Place a condenser microphone placed around 8 feet away, pointed at the drums. Placing it in front of the bass drum is a good place to start. You can move it around from there, depending on the sound you’re looking for.
Pros to this technique:
- Great approach to get a holistic sound of the drum set with some room sound.
- If you have a good drum room, this approach will serve you well.
- Great for capturing ideas and recording the vibe of the drums + room.
- Great for playing around and listening to how different places in the room sound.
Cons:
- Floor toms are usually not well-represented with this approach. In general terms, low end sources that are behind high-end sources—like cymbals—tend to not be well heard in the mix.
- Rack toms might sound a bit dry.
- There’s a trade off: the closer and lower to the ground, the more low-end (especially bass drum) you’ll get; the further and higher, the more high-end you’ll capture.
