Which mic is the best for micing a bass drum w/ no hole on the front head? Any suggestions?

Thanks!

[quote="sybd"]Which mic is the best quote]

What do you mean? The best? It depends on your kick drum, the kind of music you intend to record, the drummer, your definition of a good kick drum sound...
I've had good luck with Beyer's M 88, Audio Technica ATM 25 and AT 4033. I can imagine that a lot of other mics will do an excellent job as well.
What have you tried so far and what didn't you like about it?

Basically I have not tried any bass drum mics; I haven't $ to buy one. Plus, there are so many models that I want to be able to pick the right one out when I do get $ to buy a mic. I added the front head having no hole, b/c I'm sure the mic will pick up things differently than the typical hole in front sound. I play what would be consider rock. I'm just looking to be as transparent as possible in recording my BD i.e. I want it to sound like it sounds to my ear in that room. I also understand that has alot to do w/ mic placement and which mic you use, hence the question I asked.

Thanks for the interest

bob had some great comments here on the subject:

http://www.electrical.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1292

you're really gonna have to just pick one and start from there and work with it, and see what works with the drum, room, drummer, your placement blah blah blah. what kicks ass on one drum sometimes sounds like shit on another, you'll just have to say fuck it, get a mic, start working with it and go from there. the other mic that i've had success with that hasn't been mentioned yet is a sennheiser 421.

but by you saying you're looking for "transparent" - i might opt away from a d112, but even so, you never have your head up on the bass drum listening to it, so maybe you're _really_ talking about the whole kit sound being "transparent". maybe you should be thinking more about 1 really nice mic to get a good, natural kit sound - maybe a mono mic 4 ft back and about 3ft high or something (whereever in the room it sounds best/most balanced)... maybe an AT 4033 or the best mic (LD condenser) you can afford, and then shade the definition of the kick with whatever you have laying around if needed. you may be suprised with how good of a sound you can get with one decent mic and good placement.

from my experience looking back on when i was starting out, i wish i would have bought 2 really nice mics and spent more time on placement instead of 7 cheap ones just so i could "cover the entire kit". in the end you ultimately come back to the placement, and rely on your better mics more... or at least i do. now there's all this mediocre crap that has no resale value laying around.

sorry if that sidestepped the question more than answered it - but you just gotta dive in with what you've got and start working and seeing what works and what doesn't. i guarantee whatever mic you buy (if you start getting into recording more) - you'll still end up buying x more mics for the exact same purpose because of all of these variables. what do i know, i'm just a caveman.

-nick

ps i forgot to add tuning to your equasion of things that can totally fuck your shit up

I would have to say a Neumann U47, (fet) provides one of the best kick drum sounds, just dont forget to put a pad on. Another fav Kick drum mic that might seem unusal to some is, a Electrovoice RE20. and my final fav kick drum mic is a beyer m88.

thanks for all the wonderful suggestions. The only mics I have available now are a Beta SM57 and a cheap ass dynamic mic that makes everything muffled. I'm sure it has something to do w/ the foam inside the screen, but judging from what happened to another mic i had of the same quality I don't want to try taking out the foam. i've tried recording, in mono for obvious reasons, w/ the 57 out in front since it is the best i have, and having the other mic pointed over my right shoulder, standing nearer to the floor tom, but angled in the middle of the rack toms, and angled sort of down at the bass drum so i can pick up the snare and floor from the sides. This has been alright but i'm trying to find more options.

Thanks again

I just did a quick check on Sweetwater, which has the RE20 for $430. You might have to eat peanut butter sandwiches and water for a few weeks, but it's well worth it if you can set aside the money. And to echo what everyone always says, it's better to be patient for a while and get something like an RE20 than to get something low budget. $430 is a little above what you might call affordable, but still doesn't require the energy one needs to put into a project like saving up for a Neumann. (A task I have yet to take on.)