Arts >> Music >> Recording Music

How to Install Drum Kit Microphones

There's no hard and fast rule when it comes to setting up microphones to record a drum kit. With different drums, different drummers and different rooms to record in, there are simply too many variables to contend with, so getting a great recorded drum sound takes experience and a little experimentation. If you're recording drums for the first time, it's a good idea to get started by going with a standard drum microphone setup, as outlined below, and experimenting until you get results that please you.

Things You'll Need

  • Drum kit
  • Microphones and cables
  • Microphone stands
Show More

Instructions

    • 1

      Attach a dynamic kick drum microphone to a microphone stand and position it so that it's inside the drum and pointing slightly upwards and towards the drum head and beater. How close you move the microphone toward the beater is largely a matter of taste and dependent on the type of kick drum sound you want. Moving it closer generally results in more attack, whereas moving it back allows more of a natural resonance to be picked up, with less "click" to the sound.

    • 2

      Attach another dynamic microphone to a stand to use for the snare drum. The legendary (and very affordable) unidirectional Shure SM57 is the go-to mic in many studios, for this application and many others, so buying two or three of these will certainly be a worthwhile investment. Whichever mic you use though, placement is key to achieving different snare sounds. Aiming the mic toward the rim and placing it close to the skin will give you a real "crack" to the sound, while moving it away from the skin and aiming it across the drum head will soften the sound somewhat and give you a deeper and looser sound with more "air."

    • 3

      Set up another unidirectional mic for each of the mounted and floor toms. Set them up on microphone stands so they're about 3 inches from both the rim and the skin of the drum, with the microphone pointing at the middle of the drum head. Some engineers like to use microphones on the bottom head of the toms, while some prefer the top. It's all a matter of preference, so it might be worth trying it both ways and picking the one with the most pleasing sound for your particular musical style.

    • 4

      Set up a pair of overhead microphones. Small diaphragm condenser microphones are well suited to this job, and they should be mounted on stands so that they are about 6 feet above the kit. You can experiment with the placement, but with one to the left of the drummer and one to the right, you should get a nice, natural stereo image of the kit. When the signals from these mics are blended with those on the individual drums, you'll have many options for shaping your recorded drum sound.

Recording Music

Related Categories