i went ahead and replaced all drum heads with a set that a friend claims to be the "ultimate" for rock/metal drums:
toms: Evans EC2 SST Clear Batter Drumhead
kick drums: Evans EMAD
Coated Bass Batter Drumhead
snare: Evans EC1 Reverse Dot Coated Snare Drumhead
the toms and kick drum do sound really good with these heads (for rock/metal), but i don't think i like the snare head....it sounds a little muffled on this particular snare. i may change the head out soon. i like a little more crack and ring to my snare.
i spoke with my friend at a large Dallas music store that deals wholesale and he told me that the audio technica mics were surprisingly good for the money. he told me to also get a pair of Rhodes condenser mics.
i ordered the audio technica mics:
MB/Dk6 Drum-Microphone Pack || Audio-Technica US
MB/Dk4 Drum-Microphone Pack || Audio-Technica US
i also ordered a 10 pack of mic cables, two boom stands and two kick drum mic stands. when it was all said and done, i spent about $430 on all of it. not bad for that many mics. i'll listen to this set before i get
the Rhodes mics. i also have one sm57 that i can throw into the mix, especially if the snare sound isn't working for me. i tend to favor the direct drum sound over the overhead/room sound. i came up in a different era i guess.
once i get them all setup, i'll record a few takes and see what the mics will do for my kit. i'll post some clips here for some opinions.....so be gentle. lol.