The biggest "hidden barrier" to a great drum sound is usually the lack of a great drummer.

The hidden barrier to a great drum sound is that a good 808, these days, is hard to find :) (or TR-909, CR-78). That way of thinking of a drum like snare as having three zones is interesting. It's one thing that's tripped me up, while learning to record drums. I didn't think of the close mics as reinforcement, and was struggling with the fact that say SM57 bottom & SM57/Audix i5 top sounded so artificial. But trying to make the close mic pair sound 'natural' is wrong-headed, that's what the farther mics are for. Knowing that the close mics are for reinforcement lets you get a bit more utilitarian and surgical with the EQ on them and not be afraid of it sounding not like a natural snare.

Sorry with all respect but this mic is way to close to the high hat. A snare would maybe ok a mic above & one below

I understand the theory and I certainly appreciate you taking time to demo it out for us, but the fact is a drum kit is a spaced out instrument and is generally listened to at a distance, so it seems to me that phase mismatch is just part of the experience. Obviously, we don't want to make it worse, like adding a top and bottom mic together without flipping the polarity of one mic, but flipping a hh mic just because the low end increases on a snare... I don't think this is the right way to approach mixing. Much like peaks and nulls in an untreated mixing room, moving your listening position to a spot that "increases the low end" doesn't mean that what you're hearing is "better" or "correct". Like you say later, it's more about avoiding these issues- if it's an issue, then please adjust the mic position(s), at least this way all frequencies will shift in phase and still be within the literal proximity of a real drum kit. Not trying to be a jerk, maybe I'm being a little bit of a purist, but you're one of only a handful of KZfaqrs that doesn't jump straight to sample replacement. Ugh... On a semi-related note, I have a somewhat unique way of recording overheads and I'm loving the results. When I get some videos posted, I'd like to point you to them because I think I could see you trying it out and improving upon the method. It's super simple, intuitive, and very budget/experience/bedroom friendly. Honestly, I don't know why I can't find a single person on KZfaq doing it.

Tip for phase, it works: Put some good test whacks in there, zoom in and line up phase by eye in the DAW by sliding the audio until you line up the waves to zero-crossings. You can check with your ears with the undo. The in-phase (drum or cymbal) element should sound thicker.

If you're using a DAW, can't you just edit for near perfect phase alignment?

havent watched the video yet, but you look furious to tell me. Am I in trouble for my drum mix?

They had this almost mastered with fifties drums sounds. Sometimes only three mics in the room. With a bass player there too.early rocknroll and jazz. They did not have the options of multichannel mics. Back then using the ribbon mike( fullness) and careful mic placement

Hey Man! I usually start from snare and overheads relationship, and then add every next mic checking the polarity. But lately after I watched one of your latest videos, I start from flipping snare top! Because it hast to go up first, and it sounds more natural you're so right and such a simple concept, but I never thought about that before you said that! Push the air out with your snare guys and stay creative!👊👊👊

I definitely agree about mics placed in between zones. I always base polarity flips of the close mics off the overheads and it's very difficult to get a crotch mic to work with all of that. The only way I've been able to get a crotch mic in phase is by messing with high pass filters on it. Even then, the overall drum sound was better without the extra mic haha

That is often true, but not always. I had a session in my own room with Peter Erskine, and the sound just wouldn’t cohere. It’s very rare that this happens to me with a top player in my own room, but with that top player come great ears, so you know the problem is you - another timesaver. I have a method. Monitoring in mono only, and working with the overheads alone always gets me close. They should sound similar to a full kit mix.

Your drum sounds consistently impress me! Great sound, and great groove too!

Love this stuff!! Looking forward to putting this tips into action on my next drum recording session! Thanks!

I love the crotch mic fullness… I always miss what the crotch mic adds when I remove it… with only 8 inputs (home studio) I have non-negotiable snare top, bottom, OH L and R, Kick and then 3 more. I most often use those 3 extra channels for hi tom, low tom, crotch mic/ mono front of kit room-ish mic.

Thanks ❤

How do you balance the control you have over this method with the ease of use/quick workflow of running an auto-align plugin?