You wouldn't believe how many times I've heard that said. Microphones are transducers which change mechanical vibrations into a very small electrical current. If they are good quality microphones they'll do just that with very little manipulation to to the sources frequency response that is entering the mic, so even being amplified, an 18" drum should sound exactly like the 18" before a microphone was ever introduced. There are multiple things that can shape the sound, but that's really not the responsibility of the microphone itself. So by very deliberate positioning of the microphone, anything can be amplified, go to tape or hard drive or whatever. Some microphones work better at picking-up some sound sources than others, but they are all work basically the same way. I own ported resonant heads, but hardly ever use them because I like the sound and feel of my drums unported. Most microphones used for miking the front head of the bass drums are usually a dynamic coil microphone, but I have in many cases used condenser microphones if the studio has what I want.
All situations are not exactly the same, you must use your experience and above all your ears when positioning microphones.When miking the resonant head, I'll position the microphone about 1 inch in from the edge of the hoop. This way the cardioid pick-up pattern of the mic will see across the entire area of the head and not just one concentrated spot. I always use a microphone with little or no proximity effect so that it will not muddy up the low frequency energy from the bass drum. Heads, tuning, the microphone and its placement and the room all contribute to the overall sounds of the drums.
Yes, you can get great sounds, even without a hole.
Dennis