micing drums for hip hop

Pic above is the average frequency response when comparing the Sm57 and AEA R92. Together they should capture an extremely full sound. So I use this pair on my snare.
Snare Sm57 through an intense preamp is a classic snare sound as well, lots of CRACK! Adding a ribbon should support it well, and mine’s quite dusty. And both mics operate dynamically! cool. Hi Hats will get in the other side of the ribbon, and imediately their icepicks will be confiscated.

So then for an equally massive kick, we pick the most bass-sensitive condenser ever…. and push the diaphram to the limit. And then all the kick distortions are analog!!! The Rode NT1 has a little bass boost when compared to other condensers, so I’ll go with that for now.

So with such a full drum sound already, the toms and cymbals will need some powerful sidechains to keep them from turning the mix into noise. You can use the demo loops, or record a second live drum take. 421s are good at catching extremes, so they are great for close tom micing. They will capture a powerful fundamental while also hearing the treble of the stick hitting the drumskin. AKG D112s operate similarly, but their size would require them to stand a bit further away.

But I would perfer a giant, distant kit sound. This adds a vintage vibe and also stays out of the way of the kick/snare core. And that way, you also don’t have to add fake reverb to the toms in post. My perfered overhead setup is to reuse the R92 ribbon from earlier over the ride, and a brighter ribbon for the crash. This means the hi-hat and ride will have the same mic colouration, allowing the drummer to switch or between hi-hat and ride grooves without upsetting the mix much. The hi-hat will still be farther forward; they are not ducking under the snare as the ride is. The long tail on the ride also allows for very dramatic ducking movements, for when that sound is desirable.