In Summary

The close snare mic has uses beyond its sound. It can be used to trigger hits from the same drum in the overheads, or it can be used with MIDI to fire clean hits or replacement sounds. Even with no mic at all (such as that gig recording or magic demo) here we also show an extra way to achieve more impact for the snare.

Going Deeper

Close Versus Distant

Close

There’s no doubt that snare close mics provide all the pop and immediacy that listeners expect. Added to the control and creative possibilities they can bring, it’s no wonder that a mic on snare can be found dodging sticks on most productions.

Many styles set out to combine its sound with that captured from above, but often the close mic can get forced upwards as the mix progresses in the familiar race to the top.

Anyone who’s looked at a comic book or newspaper with a magnifying glass (just me?) will know that while close is great for understanding detail it can never give any context. In the same way the snare top mic can only ever focus on the timbale-like DONK that happens on the playing side of the drum, returning the familiar snare top sound.

Distant

Its been said that air is the best mixer, and for some recordings the natural sound of the whole drum is where it’s at. Combining attack from the top, characterful shell sounds, and the articulate zing of the wires, for some styles such as jazz or acoustic, this organic snare sound is hard to beat.

This can only really be achieved at some distance, which often means the in overhead mics along with everything else. Luckily there are ways to coax that overhead snare sound upwards if the drummer has reasonable internal balance.

1 - Expand Smart

Expanders exist to turn down anything beneath the level set by the user. If the snare is sitting above the level of other things in the overheads, expansion can be used to pull the overheads downwards whenever the snare isn’t playing. This means that the overhead fader will often need to be raised to give a net rise in the level of the snare in the overheads. Alternatively, a more specialised upwards expander can be used, headroom permitting.

Even if the snare is around the same level of the other elements in the overhead mics, expansion can still be used. While the sound from the close mic may not be the desired one, all of its zoomed-in information can be used to trigger the expander instead.

The tool we use in the video above can do upwards expansion, however we use it here for a traditional downwards treatment to dip the cymbals around the snare. Using a pre-fader send (or pre-fader sidechain send DAW-permitting) from the close mic into the OH expander, the close mic can be taken down in the mix or even out altogether. The expander’s action can then closely track the intricacies of the close snare mic to open up the overheads whenever the snare is present.

2 - Trigger Happy

Another way to put a redundant close mic to good use is to use MIDI. Hits and notes generated from a dedicated triggering tool such as those found in some VIs, or MIDI-speaking gates can be used to trigger snare sounds that are closer to what’s needed. If the intent is known from the start, contact mics can provide the best input for triggering.

Triggering a sample of a different close mic sound isn’t going to get the snare any further back towards Natural Snare Nirvana. However, samples of isolated clean hits recorded through the overheads certainly will. While commercially available samples will work, far better is to record these ahead of the main take using the featured drum that’s right there. These can be taken before the main takes, as the drummer will probably be in less of a hurry to get out than at the end of the session!

Simple 2 and 4 parts will need very little MIDI editing, if any. More intricate playing may or may not need extra samples for velocity layers - usually three or sometimes four. Trying to trigger more layers will turn into an enormous job best done by someone or something else…

3- Double Up

With a little thought, there is a third technique for those guerilla recordings made without a mic on the snare. In the absence of any clever gates or replacements, in the video above we demonstrate how an EQ’d duplicate of the overheads can provide a surprising amount of extra impact for the snare in the overheads. With the main signal leading the ear, our duplicate can be raised without giving the game away.

The Best Snare Drum Sound?

The best snare drum sound is of course the one that fits the music. The factors that will play the biggest part of the sound happen long before the mics go up, coming not only from the tuning and choice of drum, but also from who’s playing. It’s surprising how different the same drum can sound when played by two different people!

If the fully rounded sound of the snare drum in the overheads is the priority, the person on the drum seat has ultimate control over how big the snare is in the overheads. Very few drummers aren’t interested in their sound, and many will be receptive to any discussions on getting it right at the drums.

For those situations where the snare needs to be carried by the overheads’ natural sound, these three techniques can help to elevate a more natural snare drum for the mix. There will be some worst-cases where the snare is so buried under the cymbals that no amount of agility from the engineer is going to save the day. However if there is enough snare to hold onto, the pointed thud of a snare close mic can take a back seat for the better.

A Word About This Article

As the Experts team considered how we could better help the community we thought that some of you are time poor and don’t have the time to read a long article or a watch a long video. In 2023 we are going to be trying out articles that have the fast takeaway right at the start and then an opportunity to go deeper if you wish. Let us know if you like this idea in the comments.