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I didn't see this covered in the OP, but I was wondering what the best recommendation for a kick beater to achieve a particular sound would be. I have a Ludwig Centennial, 24x20 kick and while I love the oversized kick for it's boom in a rock setting, I need to be able to get a different sound out of it for a recording project I've been asked to do. The music is more Americana/alt country-ish. The songwriter has shown me a lot of songs with a particular bass drum sound and it's more of a resonating low boom with less attack. During some recording tests, we were able to achieve the sound by wrapping some socks around my current beater but it's less than responsive for playing and I'm wondering what the best beater for that would be. Anyone experienced with a variety of beaters out there? This is what I've found so far. http://www.amazon.com/Vater-VBVB-Vi...rear end+drum+beater Seems like it might do the trick. I'm not opposed to tuning the kick to help with that sound and I'm open to suggestions if anyone has them.
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Jul 22, 2013 17:25
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The front head isn't ported, we've mic'd it anywhere from 4" to about 14" from the head. I didn't think about a thinner batter head. I'll give that a shot.
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Jul 23, 2013 04:40
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^^^^^ I've really wanted another kit for small gigs that I occasionally do but when I bought my new Ludwig set with the oversized kick, I decided I would eventually just buy a 18" floor tom to match my kit and get one of those mounts that let you turn the tom into a small kick. I'm think though, that for the price of that, I could buy a super cheap shell pack by Gretsch or something similar and have a little club kit. I've found that hot rods are better for playing quiet than buying a bunch of pads to dampen the drums/cymbals. As for your idea, I've done snare/floor tom/ride/hihat for small things before and while not having a kick kinda sucks, it's fun to focus on what your hands are doing.
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Aug 20, 2013 16:04
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scuz posted:I am in desperate need of a snare wire for my Ludwig WFL snare. The original has disintegrated and everywhere I look online they've got the 3-screw mount, but not the string mount. The model I need is PLS-1416. Do you guys have any decent resources for this hard-to-find stuff? Yeah, find a local shop in your area, preferably one that is a licensed Ludwig retailer and they should be able to put in an order to Ludwig for it. I'm actually waiting on my local dealer to get some tom mount gaskets as the factory ones are shot and now the floor tom legs are touching the hoops causing a really irritating buzzing sound. You can't get anything direct from Ludwig as they aren't capable of just straight up charging you though, which sucks.
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Sep 4, 2013 04:38
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hunter x az posted:I've been playing drums for around 15 years, and I'm shopping for a new set. Willing to spare around 1000 for a shell pack. I play mostly hardcore, punk, and ska. Bit of metal. Any ideas for a new kit? It's hard to shop for a new kit, so many options. Thanks Really going to depend on what kind of wood and drum size/number configuration. I dropped around that on a kick/rack/floor/snare configuration and I waited until it was on sale. Even though I don't have the kit anymore, my old Yamaha Stage Custom was a pretty fantastic kit that I played for almost 15 yrs. That kit took such a beating and still sounded great for what was essentially an entry level kit back in 1996. Currently playing a Ludwig kit with no real complaints. Edit: That post for the 20" floor tom is awesome. I Might Be Adam fucked around with this message at 03:16 on Sep 5, 2013 |
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Sep 5, 2013 03:14
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Frazzbo posted:Stupid noob question ahoy! I want to start drumming and all the information and tips in this thread are just fantastically motivating and helpful. The question: I'm left-handed, so does this mean that I should set the kit up in a particular way? Is there a convention that dictates lefties put the hi-hat on the opposite side to right-handed drummers and if so, which side is that? Alternatively, do you just experiment and set things up whichever way works best for you. I guess I'm trying to find out if there is a way of setting up that encourages best practice and technique, plus enables faster learning. Most lefties prefer the hat on the right side of the kit, OR I've seen them play on the left with their left hand. I've also seen the ride on the left in that set up. It's really all about how you feel comfortable.
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Oct 13, 2013 22:38
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After much searching, I finally took the plunge and upgraded my ride cymbal from a Zildjian 21" K Crash/Ride to a Zildjian 22" K Ride. I mostly play rock, jazzish stuff and americana so I was looking for a dryer cymbal with less wash. I love the tone and dynamic of this new ride but still dealing with a bit too much wash/decay on the cymbal. I did look at the K Custom Dry/Dark rides but felt that a lot of them just didn't have enough wash or they had an unpleasant hum once you got it going. I guess my question is, does anyone have suggestions for dampening? I know you can use gaffer tape but I'm not keen on gunking up the underside of the cymbal with adhesive. I found that the cymbal sounded almost perfect when applying a finger to the underside edge of the cymbal. It cut just the right amount of decay out of it.
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Oct 15, 2013 15:55
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Picked up some moon gels and will try them tonight before rehearsal. Thanks for the advice and recommendation.
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Oct 15, 2013 22:23
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I usually encounter musicians that immediately slow down the tempo once the drumbeat stops. I'm sitting there bobbing my head keeping the time and I always notice the significant drop in tempo from everyone else.
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Jan 28, 2014 23:07
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I got this recently but it's probably more ($400) than you're willing to spend. For me, it has a good amount of wash without being too much and you can always put gels on it to dampen the wash. I'm one of those drummers that doesn't like the bright ping sound thought. http://zildjian.com/Products/Drumset-Cymbals/Cast-Bronze-Cymbals/K-Zildjian-Series/22-K-Ride
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Mar 4, 2014 20:47
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I went to Home Depot a long time ago and bought a large carpet/rubber bottom outdoor mat for $10. Was big enough to cut in half and give to a friend. I fold it up and use it for outdoor gigs. For indoor use, a rug is really to prevent your bass drum legs and pedal spikes from damaging the floor or sliding around. Those drum rugs/mats that they sell at music stores are over priced and have a weighted/solid bar on one end to prevent your bass drum from sliding around.
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Apr 2, 2014 16:52
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Normally that spring clips into a groove or "wheel" type piece on the pedal shaft but I guess that it can vary from pedal to pedal. Post a pic of it, maybe?
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Apr 14, 2014 21:55
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Have any of you experienced recurring stress/injury on a particular finger? For the years that I've played drums, other than just over playing soreness in my limbs, the worst thing I have ever experienced are blisters and the occasional popped blood vessel in my fingers. Lately, I've noticed on a few different occasions a soreness or almost bruising in my middle finger on my right hand. I'm guessing it's from stick vibration. I'm thinking it might be because I'm playing some new material and uncertainty about what I'm playing so I'm not super focused on finesse and instead, just banging out patterns. I'm also horribly out of practice even though I play regularly. Anyway, I'm not worried about my finger as it doesn't really hurt, it's just swollen and a bit purple, but I'm worried that my technique is influencing this or maybe it's the stick weight.
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Apr 30, 2014 17:03
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Not at the moment but I know my grip lately has been a bit sloppy. This all kinda started after I got a new ride and started messing around with placement of my kit. I had some height issues with snare/floor tom and my ride that have made for some awkward playing. I feel like I've really had to over reach lately to get the bell of the ride. I don't know how much of this is mental or physical. You know that awkwardness when you first set your kit up after tearing it down and not everything feels quite right? That's what I've been dealing with for a few weeks. I use 5A Oak and thought maybe the weight was too much so I started using 5A Hickory but I'm not noticing much of a difference. I use 7A Hickory for a lighter project that I play in and have little to no discomfort but when I play with my other heavier rock band, they just don't cut it which leads me to believe that I'm overplaying for volume with heavier sticks and my sloppy grip is causing the butt of the stick to impact my middle finger more than it should as it's slipping.
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Apr 30, 2014 21:18
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Yeah, that makes a lot of sense and confirms my assumptions. I'm more or less looking to see if anyone else has experienced that or had any insight into it. I'm going try relaxing a bit. The only time I'm gripping the stick that low is when I'm playing the ride and I start losing my grip. I really don't like gripping the stick that way and attempt to correct by choking up on the stick again. I realize how horribly inefficient it is. I think it's an over compensation for volume and a lack of being comfortable with what I'm playing that's leading me to focus on what to play next and less on how to play it, thus my grip slipping. It's just ugly technique on my part. I'm definitely slipping in my technique, accuracy, and control. I know I need to work on that. As far as calluses go, I typically only form one on my right index finger where it connects to my hand from stick friction and those only form after I've taken a long break from playing.
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May 1, 2014 15:46
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scuz posted:These cuties just popped up on craigslist, just as I was thinking I need a bigger kick. Darn you, craigslist! Is it the angle of the photo or is that bass drum slightly misshaped? I stupidly saw that Quest Love Ludwig mini kit the other day. Looks like a great little club kit for the price and I keep telling myself that I don't need it. Even if it would keep me from transporting my full size everywhere.
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May 6, 2014 04:42
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Well, another week has gone and I had another band rehearsal and my middle finger pain flared up again. Last night, I spent a lot of time going between different weight and stick sizes and concentrated on my grip and I'm still having an issue. I'm starting to think that it might be the height or angle at which I'm hitting the ride, especially the bell because that's where I'm noticing most of the impact affecting my finger. It's swollen again, but not nearly as bad as last week. I don't think I'll play much next week so maybe I'll have some time for it to properly heal but since I've never had this issue before, I'm starting to think the ride is the culprit. I just can't seem to comfortably grip the stick while playing the ride without taking a lot of impact to my finger. Also thinking about seeing a doctor to make sure I haven't hosed something up and am only making it worse.
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May 7, 2014 19:21
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I'll take a pic the next time I'm in my rehearsal space. It's a basic rack/floor/kick set up with a crash on the hi hat side, ride over the kick, and a crash to the right of the floor tom. I'm really tall so I've found myself usually playing over the kit instead of sitting low to the floor. I had some issues with my new ride and I'm still trying to find the right height. I had a problem before where my right hand was sometimes hitting my right knee while playing the ride but now I feel like the ride is too high. It's been frustrating to say the least. I also noticed that switching to ride I sometimes default to french grip. Maybe the angle of the ride, the weight of the ride, the grip and the stick type is causing this. Maybe I'm just getting really terrible at drums 
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May 8, 2014 16:51
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I play shows on average about once a month with an acoustic americana/rock guy and I use 7As for his stuff because it needs to be a bit tighter, quieter and controlled for some of the gig locations/venues. I have never experienced issues when playing his material. In my rock band, I'm playing harder/faster and with 5As and this finger issue really started after I got this new ride. I even bought a new DW short ride stand to get some better placement and versatility over my generic boom stand that I've been using for years. I'm going to gently caress around in my practice space and try to fix it. If all else fails, my buddy and old drum teacher said he'd come out and take a look at my kit and grip and try to give me some pointers. Maybe just having another drummer notice something I'm doing wrong will help. This is what my setup looked like when I first got the new Ludwigs back in 2010:  That K crash ride is now to the right of the floor tom as a secondary crash and I got rid of the splash. I don't know what's happened in the last 4 years to give me problems as it's generally the same setup aside from some angle placement changes. Thanks for all the feedback though. I don't have a gig until next weekend but luckily it's that easy light rock stuff so I hopefully won't have anymore soreness.
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May 9, 2014 20:01
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I'm using Pro Mark 5A Oak and 7A hickory. I bought a couple pairs of 5A Hickory because they are supposed to be lighter but they feel super clunky and heavy in my hands. I went from a 20" K Crash Ride to a 22" K Ride. There is a definite difference in feel between the two. I'm tearing down my setup tomorrow and spending some time getting it comfortable. Hopefully feeling comfortable on the kit will alleviate further issues. I know a lot of this is mental.
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May 10, 2014 07:39
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If anyone is interested, I've either concentrated on my grip, allowed my finger injury to heal, or have found that the culprit is my ride stand. This new DW ride stand comes with an adjustable piece where the cymbal sits to allow you to adjust how close the cymbal sits to the top felt fastener, basically giving more/less movement when the cymbal is played. I may have been playing the cymbal a bit too tight which was causing more force to return upon striking the cymbal. I've loosened it up quite a bit to give it more movement and more cymbal wash since it's able to ring out more which is probably making me play it a bit softer now that I'm getting more volume. It's weird what a new piece of hardware can do to completely jack up your playing. Here is my current arrangement. 
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May 27, 2014 16:28
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Don't forget that most 1/8 inch jacks for phone recording require the 3 ring connector. There is a site on the web that sells XLR to 1/8" cables that work with phones. Mine was pretty good until it straight up quit working. I would just plug an SM 57 into it and place it in a corner and record band rehearsals. A lot better than letting the phone's mic record because all you would get is a lot of clipping from the hi hats.
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Jul 9, 2014 04:57
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Bonzo posted:So I've been playing for nearly 30 years. In the last 5 or 6 years I took a break from playing because I was burned out with the band I was in and wanted to learn some new instruments. My experience with electronic kits is that they are less than desirable for live performance but totally fine if you want to just play in your house to some songs or whatever. I used to play on an electronic kit at a church gig and even with the kit being routed through a laptop with BFD running, it just wasn't nearly close to the feel/sound of an acoustic kit. It wasn't the best electronic kit but in order to get something comparable, you're looking at Roland V-Drums and they get quite expensive.
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Jul 28, 2014 16:06
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I've used Evans G2 coated forever but always put a clear reso head on the bottom. For me, the reso head doesn't matter much. I think i'm using the stock ludwig reso heads that came with the kit. I haven't found a better combination of warmth and just enough sustain to hear the tone of the drum. Whenever I hear that combination, I can't imagine them not working in any live band situation.
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Dec 22, 2014 16:47
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Duke Chin posted:My one and only hard and fast rule: If you buy a new kit - burn the stock heads. Swap those turds off immediately. This always. I remember how bad my Yamaha stage custom sounded until I got new heads instead of the stock. World of difference. When I got my Ludwig kit, I didn't even bother putting them on. New Evans heads immediately. I think I kept the stock reso heads though. They sound fine.
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Jan 20, 2015 04:08
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You'd think drum manufacturers would team up with a head manufacturer and do a partnership but then that would probably screw up endorsement deals and some other dumb poo poo. Why hasn't Ludwig/DW/Tama invested money into a drum head line that is worth a poo poo? Then those people that have matching drum and hardware manufacturers could complete the holy trinity. Which brings me to a stupid question. Do people really care about matching drums and hardware brands? I had a guy ask me at an audition why I had pearl hardware mixed with my Yamaha kit and hardware. Mixing cymbal brands on the other hand 
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Jan 20, 2015 14:02
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Bonzo posted:how old was the guy? I remember it being a big thing in the 80s and early 90s but then people stopped caring. For me, the LP stuff was just as durable and way cheaper than the brad name offering. The guy had to have been in his late 20s. Not sure why he cared. I still have some Yamaha hardware that I'm using in a mix of DW/Pearl hardware. Hardware isn't a fun thing to purchase as a drummer so as long as it works, nobody should care. People with broken gear that refuse to replace it have no excuses for ridicule.
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Jan 21, 2015 21:51
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timp posted:No money Ok, fair enough but it always seemed weird when people would play in bands and have to borrow gear because they refused to fix/replace their broken stuff. I had a friend borrow a backup snare for a show and it turned into a year or something... because he broke the head on his snare.
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Jan 21, 2015 23:35
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Brotein_Shake posted:Any advice for learning or improving on doing fills? My fills are doo-doo garbage that all feel the same to me and always start halfway through a measure. Add some spacing or less 8th note patterns in your fills. Also try carrying your fill into the 2 of the next measure. That's a fun way to start hearing fills divided up.
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Jan 31, 2015 00:57
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I'm always surprised how much fun playing on a big kit can be but then I remember how having all that gear is only fun to play, never to tear down, set up, and transport.
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May 12, 2015 05:48
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sebzilla posted:One up, one down, ride, two crashes. Gradually been slimming it down over the years. I complained about having too many stands and attachments for my old 3 up 1 down kit with a bunch of cymbals (like over 10 years ago) and gradually started breaking it down to a smaller kit. Then I bought a new kit. I've had this Ludwig for about 5 years now and while it's much better in regard to the amount of gear I have to transport, it still has a 24" x 20" kick so there's that. 
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May 12, 2015 16:52
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iwannabebobdylan posted:MY WIFE bought me a C&C kit and I love it. Top pic is at their shop, Middle is with the Index Snare, and bottom is with the DW Collector's Brass Snare.  Nice find. Looks like a great kit.
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Jun 9, 2015 05:24
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I gotta make another post about how gorgeous that C&C kit is. Wow man. I'm jealous. I've always wanted a smaller club kit for certain gigs but those gigs are too few and far between to really validate the need, plus I'd have nowhere to put it. My band's studio space is already full with 3 drum kits and 5 other people's gear. It got me thinking about my Ludwig kit though. I absolutely adore the way it sounds. 24"x20 kick, 10x13" rack tom, 16x16" floor tom. I have noticed over the years that I've owned it, I'm not nearly as fast on the kick as I used to be with a 22x18". I know it takes a bit more effort with a bigger kick but I'm wondering if there are some adjustments that could be made for the kick pedal/tension on the batter head to improve my speed. That kick really booms. Just wish it wasn't so deep.
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Jun 9, 2015 16:28
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Anyone in here have some advice about a recording session? My band is in the early stages of starting our album and we've picked a really nice studio to do drum and bass guitar tracking, and will most likely do guitars/vox/keys in 3 different pro tools home studios. I want to record my kit but have been advised to use the studio kit because it's basically been perfectly set up for the room, acoustics, etc. I figured with sound replacement for snare/kick it's not a big deal to play on a different kit but I'm inclined to want to record my own. The only other issue I see is that we're most likely having to split up the drum tracking into two different sessions weeks to months apart and I guess I'm worried about my toms/snare sounding noticeably different. Again, sound replacement would fix that I guess.
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Jul 29, 2015 15:21
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Yeah, the session splitting may be as long as two months in between. I'm not super worried though. I guess that's what mastering is also for. I'm inclined to take my own kit. When I was tracking drums for a friend of mine, I didn't give a poo poo because it wasn't my project and I was able to adapt to a studio kit but for this, I think I want it to be my kit's particular sound.
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Jul 29, 2015 16:44
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When I was like 19-20yrs old, I auditioned for a rock band full of guys in their later 20s/early 30s and the bass player kept telling me to play "those tomahawk drums". I guess he meant a tom beat. He also talked about how much "gash" we were all going to get when we started playing. They were a really terrible band and I didn't join. I think people just use genres/descriptive words instead of official names. Rock, breakbeat, funk, straight, swing, accented, tight, loose, washy, etc. are terms I'm used to hearing when someone is telling me what kind of beat they're hearing over an idea.
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Aug 30, 2015 16:43
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I use a nice Roland V-drum set at my church gigs and I always feel like I'm cheating because those pads have like the perfect response when striking and it's also probably because the sounds are triggered. I much prefer my acoustic kit but it doesn't mean I don't do monster fills all over those v-drums because of how easy and effortless it is.
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Oct 16, 2015 22:40
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This is going to sound really dumb but if you're into video games and want to see if drums are something you'd get into, try Rock Band. Maybe find a used set to mess around with. Otherwise, you're stuck with a practice pad and honestly, playing a practice pad is really best for studying stick control and rudiments. I mean, you're not going to have much fun with just the practice pad. I was in percussion in Jr High band and it was fun but all I wanted to do was play the kit. Just having a kit is enough to mess around with and explore. If noise is an issue, electronic is really the only way to go and have it be enjoyable but you're going to spend a lot of money for a decent electronic set-up, and then you're stuck with expensive electronic drums that are seriously no fun to play live with. I never took drum lessons outside of jr high until I wanted to study Jazz. If you're willing to shell out for a kit (acoustic/electric), you may find yourself entertained enough with teaching yourself and then start lessons later if you feel you need them.
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Dec 13, 2015 19:01
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Errant Gin Monks posted:So my kit thus far is Tama imperialstar shells, 16 and 17 inch a custom projection crashes, 22 inch a custom ride, 12 inch Saluda decadence China splash, 10 inch Saluda mist splash, Saluda v-bell and a set of old 14 inch zildjian Amir large logo hats. I really like my zildjian K Custom Darks but all my other cymbals are K so it may just be that it sounds good with like sounding cymbals. I played Zildjian Master sounds prior and liked them too.
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Apr 22, 2016 05:20
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Hashtag Banterzone posted:I've decided to get a drumset again after donating my 15 year old starter kit when I graduated college. I kept my zildjian cymbals, my pacific pedal, hi-hat and cymbal stands. I just want a basic entry level practice kit to start. I'd spend a little more and get that Gretsch Catalina Ash or something similar. Honestly, I'd super recommend that Yamaha Stage Custom but you'd need to buy an arm to mount the floating floor tom to a stand. That was the only thing I didn't like about my stage custom was that drat floating floor tom.
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May 27, 2016 16:38
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