Acoustic Drums
On From the Fjords and in concert:
2-6", 2-8", 2-10", 1-12" concert toms on one stand
8x12, 9x13, 10x14, 11x15, 16x16, 16x18, 18x20 toms, 14x20, 24x26 bass drums (obviously a modification marking my first entry into DIY drum making) - Ludwig
3-6"x16,20,24" PVC tube drums, w/ 2-6" roto toms on a stand
2- 12" 45 degree PVC elbow 'North-type' drums on legs
6.5x14 Chrome Supraphonic snare.
All kinds of percussion sounds, plus Glockenspiel.
26" fiberglass tympani (or was it ... " ). Long time ago.
Mostly Zildjian cymbals. People ask why my cymbals sounded so different on the record and in concert. 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26" medium-heavy pings. Indeed. Save for one Camber silver/nickel 22" crash-ride, I used rides for everything. Mostly because I tended to crack cymbals too easily back then. The old Pings had a cool tone and held up well. I haven't cracked a cymbal in over 30 years now. Never understood why I did back then. And I use regular crashes now.
Also an 18" Pang, 18" swish, 20" Pang, 22" swish.
A bunch of splashes and accent cymbals, plus my cymbal tree, 16" - 8" cymbals set on a boom stand. You can see it in one of the Legend pics from the Oxford Ale House gig, in New Haven, CT. Look to the right side of the kit.
16", 18" (or was it 18 and 20"), 2-22", 40", 48" gongs. Six little Chinese theater gongs. (I wish I never sold the big gongs)
Current Set Up:
Back to my favorite configurations with some new things, as well. All "half toms," something I stumbled upon back in the mid 90's. The Legend lugs were a little too big to have a 3x6, so it's 2- 4x6, 2-4x8, 5x10, 6x12, 6.5x13, 7x14, 8x16, 9x18, 10x20, 11x22 and 12x24 bass drums. Just an experiment on the bass drums which came out audibly great, and the feel is great, too. Also segmented maple hoops are on the toms, made by Stellar. Jody Lutz was a true pleasure to work with on that project. I love the hoops. Since my first exposure to Ayotte drums many years ago, I always wanted maple hoops on my toms. Man, what a difference in sweet tones. The toms also tune up immaculately. That can present an impressive change to your ears when you think your toms are in pitch with steel hoops. The maple are unforgiving of any sour overtones, which really helps in tuning them up. A 7x13 JDW custom aluminum shell for my main snare. Plus others I've made (stave shells, ply, and steel), but I always go back to the aluminum. It has a 3/16" thick shell. Fantastic sound. Rings even with all the hardware on it. I also recently had Alan Jensen, of Addiction Drums, make me a 6.5x13 segmented Ipe (Ironwood) shell. Another favorite.
UPDATE: After several months of that Ipe shell being moved around from place to place, staring at me and complaining at me, I finally made the drum. My hunch of having 1/2" of one of the hardest woods in the world for a shell were realized. Once I got the pitch and tension where I wanted the drum, with maple hoops from Stellar, I just wailed. I mean, instantaneous success. Never had a drum I adopted too so easily. Drummers are always searching for "the one" snare that has it all - sound, playability, looks - this one has it, and I love it. I left it totally natural, too. Just sanded it smooth. Hard stuff.
I have come to realize the actual differences in snare drums, or any drums, is far more nuances and subtleties based on materials and shell wall densities and shell depth. After years of making drums from all kinds of materials, I know the sound of a drum is from the heads, probably 95%. I got so disgusted with manufacturer shell hype: super, ultra-hype, I began a series of videos on the subject at my YT channel. It's up to 24 videos now. Here's a link for the playlist - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRvd-mVMdjwLmAPgUesHnoSPlHvvXhalx
**Since I wrote this page and added to it, I've made a bunch of snare drums I really like, seen around the site, mostly the DIY page.
Cymbals? A useful selection from Paiste - Sigs, Sound Formulas, Alphas; Sabian, - AAs, HHs, B8 Pro and B8; Soultone; Stagg (various series); UFIP - Class, Bionic Series; Wuhan (various); and Zildjian - A's, A Customs, K's, S series. I also found an old Camber, silver-nickel 19.5" ride on ebay and snatched it up. A very glassy sounding ride. Probably a third to half the cymbals I own I purchased used. I have my own system for cleaning cymbals and I can bring just about anything back to new again. You can see my process on my YT channel.
I have various accent cymbals made from cut down cymbals, or cymbals popped inside out for an oriental/Asian-type sound. I've experimented some over the years. And these cymbals are generally from the less expensive lines, but really have unique sounds when modified. I've got a couple flat chinas (14" and 24") which Sabian made for me, as well as a 22" HH medium crash. Sabian is just a wonderful company. I love their flat chinas and use them often, and I have a full roster of them, 14 through 24" set up as a "tree." The same for the Wuhan chinas on the left side. My favorite ride is a Zildjian 21" ping which is a good 40-50 years old now. Got it used, cleaned it up. I also like my UFIP 19" Class medium ride, which hearkens me back to Buddy's sound, and also a 22" Sabian Chester Thompson** ride which I like a lot (fantastic recording cymbal). It's an older one, not like the current model (**I sold it to Tom and used it on all our Miledge Muzic recordings, to date). I use crashes from everybody and tried to "pitch out" a sound spectrum in getting them over the years. My Paiste Signatures, Sound Formulas, and UFIP Class are my favorites. If you have never heard a UFIP Class series cymbal, you need to. Just a fantastic instrument. Their cymbal bells are incredible. UFIP spins their molds as they cast the disk. Whatever that does, it's a splendid sound.
I also have been pairing odd hi-hats for many years and just like the sound better - 13/12, 14/13, 15/14. Has a real 'zing' to it, especially with the 'rippled-type' bottom cymbals.
Pedal - The Drumnetics Nucleus 3, by Mike Van Dyk, in North Carolina. Magnet repulsion for action. Simple design, terrific pedal. I love them. Check out my review on the pedals page.
The OFF-SET double pedal, by Charles Fisher. The best double pedal I have ever owned, and I've played several of them out there, which are great pedals, but the OFF SET accomplishes, for me, what the others cannot, just by sheer design. Check it out. https://offsetpedal.com/ I use it on my edrum set up.
UPDATE: Got a double Drumnetics. UNREAL. Just fantastic, and easily the most flawless double pedal I have ever played (sorry to OFF SET, which still has a great design and I still own and use the pedal). I use this pedal on my edrum set up. I cannot speak highly enough of Mike Van Dyk and these devices.
UPDATE 2: Over time I just must go back to the bi-lateral set-up. It just feels better for my back, hips, knees, and even my ankles. I spent a whole winter fiddling with pedals, and right now am using Drumnetics' slaves with an OFFSET center section, and a couple modified driveshafts I got off ebay from a nice guy in China. I actually got a second pair and with the pandemic, he gave me a deal on them, too. Production was shut down and all he had was a pair with some scratches on them. Not a problem with me.
Hardware - Everybody, including Ludwig, Gibraltar, Pearl, Tama, Yamaha, you name it, and things I make myself. I'm a die-hard DIYer.
I often wonder why players endorse or use only one manufacturer's products. I haven't found that any one company has all the sounds or features that offer the widest possibilities. Of course, in my case, with the larger set up, it's more difficult to get a lot of really different sounding items from just one company but, I'm very thankful to have the array of sounds from the manufacturers I do. I also know it's a business-thing to endorse companies, as well.
Pancake/Tabletop Drums - You can see in the pics section what those are and I have made many tom configurations over the years. Recently I made something I have wanted to try for a long time - an entire set-up using the Pancake drum concept. You can see pics here on my site and hear the results on my youtube page [REFondrums]. 6,8,10,12,13,14" very shallow, single headed toms. 6x10 snare. I started with a 14" kick, then an 18." I ended up using a piece of shell cut off a 24" drum and now I use a 5x24." Lots of fun to play. I have more experimentation to do, as well. It is based on seeing Arbiter Flats years ago, and also Trilok Gurtu's set-up. UPDATE - I have really gotten into the whole tabletop drum set rig. Dble-headed toms and all. Check out the YT page.
I also tried something I've always wanted to try, since reading about it on a DIY forum back in the 90's: stacked plywood drums. You stack and glue plywood rings. You can see pics on the site, as well as how they sound, on YT. They sound fantastic. A great, successful experiment.
2-6", 2-8", 2-10", 1-12" concert toms on one stand
8x12, 9x13, 10x14, 11x15, 16x16, 16x18, 18x20 toms, 14x20, 24x26 bass drums (obviously a modification marking my first entry into DIY drum making) - Ludwig
3-6"x16,20,24" PVC tube drums, w/ 2-6" roto toms on a stand
2- 12" 45 degree PVC elbow 'North-type' drums on legs
6.5x14 Chrome Supraphonic snare.
All kinds of percussion sounds, plus Glockenspiel.
26" fiberglass tympani (or was it ... " ). Long time ago.
Mostly Zildjian cymbals. People ask why my cymbals sounded so different on the record and in concert. 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26" medium-heavy pings. Indeed. Save for one Camber silver/nickel 22" crash-ride, I used rides for everything. Mostly because I tended to crack cymbals too easily back then. The old Pings had a cool tone and held up well. I haven't cracked a cymbal in over 30 years now. Never understood why I did back then. And I use regular crashes now.
Also an 18" Pang, 18" swish, 20" Pang, 22" swish.
A bunch of splashes and accent cymbals, plus my cymbal tree, 16" - 8" cymbals set on a boom stand. You can see it in one of the Legend pics from the Oxford Ale House gig, in New Haven, CT. Look to the right side of the kit.
16", 18" (or was it 18 and 20"), 2-22", 40", 48" gongs. Six little Chinese theater gongs. (I wish I never sold the big gongs)
Current Set Up:
Back to my favorite configurations with some new things, as well. All "half toms," something I stumbled upon back in the mid 90's. The Legend lugs were a little too big to have a 3x6, so it's 2- 4x6, 2-4x8, 5x10, 6x12, 6.5x13, 7x14, 8x16, 9x18, 10x20, 11x22 and 12x24 bass drums. Just an experiment on the bass drums which came out audibly great, and the feel is great, too. Also segmented maple hoops are on the toms, made by Stellar. Jody Lutz was a true pleasure to work with on that project. I love the hoops. Since my first exposure to Ayotte drums many years ago, I always wanted maple hoops on my toms. Man, what a difference in sweet tones. The toms also tune up immaculately. That can present an impressive change to your ears when you think your toms are in pitch with steel hoops. The maple are unforgiving of any sour overtones, which really helps in tuning them up. A 7x13 JDW custom aluminum shell for my main snare. Plus others I've made (stave shells, ply, and steel), but I always go back to the aluminum. It has a 3/16" thick shell. Fantastic sound. Rings even with all the hardware on it. I also recently had Alan Jensen, of Addiction Drums, make me a 6.5x13 segmented Ipe (Ironwood) shell. Another favorite.
UPDATE: After several months of that Ipe shell being moved around from place to place, staring at me and complaining at me, I finally made the drum. My hunch of having 1/2" of one of the hardest woods in the world for a shell were realized. Once I got the pitch and tension where I wanted the drum, with maple hoops from Stellar, I just wailed. I mean, instantaneous success. Never had a drum I adopted too so easily. Drummers are always searching for "the one" snare that has it all - sound, playability, looks - this one has it, and I love it. I left it totally natural, too. Just sanded it smooth. Hard stuff.
I have come to realize the actual differences in snare drums, or any drums, is far more nuances and subtleties based on materials and shell wall densities and shell depth. After years of making drums from all kinds of materials, I know the sound of a drum is from the heads, probably 95%. I got so disgusted with manufacturer shell hype: super, ultra-hype, I began a series of videos on the subject at my YT channel. It's up to 24 videos now. Here's a link for the playlist - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRvd-mVMdjwLmAPgUesHnoSPlHvvXhalx
**Since I wrote this page and added to it, I've made a bunch of snare drums I really like, seen around the site, mostly the DIY page.
Cymbals? A useful selection from Paiste - Sigs, Sound Formulas, Alphas; Sabian, - AAs, HHs, B8 Pro and B8; Soultone; Stagg (various series); UFIP - Class, Bionic Series; Wuhan (various); and Zildjian - A's, A Customs, K's, S series. I also found an old Camber, silver-nickel 19.5" ride on ebay and snatched it up. A very glassy sounding ride. Probably a third to half the cymbals I own I purchased used. I have my own system for cleaning cymbals and I can bring just about anything back to new again. You can see my process on my YT channel.
I have various accent cymbals made from cut down cymbals, or cymbals popped inside out for an oriental/Asian-type sound. I've experimented some over the years. And these cymbals are generally from the less expensive lines, but really have unique sounds when modified. I've got a couple flat chinas (14" and 24") which Sabian made for me, as well as a 22" HH medium crash. Sabian is just a wonderful company. I love their flat chinas and use them often, and I have a full roster of them, 14 through 24" set up as a "tree." The same for the Wuhan chinas on the left side. My favorite ride is a Zildjian 21" ping which is a good 40-50 years old now. Got it used, cleaned it up. I also like my UFIP 19" Class medium ride, which hearkens me back to Buddy's sound, and also a 22" Sabian Chester Thompson** ride which I like a lot (fantastic recording cymbal). It's an older one, not like the current model (**I sold it to Tom and used it on all our Miledge Muzic recordings, to date). I use crashes from everybody and tried to "pitch out" a sound spectrum in getting them over the years. My Paiste Signatures, Sound Formulas, and UFIP Class are my favorites. If you have never heard a UFIP Class series cymbal, you need to. Just a fantastic instrument. Their cymbal bells are incredible. UFIP spins their molds as they cast the disk. Whatever that does, it's a splendid sound.
I also have been pairing odd hi-hats for many years and just like the sound better - 13/12, 14/13, 15/14. Has a real 'zing' to it, especially with the 'rippled-type' bottom cymbals.
Pedal - The Drumnetics Nucleus 3, by Mike Van Dyk, in North Carolina. Magnet repulsion for action. Simple design, terrific pedal. I love them. Check out my review on the pedals page.
The OFF-SET double pedal, by Charles Fisher. The best double pedal I have ever owned, and I've played several of them out there, which are great pedals, but the OFF SET accomplishes, for me, what the others cannot, just by sheer design. Check it out. https://offsetpedal.com/ I use it on my edrum set up.
UPDATE: Got a double Drumnetics. UNREAL. Just fantastic, and easily the most flawless double pedal I have ever played (sorry to OFF SET, which still has a great design and I still own and use the pedal). I use this pedal on my edrum set up. I cannot speak highly enough of Mike Van Dyk and these devices.
UPDATE 2: Over time I just must go back to the bi-lateral set-up. It just feels better for my back, hips, knees, and even my ankles. I spent a whole winter fiddling with pedals, and right now am using Drumnetics' slaves with an OFFSET center section, and a couple modified driveshafts I got off ebay from a nice guy in China. I actually got a second pair and with the pandemic, he gave me a deal on them, too. Production was shut down and all he had was a pair with some scratches on them. Not a problem with me.
Hardware - Everybody, including Ludwig, Gibraltar, Pearl, Tama, Yamaha, you name it, and things I make myself. I'm a die-hard DIYer.
I often wonder why players endorse or use only one manufacturer's products. I haven't found that any one company has all the sounds or features that offer the widest possibilities. Of course, in my case, with the larger set up, it's more difficult to get a lot of really different sounding items from just one company but, I'm very thankful to have the array of sounds from the manufacturers I do. I also know it's a business-thing to endorse companies, as well.
Pancake/Tabletop Drums - You can see in the pics section what those are and I have made many tom configurations over the years. Recently I made something I have wanted to try for a long time - an entire set-up using the Pancake drum concept. You can see pics here on my site and hear the results on my youtube page [REFondrums]. 6,8,10,12,13,14" very shallow, single headed toms. 6x10 snare. I started with a 14" kick, then an 18." I ended up using a piece of shell cut off a 24" drum and now I use a 5x24." Lots of fun to play. I have more experimentation to do, as well. It is based on seeing Arbiter Flats years ago, and also Trilok Gurtu's set-up. UPDATE - I have really gotten into the whole tabletop drum set rig. Dble-headed toms and all. Check out the YT page.
I also tried something I've always wanted to try, since reading about it on a DIY forum back in the 90's: stacked plywood drums. You stack and glue plywood rings. You can see pics on the site, as well as how they sound, on YT. They sound fantastic. A great, successful experiment.
Electronics
Edrums - TrapKat XL, DIY, w/Roland TDW20X, Alesis DM Pro, and Boss 330 modules.
MalletKat - w/Kurzweil PC2R, Korg X5DR, and Roland 1010 modules. [Trying to learn how to read music. TOUGH. So I came up with my own notation system made from numbers to get me started.]
MalletKat - w/Kurzweil PC2R, Korg X5DR, and Roland 1010 modules. [Trying to learn how to read music. TOUGH. So I came up with my own notation system made from numbers to get me started.]
My current recording set-up and some close ups.
Any time people see a picture of my big rig, I get asked, "What is that, and what is that, what are those," etc. I thought I'd take you on a little tour. Up first, the mic set-up.
With small exceptions I have been using this configuration of drums and cymbals for a long time, since the 90's. I vary component placement at times, especially on smaller setups but, for the most part, this has become my usual set-up and it was all in storage for years, too. I decided to pull it all out and squeeze it into this bedroom.
With small exceptions I have been using this configuration of drums and cymbals for a long time, since the 90's. I vary component placement at times, especially on smaller setups but, for the most part, this has become my usual set-up and it was all in storage for years, too. I decided to pull it all out and squeeze it into this bedroom.
We began using this set-up with Miledge Muzic. From the first session, Tom just used a kick mic, and two overheads and got absolutely sterling-quality sound. I was amazed. In decided to get my own mics and I chose (based on Tom's recommendation), a couple Earthworks, TC-30 reference mics. Omni mics, naturally, and in further research, I decided to make my own Jecklin disk (pronounced yek-lin). The disk is meant to mimic the way our ears hear sound. It creates a natural stereo phasing. The transient response and clarity are absolutely phenomenal with these mics. I was BLOWN AWAY when I heard the results from sessions we recorded with this set-up in my drum room, back in VA. Here, in TX, the drums are in a small bedroom, way too small to have such a large set in it, especially all the bronze. The ceiling throughout the house were 12x12 acoustic tiles. I covered over them with these very light, 24x24 molded styrofoam tiles. We love them. Because of what the ceiling is, I had to leave it alone but, the room has blankets, towels, pillows, and rugs all over the place, which toned down the room dramatically, and really helped tame the overwhelming volume and cacophony. Everything sounds far more individual and focused now.
The disk is 1 1/2" x 12" circle, with a pass-through for a threaded rod to hold it in place. Then a 1/2" layer on each side, of kitchen floor mat. Then a layer of a thick, soft material. I have recently seen examples of DIY disks on YT. Lots of nuanced variations and final tones, depending on materials used.
The mics are hitched to a 1/8" x 2" aluminum bar. Because I could not use the ceiling, I took two old Tama boom stands, totally stretched out straight up (which almost hits 8'), and placed a 2x4 on them, and hooked up the mic assembly to it. Works great.
The bass drum has a Sennheiser 902 outside a 6" speaker tube I affixed to the reso head (my own DIY version of a KickPort and works just as well). The 902 is a recent purchase after years of wanting to try one. I think I have seen every kick mic shootout on YT and the 902 just constantly impressed me. Has the necessary SPLs and frequency range for a tight, clean sounding kick, with great low end punch.
The disk is 1 1/2" x 12" circle, with a pass-through for a threaded rod to hold it in place. Then a 1/2" layer on each side, of kitchen floor mat. Then a layer of a thick, soft material. I have recently seen examples of DIY disks on YT. Lots of nuanced variations and final tones, depending on materials used.
The mics are hitched to a 1/8" x 2" aluminum bar. Because I could not use the ceiling, I took two old Tama boom stands, totally stretched out straight up (which almost hits 8'), and placed a 2x4 on them, and hooked up the mic assembly to it. Works great.
The bass drum has a Sennheiser 902 outside a 6" speaker tube I affixed to the reso head (my own DIY version of a KickPort and works just as well). The 902 is a recent purchase after years of wanting to try one. I think I have seen every kick mic shootout on YT and the 902 just constantly impressed me. Has the necessary SPLs and frequency range for a tight, clean sounding kick, with great low end punch.
So, as far as some cymbals on the "different" side, from left to right:
I've been using the much larger cymbal trees for many years now. You can see the basic stacking pattern of threaded rod and coupling nuts and various washers to keep things level. This tree is larger yet because I took down the 24" Wuhan off a stand (as well as the 24" Sabian on the other side) and put it on the tree, which is now 24 - 14." Actually, the 22" is not a Wuhan, it's a Stagg, which I re-lathed because the edge was too thick and the cymbal had a hard, clanky sort of tone. Great cymbal, otherwise, though the hole was not drilled in the center. How is it Chinese cymbal makers can't find the center of a disk? Matter of fact I put up some videos on my YT channel about re-lathing cymbals [REFondrums]. I don't re-hammer them, though. I brought my 22" Wuhan to Tom's house to record with and along with other cymbals I brought over, he bought them for his own set. The Stagg fits in fine.
I've been modifying cymbals as far back as I can remember. Crack a cymbal, now what? Ah ... that's cool. And so it goes.
Nothing special about the 6" splashes on LP splash mounts but, at the top is something different. That's a 6" cymbal bell and upper part of the cymbal bow, cut away from the rest of a cymbal: probably a cracked B8 I picked up somewhere along the line. On top of that is just a cymbal bell, which is separated by just enough space to cause it all to chime and sizzle when struck. A really cool sound.
Nothing special about the 6" splashes on LP splash mounts but, at the top is something different. That's a 6" cymbal bell and upper part of the cymbal bow, cut away from the rest of a cymbal: probably a cracked B8 I picked up somewhere along the line. On top of that is just a cymbal bell, which is separated by just enough space to cause it all to chime and sizzle when struck. A really cool sound.
Next are the bell chimes, or cup chimes. The top one is just a regular Paiste cup chime. The 3 descending ones are cut away from B8 or B8 Pro cymbals. The stress hammered into a cymbal bow are profound. When you cut it all away, especially on rides, the edge turns up to greater or lesser degree. That gives the cymbal a piercing, "oriental-type" sound, that can chime its way through anything.
As I mention above, I've been using odd hi-hat pairings since the 90's. 13 over 12; 14 over 13; 15 over 14. It produces an interesting pitch and has a nice zing to the foot work, as well as when closed tight, struck by sticks; and wide open, produces a great combination of tones. Loud, too. In most cases, I use rippled bottoms. Just a more prominent 'chick' sound. In this case, a 14" S over a 13" S. I don't know about other cymbals in the S line but, these hats are really nice. The 8" and 10" hats are just various combinations I put together from various lighter/thinner tops over heavier/thicker bottoms, from any cymbal line I have; looking for the best combination to my ears; in some cases the same formula with smaller bottoms. Could be just a 1/4" smaller but, it creates tone variations and more importantly :-) helps in keeping your sticks from getting chewed up when the bottom cymbal always seems to stick out more. I don't tighten the tops down. When struck, you get the obvious hat sound but, you also get the rasp of the top cymbal sliding across the bottom under stick pressure. It's a wild sound. It's like a shuffling, zipping or zapping sound. Hard to explain.
Since the 70's I have had something below the toms in that space. Until I went with dble bass, I used to have a small gong down there. Since the 90's: different ride cymbals. In this case, a 20" Pang I picked up inexpensively because there's a tiny crack (actually 2) in the bell. Two tiny holes drilled and that took care of that.
As you can see, I'm using a Drumnetics hi-hat stand, a Pearl remote/cable hat, and one half of the modified, Drumnetics bi-lateral pedal I put together. The h-h stand is hooked up to the cable hat, no h-h stand legs.
Since the 70's I have had something below the toms in that space. Until I went with dble bass, I used to have a small gong down there. Since the 90's: different ride cymbals. In this case, a 20" Pang I picked up inexpensively because there's a tiny crack (actually 2) in the bell. Two tiny holes drilled and that took care of that.
As you can see, I'm using a Drumnetics hi-hat stand, a Pearl remote/cable hat, and one half of the modified, Drumnetics bi-lateral pedal I put together. The h-h stand is hooked up to the cable hat, no h-h stand legs.
Moving to the right, the other main pr. of hats/cable set-up; 13 over 12 UFIPs. Another 8" splash-hat pair but, the thing I really love and have had for 25 years now is that 10" splash above the hats. I call it a 'shatter splash.' I had a 12" B8 Pro splash that sounded exactly like another cymbal so, I cut it down to a 10" and popped it inside out. You can see it just ripples but, it stings like a Giant Japanese Hornet. It is definitely a "What was that!?" cymbal.
Last, on the far right: the other tree, made up of 24 - 14" Sabian Flat Chinas. They were kind enough to make me a 24 and 14, back in the 90's. They weren't in the catalog but, their artisans made some great ones for me.
The bell tree is an older sound now. You don't hear it as much but, I like it, and if I find a suitable spot, in it goes. Same as my stroke chimes, or mark trees, or hand chimes, whatever they seem to be called. I don't have them set-up here, yet. Two different sets. They'll go behind me. The spaces you see in the bell tree are not missing cups. I separated the set in two places because they are just stacked on top of each other and that's a lot of weight on the smaller cups. It just choked them. Putting some nuts on the rod in those two places keeps the weight distributed more efficiently, and allows all the cups to sing better.
Below that, I call my "shatter crash." Five cymbals, mostly mongrels, a 12" china, then others, either standard sized or modified from cracked cymbals, spaced just far enough apart so they all sound like shattering glass or something, when struck. Another, "What was that?!" sound.
Then, the 3 - Paiste, Alpha splashes, popped inside out, for that Oriental/Asian sound. Very musical.
A 40" gong rounds out the pack. I will just record that separately when the time comes. Not enough room for my gong stand behind the set.
All in all, 50-60 cymbals, depending on how you count them up: from 6 or 7 manufacturers, and I don't know how many different lines and alloys. Cymbals from back in the 70's to today. An extremely interesting 55 year journey into bronze, since my first Zildjian A, 18" crash-ride I got when I was 12, when I got my first real set of drums.
I love cymbals. As I have stated elsewhere, when people ask me why I have so many cymbals, I answer, I like the pitch and tone variations. A piano has 88 keys. You cannot play them all at once, and many players might not even use them all on a gig but, they're nice to have there, if you want to use them.
I'm really looking forward to tracking this set-up for new recordings.
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I haven't been to this page in quite some time and the way things have gone, an experimental set I began 8 years ago (2014) is now set up as my main rig: stacked plywood ring drum shells, plywood hoops, both heads tension at the same time. Easy to make, easy to tune, and they sound great. I've been recording with them: heard on the Concepts for Solo Drum Sets albums. Just a couple times on album #1 and thoroughly on Concepts 2 and 3.
Same, basic half-tom idea. 6,8,9,10,11,12,13,15,17,20 and a 16x24 kick. Snare drums are changed out. Shown is a 7x13 aluminum I made from a shell made for me by a friend. It's 3/16" thick. I also have two plywood ring snare drums I've used and recorded with. Same idea: both heads tension at the same time. A 5.25x13 and an 8x13.
More on these drums found around the site, like the DIY page.
The bell tree is an older sound now. You don't hear it as much but, I like it, and if I find a suitable spot, in it goes. Same as my stroke chimes, or mark trees, or hand chimes, whatever they seem to be called. I don't have them set-up here, yet. Two different sets. They'll go behind me. The spaces you see in the bell tree are not missing cups. I separated the set in two places because they are just stacked on top of each other and that's a lot of weight on the smaller cups. It just choked them. Putting some nuts on the rod in those two places keeps the weight distributed more efficiently, and allows all the cups to sing better.
Below that, I call my "shatter crash." Five cymbals, mostly mongrels, a 12" china, then others, either standard sized or modified from cracked cymbals, spaced just far enough apart so they all sound like shattering glass or something, when struck. Another, "What was that?!" sound.
Then, the 3 - Paiste, Alpha splashes, popped inside out, for that Oriental/Asian sound. Very musical.
A 40" gong rounds out the pack. I will just record that separately when the time comes. Not enough room for my gong stand behind the set.
All in all, 50-60 cymbals, depending on how you count them up: from 6 or 7 manufacturers, and I don't know how many different lines and alloys. Cymbals from back in the 70's to today. An extremely interesting 55 year journey into bronze, since my first Zildjian A, 18" crash-ride I got when I was 12, when I got my first real set of drums.
I love cymbals. As I have stated elsewhere, when people ask me why I have so many cymbals, I answer, I like the pitch and tone variations. A piano has 88 keys. You cannot play them all at once, and many players might not even use them all on a gig but, they're nice to have there, if you want to use them.
I'm really looking forward to tracking this set-up for new recordings.
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I haven't been to this page in quite some time and the way things have gone, an experimental set I began 8 years ago (2014) is now set up as my main rig: stacked plywood ring drum shells, plywood hoops, both heads tension at the same time. Easy to make, easy to tune, and they sound great. I've been recording with them: heard on the Concepts for Solo Drum Sets albums. Just a couple times on album #1 and thoroughly on Concepts 2 and 3.
Same, basic half-tom idea. 6,8,9,10,11,12,13,15,17,20 and a 16x24 kick. Snare drums are changed out. Shown is a 7x13 aluminum I made from a shell made for me by a friend. It's 3/16" thick. I also have two plywood ring snare drums I've used and recorded with. Same idea: both heads tension at the same time. A 5.25x13 and an 8x13.
More on these drums found around the site, like the DIY page.