As an acoustic drummer of nearly 20 years and an electronic drummer for over 10, insight into one has constantly changed my approach to the other. I believe that even a hard-core acoustic drummer can benefit from the advances in electronic drumming. One of these advances is the ease of 'changing equipment' that modern systems offer. Roland's COSM modeling for example makes it easy for a drummer to listen to different drums of different sizes and materials without getting kicked out of a music store. You can have access to hundreds of electronic versions of their acoustic counterparts. Does this eliminate acoustic drums? No. If anything, it can help you when you are shopping for acoustic drums. By modeling various combinations, you can virtually hear what a specific drum will sound like before you ever step foot into a music store.
Over the years, I have migrated to a 20" kick drum as a standard. In fact, my whole 'gig' kit has shrunk to be based on Pearl's Rhythm Traveler Drum Set . In the past 10 years I have played mostly theater work, light rock and worship music. The travelling I have done has also engrained the phrase "lighter is better" into my set-up. It doesn't take many dinner theater stints that are up 2 flights of stairs to make a guy realize that his kit is too big. I used to have 6 toms, now I generally use 2. Does this mean that I'm limited to toy sounding drums if I want to travel light? No. It means I have to know what makes a drum sound the way it does. Armed with this knowledge, I can literally weigh the options and know that I am not compromising on sound. The right combination of sizes, heads and muffling techniques can create a combination that sounds much fuller to the ears than the eyes would believe.
Electronic drums have a way of elevating your perceptions of audible perfection. It's
almost paranormal at times. I can drive down the road and pinpoint an annoying buzz
inside a car and solve it with the pressure of a well placed thumb. As an electronic
drummer, I have grown to accept that acoustics will never sound as good and consistent
as the 'perfect' electronic sample. The mechanical imperfections and noises of acoustic
drums both singly and interacting with others is not present with electronics. It is possible
to eliminate many of the imperfections of acoustic drums if you know what to listen for. I
have also used the technology found in electronic drums to help me define my acoustic
sound. The beauty of Roland's COSM modeling (found in their
TD-6V
&
TD-20
V-Drum modules)
allows you to model various sizes, heads and tunings to experiment with. My own, older TD-8 module serves as the example
for the purposes of this article. Did you know
that a smaller, shallower drum with the right heads and minimal muffling can produce as
deep and full a sound as a heavily muffled, larger drum with single ply heads? Did you
know that the material of your beater radically alters your sound as well?
COSM Modeling allows you to hear realistic adjustments being made to a drum in a virtual manner. You can adjust the head type and tuning of a chosen drum.
You can change drum depth and muffling techniques as well.
Isolating your kick from other drums is crucial in order to evaluate its shortcomings. Most people use the kick drum to hold up half of their drum kit. Do your other drums vibrate in sync with your kick? Are you hearing other sounds when you hit your kick? Does your pedal squeak? What other unpleasant sounds that aren't related to your kick are you hearing? Believe it or not, much of the 'cheap' sound from a 'cheap' drum doesn't come from the drum itself. Have you ever taken a lug off of one of your drums to examine the inside? Is there an untamed spring in there vibrating every time you hit the drum? Pop a little foam rubber in there. Take off your metal kick drum hoop and flip it over and over a couple of times. Are you hearing tiny metal balls rolling around in there? Does it sound like a classic hula hoop? Welcome to the world of welded hoops. Can this be addressed? Sure. Drill a hole in a low visibility area of the edge and inject some spray foam. Roll it around until those things are trapped in the foam. Another stray noise is gone. Are you faster than your kick pedal? Is it tightly secured to the kick? Are any components of your pedal rubbing against the head? Check the fit of your pedal against your hoop. Does your pedal squeak, squank, rattle or moan? A squeak can usually be fixed with 3 in 1 oil or some graphite. A squank usually originates from the pedal's spring on compression and decompression. A little bit of foam rubber inserted inside the spring can do wonders for this. Other noises can usually be eliminated with the right approach.
A good pedal is one of the best drum investments you can make. Not sure what makes a good pedal? One that feels right, is sturdily built and can keep up with your foot is a good start. One that doesn't provide it's own noises is crucial as well. I've been through as many as 10 different pedals in my career and the ones I love always do one thing better than the ones I end up getting rid of. What is this one trick that gets the pony in my cart? With your pedal securely attached to just your hoop, pull your beater back to the point where it touches the footboard and release it. Now, count the number of times it swings back and forth. The higher the number, the better my foot seems to like the pedal, every time. Why? Because the pedal is balanced and smooth. It lets me do my job without interfering. My favorite pedal in high school was the old Camco chain drive on the school's kit. My foot loved it. When I got out of high school I bought myself a Pearl P-80. I still have this pedal as a back-up of my new favorite, the Pearl P-2000C PowerShifter Eliminator pedal. It's not that I will likely end up changing the interchangeable cams much, but it gave me much longer than the music store trial to find the cam feel I liked the best. If you find a pedal that is well balanced, you will find your foot is happier in the long run.
Now that you have eliminated the noises your drum and hardware shouldn't make, lets talk
about how to get the sound you want out of it. Here is where a pedal like the Pearl Eliminator
gives you some great options as well. With multiple beater surfaces, you can experiment with
your sound without having to buy and balance multiple beaters. (You can also give this
feature to your current pedal with Pearl's
UGK-1 Upgrade Kit
.) Again, having access to a
V-Drum module with COSM modeling gives you some great insight into the characteristics
of different head types and muffling materials. Once you find a level of tone and decay that
you like you can start to look for 'real-life' products that perform the same type of tone and
muffling. It is amazing how accurate the V-Drums are when you dial up a drum with the same
characteristics as a real-life acoustic version. Armed with this knowledge, you can reverse
engineer a drum that would sound great in real life. I happened to like the sound of a 20",
shallow shelled (8" to 10") kick with a punchy beater, a
Remo Pinstripe Clear Head
and minor perimeter
muffling. More recently, I have officially adopted the
Aquarian Super Kick II for nearly all of my kicks, regardless of size. Tuned a little loose at the batter, with a tight
Remo Ebony Powerstroke 3 up front, this becomes my chosen acoustic kick drum. It also happens
to be lighter to carry and with my choice of heads and muffling I can electronically verify
that I've chosen my acoustic set-up wisely to obtain the sound I want. Of course, I realize
this is MY signature drum and yours should vary. It is a little more punchy than deep, but
the weight trade-off MORE than makes up for it. I personally don't want to carry an 18" x 24"
drum filled with half a furniture store to my next gig.
If I had access to a V-Drum module 10 years ago, I would have saved the cost of the module several times in prevented poor equipment purchases. If you know someone with one of these modules, see if you can't get them to help you get the most out of your acoustic kick. You might even consider this reason enough to pick one up on your own. Scroll through hundreds of kicks, strap on some different virtual heads. Change the shell size. Dial in your own and change the muffling characteristics. When you find 'the one', build or buy it, sign it and throw yourself a party. You've just found your signature kick drum.
LOGIZTIX™ is not responsible for any and all injuries or other claims that may arise from your use or attempted use of these instructions. Certain skills are a prerequisite for following these plans successfully. The use of manufacturers and/or other companies' names does NOT constitute an endorsement... All trademarks are property of their respective owners.
