I teach an introductory course on recording at a local college, and the days I cover microphones are always the most exciting for the students. Because the course is set up around Digidesign Pro Tools and a 2-channel Mbox, I spend one of the class sessions on recording a drum set using 1- and 2-mic configurations.

The plan is not to teach them the correct way to record drums, but to give them the critical tools needed to find the correct way. The sound an engineer looks for depends on a variety of factors, such as the drum kit, the recording environment, and the song.

A bonus is that this lecture demonstrates how different each model of microphone sounds when used on the same instrument — drums are the perfect subject for mic comparisons. It’s an opportunity to break down expectations, especially when the students have preconceived notions about particular mics.

First, I create a Pro Tools session with a click track and ask a student to play a simple drum beat using hi-hat (or cymbal), kick, and snare. I ask the drummer to play the same beat for several takes, and I change mics and their positions after each. Typically, I start with one mic placed a couple of feet in front of the kit, about waist high. Next, I may set up a stereo pair a few feet in front and above the kit. Next, I’ll place one mic on the snare and one on the kick drum. Which mics I use for each setup depends on what the students are interested to hearing.

When we listen back to all the takes, I selectively mute and solo various mics to hear how they color the sound of the drums. The results are always an ear opener–even for me.

This semester, I brought in some extra mics–a prototype of the omnidirectional Rode NT55 and a Joemeek JM27–and compared them to what the school already has in its mic cabinet (which includes a Neumann TLM 103, a pair of AKG C 1000s, an AKG C 3000, and a Studio Projects T1 tube mic, among others). And, of course, we have pairs of the most widely used dynamic microphones in the world, the Shure SM57 (still in production after 40 years) and SM58.

With a frequency response of 40 Hz to 15 kHz (+/- 10 dB), and more than a 5 dB rise around 6.5 kHz, the SM57 is tailor made for recording certain instruments, such as drums. (Come to think of it, except for the frequency bump, the SM57’s overall frequency response resembles that of many ribbon mics. Interesting…) Nonetheless, this ubiquitous transducer often gets a bad rap, probably because, at some point, nearly everyone has worked with a beat up SM57 running through a cheap preamp onstage or in a studio.

It’s interesting to compare the reaction of the students when they first hear the SM57 as a snare mic to when they hear it again after listening to other mics in the same position. The SM57 offers a band-limited, controlled “thonk” that says Rock Snare Drum like few other microphones do. However, this time around, we found placement was also critical: about four or five inches back from the snare head, rather than right on top of it, gave us the best snare sound, considering the dead acoustics of the classroom.

With an SM57 on the snare and the dynamic portion of the Audio-Technica AT2500 dual-capsule mic on the bass drum, we captured a tight and punchy drum sound. That was a pleasant surprise, because in the room, the kick was boomy and had a long ring to it. We were recording an 18-inch bass drum that had both heads on it, with no opening in the front head and no internal dampening. Not your typical rock bass-drum sound.

On the other hand, the TLM 103 (placed waist high a few feet in front of the bass drum) gave us a wonderfully live and balanced full-kit sound that would be perfect for a jangly pop song or a big-beat rap sample. The overall vibe was reminiscent of Iggy Pop’s “Lust for Life.” And it took us only five minutes to set up.

But I keep thinking about the much maligned SM57 and how versatile it can be in the studio. I recently edited Michael Cooper’s “Six String Strategies,” the December 2007 cover story about recording acoustic guitar. In it, a couple of the engineers he interviewed suggested that the SM57 would work well on acoustic guitar in certain situations.

For example, world-class engineer Richard Dodd noted that an SM57 “only sounds like an inexpensive microphone when it‘s paired with an inexpensive preamp. You pair it with an extremely sensitive, musical preamp, like a Telefunken V76 or Neve 1073, and the balance of the two is a wonderful thing to be heard.” (Dodd’s credits include engineering and mixing for Johnny Cash, George Harrison, Green Day, Tom Petty, Roy Orbison, and Sheryl Crow, among many others. In other words, he knows how to record acoustic guitars.)

It just goes to show you that, when it comes to microphones, you have to keep an open mind and let your ears guide you (rather than spec sheets or price). For some historical background on the SM57, visit Mix magazine’s TECnology Hall of Fame. For info on recording drums, check out Brian Knave’s article “Capturing the Kit.”