There's no better way to get a great drum recording than by starting with the perfect kit, then capturing it in a large room using excellent mics. Check out this recording made at a recent summer camp for teens held at The Blackbird Academy in Nashville, TN. Campers came from as far as Australia and Wales to learn about music production. They took part in the setup, then played the kit recorded by an all-star array of microphones.
The Kit: Vintage 1960s Gretsch Round-Badge 3-ply 13" / 16" / 24" with a Joyful Noise 4X13 Brass Snare and a WFL 5X14 Red Sparkle Snare.
The Mics: K In (AKG D112,) K Out (Neumann 47 FET,) Sn top (SM57,) Sn Btm (421,) Hat (KM84,) Hi Tom (Josephson e22s,) Lo Tom (Josephson e22s,) OHs (Coles 4038s,) Mono OH (U 67 reissue,) Mono OH (Neumann TLM 107,) Room (RCA 77,) Crush (414 EB,) Chamber (U 87)
The Studio: Blackbird's Iconic Studio A ISO 3, a favorite of many producers looking for a tight drum sound
The Drummer: Chris Brush (Chely Wright, Sweet Tea Trio)
The Engineers: Steve Cordray with Cecilia Castleman assisting. Further assistance was provided by attendees at The Blackbird Academy's Summer Camp.
Random Notes: The kit was set up in Blackbird Studio’s large Studio A tracking room. The 414 in the photo at the top of the story is a "crush" mic placed facing the kick beater. It's then heavily compressed to bring out the attack of the kick and tastefully tucked in with the rest of the mics.