A method for harvesting crops, such as rows of corn, using a harvester, which provides independent drives and independent controls for gathering belts, and independent drives and independent controls for knife rolls used on the corn harvester. The independent drives and independent controls allow the speed of the gathering belts or the knife rolls to be varied without affecting other harvester components. The independent speed control between the gathering belts and the knife rolls, allow for better harvesting in various crop conditions. The harvester also includes a set up for changing the angle of the corn head to allow better harvesting under varying conditions.