Free drums!!!

[juSe]

Ok, now that I have your attention, here's my question.

I'm looking for drums.  I'm in the process of defining my sound.  I'm looking for drums and cymbals.  I know what I have in my arsenal and what I like and don't like about it.  I'm wondering how many other drummers know and understand the textures that they here when they listen to their gear.  

Here is the assignment.  I'll do it as well.  Post a picture of your kit and give a detailed breakdown of the sound that your drums and cymbals make.  If the current gear you have doesn't fit your current sound needs, describe the sound or color that you would like to get.  Also, talk about the styles of music that you might play with this set up.

Have fun with this one, but stretch your mind.

*

[Hotsticks1]

Ok........I see a bunch of writing and something about an assignment...But what's good with those free skins?!?!?!?!

[MODERN_DRUMMER]

Ok........I see a bunch of writing and something about an assignment...But what's good with those free skins?!?!?!?!

Ummmmmmmmmmmm i think that was to get our attention! lol good topic, i'll be back with my info and pixx!

[mingusfingus]

Nice topic JuSe. I`m trying to keep my set as small as possible concerning the number of drums and cymbals because of the miking on gigs and time to set it all up. But I have different cymbals for different venues and music. I`ll try to post pics later. There`s no need to have your own kit because 99% of venues provide their own kit and all the sound equipment. So you just need to have a snare, cymbals and sticks

So concerning my kit and cymbals I have sonor 3007 10 12(I dont use 12" much) 16 22 since I need it to practice and rehearsals but honestly I was surprised by the quality of the kit for it`s money.

Snares:
I had a lot of snares but since I left my daily job for practicing more I`m sometimes pressed for money so I had to sell a lot of my snares like pork pie acrylic 13x7 that was nice sounding and loud but kinda flat and dull concerning the tone. I had yamaha brass 14x5.5 and I loved this snare, it was loud and barky and I liked to put clear batter heads cuz it makes less attack more sustain and you get no that `platic` attack but pure tone I had a lot of steel and wooden snares but I`m planning to get some 13x7 or 14x6.5 maple (I personally like tama starclassic maple with reinforcement rings) and some brass or bronze 14x6.

Now I have just 1 snare. It`s cheap and versatile. It`s Lurdwig Acrolite 14x5 Aluminium snare. It can be screechy playing with rimshots in high tuning but it`s really nice snare.

Cymbals:
Hats:
13" Sabian AA Fusion - I like the hat, it lacks of wash and doesn`t suit for jazz but in other respects it`s a nice tight hat. Very distinct and clean.
14" Masterwork Legend - it`s some Turkish brand AFAIK it`s selling in US under a different brand name. The hat is kinda thin and it`s kinda `turkish Z-custom`. It`s very good in louder musical stuations and I like to record it very much. It has that angry `Szzzzzz` sound when open.

Rides:
22` Sabian Paragon ride - the best rock ride i`ve ever heard. Really nice bell, and the cymbals is not that thick. I`d say it`s like upgraded old Avedis. But really good one.
21` Sabian Vault Crossover - it`s a nice mellow versatile ride. Not that loud but suits most of the music styles in not a larg clubs pretty good.
20` bosphorus turk - It`s quiet trashy jazzy ride with lack of sustain but it`s great for small clubs. And I also like such cymbals with lack of sustain because an small clubs it makes the overall band sound somewhat cleaner

Crashes:
19` Sabian AAX Dark Crash Brilliant
20` Sabian AAx Studio Crash Brilliant - I`d like to have them in traditional surface but anyway those are good loud `rock` cymbals. since they thin - they musiacal enough, but large to produce lower tone and more volume. I personally don`t like high pitched crashes to cut through the music, i`d like them to blend. And also thin larger crashes have more tonal potential like if you hit them softly they produces like low frequencies, but the harder you hit them the more hi frequencies you get. I like thi having just 1 crash and 1 crashable ride in the set.

18` Bosphorus New Orleans Crash - It`s sweet and dark low volume pair to the Bosphorus or crossover ride.
18` Sabian HHX Evo O-zone - I like it to use as a main crash (actually only 1 crash ) and I like its trashiness and type of sound. Every time I hit it i think about C.Dave


some splashes and fx cymbals.

I`m happy with my cymbals but I need to get some thin jazzy 14` hat with flat profile and deep hammering. It`ll be probably a legacy one.

And concerning the pedals and beaters since they important too I had ICs, 5000, 9000, Elims, yamaha 9310 and 8110 (the one with the strap and without the board). I was in love with 9000 except the heel plate which is too high, but I changed the bearings in my Eliminator and now I`m selling the 9000. Now my pearl is waaaaaay better and smoother than 9000. Just the best skate bearings you can buy and put it into your IC or eliminator or yamaha whatever. So I`ve sold every pedal except the Eliminator, yamaha 8110 cuz you can put it into your cymbal bag and it weight 1 Kg less than Eliminator and 1.5 than 9000.
Concerning beaters I like the plastic side of DW beaters for the power, but yamaha beaters for the feel.

That`s it. Did I get you right JuSe?

[BEATBOXERZ]

OK... I got you! I will post later...


 I'm at home for the week, hit up lil bro. I missed your calls because I was out of town...

[j_kay]

Some excerpts were taken from the following thread: http://www.learngospelmusic.com/forums/index.php/topic,46384.0.html.

Here is a complete listing of my gear:

Pearl Masters MMX (#151 - Platinum Mist) - 10"x8", 12"x9" and 14"x11" with an 18"x22" bass drum.

Cymbal listing:
Sabian 7" Mike Portnoy Max Splash
Sabian 10" Hand Hammered Splash
Sabian 10" HHX Evolution Splash
Sabian 13" HHX Groove Hats
Meinl  13" Byzance Fast Hats
Sabian 14" HHX Evolution Mini China
Sabian 16" Hand Hammered Dark Crash
Sabian 17" AAXPlosion Crash
Sabian 18" Hand Hammered Dark Crash
Sabian 18" HHX Ozone Crash
Sabian 18" Vault Crash
Sabian 21" Hand Hammered Raw Bell Dry Ride


Snare drum listing:
Pearl Virgil Donati 5"x14" Signature Snare drum (8 plies in total; 4 plies of Birch for the inner section and 4 plies of Maple for the outer section)
Tama Starclassic G Maple 6"x14" Snare Drum (13 plies of Canadian Maple - whatever that means, eh)
Yamaha Akira Jimbo Signature Snare Drum 7"x13" (8 plies of Beech)


Cymbals
I have the 18" Hand Hammered Dark Crash as my main power crash, followed with the 16" Hand Hammered Dark Crash as  the  quicker, punchier accent.  In between the hi-hats is the 7" Mike Portnoy Max Splash, which provides a really glassy splash in the right sections of the music.  This is placed here for really easy access. 

I chose the 13" HHX Groove Hats to be really versatile, with a really 'mature' tone.  If I want an equalized sound from my hats, I?ll pull the Meinl 13? Byzance Fast Hats out of the cymbal vault case.  The stick sound is nicely defined, as well as the foot chick and splashes ? essentially, this hi-hat has the sound that you make if you?re doing a beat with your mouth (no lie, lol!). 

Towards the mid section of the set-up, I have the 10" HHX Evolution as a trashy china accent.  Sometimes, I strike the 7" and 10" to get a really unique tone - it's kinda weird, but it's cool at the same time.  On my right, I have the 21" Hand Hammered Raw Bell Dry Ride, which holds it's own.  The bell is penetrating, but not piercing, which is good for having a musical ride. 

Going further to the right is the 14" HHX Evolution Mini China - that cymbal's looks are really deceiving!  This is a really quick, smooth and slightly trash china.  This is a great cymbal for me when I want to have a staccato accent (the splashes are for my extreme staccato accents).  It can be ridden to some degree (like Bernard Purdie), but the tone is not what my ears would like to hear for that type of effect.  Maybe a larger one would do it.  Last is the 18" HHX Evolution O Zone.  This can easily take the place of the china, because it's not brash as a china cymbal.  This is what I use to set up various phrases - basically a really breathy crash/trash sound.  It's really cool, as I'm sure that you all know.

Ahh, the 17? AAXPlosion Crash and the 18? Vault Crash?  If I?m looking for a more volume from my crashes, I?ll pull these out.  Everyone doesn?t like the AAXPlosion or the Vault series, but they haven?t played my crashes (lol).  I can get a nice bell sound from the AAXPlosion and it?s thin enough that I don?t have to lay into the cymbal to get great response.  As for the Vault Crash, the bell sound is a little thin, but it?s still a good sound, it I want a smaller bell-like accent from it.  This cymbal is also a sensitive one, in which I also do not have to lay into to get great response.

Toms/bass drum
Regarding the toms on the my kit, I chose a thinner shelled kit because I like the more subtle nuances from the kit as well as great sensitivity, once paired with the ?right? heads.  Currently, I am using Evans? G Plus clears on the batter, and Evans? G1 on the resonant side.  As for the bass drum, I would like to have a slightly thicker sound, but it?s nothing that I cannot live with, or that a good sound engineer cannot handle with the appropriate microphone. 

Snare drums
As for the Virgil Donati, I use this snare if I want more articulation.  This is not only due to the size of the snare ? it?s also attributed to the shell construction, the distinctively different top and bottom bearing edges, and most importantly, the deep snare bed.  I don?t have it cranked, but I do have it tuned to where you get excellent response all the way to the edge of the snare.  In my opinion, that is the barometer for a well tuned snare drum.  I haven?t used brushes on this snare, sorry. 

On to the Starclassic G Maple?  This snare is something that you?d use if you want more volume.  This volume is attributed to the number of plies.  The brush sound is pretty meaty, but nothing that would be overbearing.  The snare sound is thick, and it?s not ringy ? actually it?s quite focused.  The edge sound is slightly ringy, but you can still get snare response. 

Lastly, the Akira Jimbo?  When we see 7?x13?, a lot of us hear really cranked drums.  With this drum, you don?t need to crank it to get a great sound.  Presently, I have it tuned medium tight with the snare side at a tight tension.  The snares themselves are medium tensioned, and they are *just* touching the snare side.  My go-to head is Evans Power Center (reverse or regular, I don?t discriminate), but I have an Aquarian Jack DeJohnette batter head installed.  Talk about night and day sound textures!  With the Power Center, it?s a more ?modern? sound, with the edge sound being slightly bright.  As for the Jack DeJohnette, I find that it brings out a darker tone from the drum, with the edge sound being darker and it blends with the overtones from the initial and subsequent strokes.  The brush sound is more robust with the Jack DeJohnette, than the Power Center ? again, this is a ?darker/vintage? sound versus a more ?modern? sound.

[j_kay]

I'm not sure as to why there are question marks within my reply, but you'll get what I'm saying, albeit it doesn't have the original flavor of what the writer (that's me) intended.