You can make great recordings with 2 mics on the drums. My starting
location for doing that is right where you mentioned. I go about 2-3 feet
out in a stereo pair "looking" at the snare over the toms. If you get the
position right, you don't even need a kick mic.

When doing this, I usually use a good stereo mic. Usually my AKG 426, but I
also use Neumann SM-69/23, AKG C-34 or even the Shure VP-88 (mid side can
really help dig out the snare). I'd probably start with your condensers to
get the sound.

For some rock stuff, though, you may find that you will do well by having a
kick mic, though... For jazz, you won't need anything else. For the
vintage sound you're looking for, listen and see- I could see it going both
ways. You likely won't need a snare mic with this setup.

--Ben

--
Benjamin Maas
Fifth Circle Audio
Los Angeles, CA
http://www.fifthcircle.com

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"Gid Tanner" wrote in message ...
Hello. I would appreciate suggestions and advice. I am recording a
drum kit for a session of blues/vintage rock. The room is fairly well
padded and dead. The drummer is good and gets a balanced sound. I
would like to use as few mics as possible, as I have only a limited
number of tracks available (two to four tracks, given the song).
Here is my available equipment: 2 Beyer M160's; 2 Seinheisser 421's;
2 AT 4050's. I have a 2-channel tube pre-amp/compressor (custom made
with a warm, fat sound) and a 2-channel Focusrite Red 8 pre-amp. I
had thought of placing the M160's in front of and slightly above the
toms, and seeing if that would suffice for the whole kit. If need be,
I would add one 421 for the kick and one for the snare.
What would your recipe be? I really appreciate the expert
knowledge/advice I get here. Thanks!
Gid