off the head. Another approach can be to place the microphone at a greater angle, anywhere from 60-70 degrees, and point the microphone at the center of the drum. This, of course, would still be about an inch off the head.

Bottom head. The bottom head will give you a very crisp, papery tone that doesn't work well on it's own, but can be blended with the other mics to emphasize the snares.

Shell. Micing the shell of the snare drum can also give you excellent results. Be careful not to place the mic in the path of the air escaping from the drum's vent or you will get the sound of the air, and could damage the mic.

Some common snare drum microphones:

Shure SM 57
Beyerdynamic M88
Sennheiser MD421
AKG C414
Beyer M201

Toms

Mic placement on a tom is similar to the snare drum. The top is standard, very rare to mic from the bottom. The bottom head will give you more resonance but not much attack.

Oktava MK-012
Sennheiser MD421
Shure SM 57
Audix D2
Beyer M88

Overheads

In most cases, overheads are recorded using a number of stereo micing patterns (AB, X-Y, Blumlein, Mid-Side). Any high-quality condenser or ribbon microphone are often used, the sound you are looking for (or what mic you own) will determine the choice, for a warmer sound Coles ribbon microphones can sound really great, but a crisper sound can usually be found with C414's or even a small diaphragm condenser that will capture more of the transient. It is also common to use a single mono overhead microphone if stereo separation of the individual drums is either not important or undesirable. In a live situation Sennheiser MD421s are common, as well as directional (cardioid->hypercardioid) small diaphragm 'pencil' condensers.

Room Mics

As with overheads, choose a high-quality condenser or ribbon. Sometimes miking the room by putting a lower down microphoone 4-6 feet from the kick, and then another microphone higher up and a good ways back can get a good range in tone. A smaller diaphgram condenser will sharpen/add high frequency and attack to you cymbals, while a larger diaphragm ribbon or condenser will usually provide a smoother more mellow sound.

Other Instruments

Hi-hat. Use a small-diaphragm condenser with a pad. Hi-hat transients are extreme, and can easily overload a mic with no pad. If you have well placed overheads, the Hi-hat usually comes through fine, and is usually not essential, though can add certain qualities to the sound depending on the type of microphone.

Shure's Microphone Placement Diagrams

These microphone placement charts are from Shure's Microphone Techniques for Studio Recording.

© Shure Incorporated. Used with permission.

Individual Drums

Here is a basic individual drum miking technique:

Shure's Drum Microphone Placement Diagram Front View. © Shure Incorporated. Used with permission.

Shure's Drum Microphone Placement Diagram Top View. © Shure Incorporated. Used with permission.

Bass (Kick) Drum

This drum’s purpose in most music is to provide transient, low- frequency energy bursts that help establish the primary rhythmic pattern of a song. The kick drums’energy is primarily focused in two areas: very low-end timbre and “attack”. Although this varies by individual drum, the attack tends to be in the 2.5-5kHz range.

A microphone for this use should have good low frequency response and possibly a boost in the attack range, although this can be done easily with EQ. The mic should be placed in the drum, in close proximity (1 - 6 inches), facing the beater head. (position D)

Snare Drum

This is the most piercing drum in the kit and almost always establishes tempo. In modern music it usually indicates when to clap your hands! This is an extremely transient drum with little or no sustain to it. Its attack energy is focused in the 4 - 6kHz range. Typically, the drum is miked on the top head at the edge of the drum with a cardioid or supercardioid microphone. (position C)

Hi-Hats

These cymbals are primarily short, high frequency bursts used for time keeping, although the cymbals can be opened for a more loose sound. Many times the overhead mics will provide enough response to the high hat to eliminate the need for a separate hi-hat microphone. If necessary, a mic placed away from the puff of air that happens when hi-hats close and within four inches to the cymbals should be a good starting point. (position G) Simpler methods of drum miking are used for jazz and any application where open, natural kit sounds are desired. Using fewer mics over sections of the drums is common. Also, one high quality mic placed at a distance facing the whole kit may capture the sounds of kit and room acoustics in an enjoyable balance. Additional mics may be added to reinforce certain parts of the kit that are used more frequently.

Tom Toms

While the kick and snare establish the low and high rhythmic functions, the toms are multiple drums that will be tuned from high to low between the snare and kick. They are primarily used for fills, but may also be consistent parts of the rhythmic structure. The attack range is similar to the snare drum, but often with more sustain. An individual directional mic on the top head near the edge can be used on each drum and panned to create some spatial imaging. A simpler setup is to place one mic slightly above and directly between two toms. (position E )

OverHeads

The cymbals perform a variety of sonic duties from sibilant transient exclamation points to high frequency time keeping. In any case, the energy is mostly of a high-frequency content. Flat frequency response condenser microphones will give accurate reproduction of these sounds.

Having microphones with low frequency roll-off will help to reject some of the sound of the rest of the kit which may otherwise cause phase problems when the drum channels are being mixed. The common approach to capturing the array of cymbals that a drummer may use is an overhead stereo pair of microphones.

Miking Drums with Limited Microphones

Timbales, Congas, Bongos

Tambourine

Steel Drums

Tenor Pan, Second Pan, Guitar Pan

External Links

• Pictures of a Recording Session With Andy Johns for Platinum Samples

Categories: Tutorials | Instruments