CHAPTER 4 :
How to record in your home studio
Acoustic Guitar
Electric Guitar
Bass Guitar
Piano
Brass & Reed Instruments
Vocals
Drum Kit

Snare Drum

The ideal snare sound for any given recording is
going to depend largely on the style of music,
type of drum, tuning, and preference of the player. But in general, it’s the combination of the top drum head and the rattling snares that you’re trying to capture. The snare sound is also going to be judged against the sound of the kick. In a standard 4/4 set up, the snare is the answer to the kick drum, and the snare and kick have to work together to pull the song forward.

Depending on your degree of patience and expertise, using anywhere from one to three mics on a snare can do the trick. Aim a unidirectional dynamic mic, coming in from the hi-hat side, at the spot where the drummer is hitting the drum.

Angling the mic toward the rim will change the
tone, and give you more of a ringing sound.
On the bottom head, to capture the rattle of
the snare, position a large diaphragm condenser, starting at a 45-degree angle to the head.

Avoid placing this mic parallel to the head, or
you could blow out your mic. A third mic that
can add a chunky body to your snare sound is a
small diaphragm condenser placed a half inch
off the side of the drum, pointed directly at the
middle of the drum between the rims. Combining
these two or three mics can give you a variety
of sounds to blend for different tones on
different tracks.

Toms

A condenser or dynamic mic of choice on the
toms is standard, with the mic angled toward the
spot the drum is being hit. As with the snare, angling the mic toward the rim will give more of
a ringing tone to the drum, and damping the
drum with tape or “O” rings is often necessary
in the studio environment. Some ringing is usually sought after, but an abundance of it can be a problem.

Overheads

Small diaphragm condensers placed in a stereo
pair above the drums fill out a drum mix and provide the high frequency energy from the cymbals and snare. Crossing the mics in an “XY” pattern above the center of the kit (anywhere from three to six feet above the kit) or placing one mic over the bell of the ride cymbal and the other above the hi-hat are two common approaches to these mics. As with anything, experimenting is key, as every drummer and every drum kit will produce different results in your room.

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