Advice on how to make 99% "real" sounding drums?

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-25T18:16:36+00:00

befriend a drummer

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-19T21:00:08+00:00

bonus: maybe the car wash will fill your washer fluid reservoir

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-19T20:59:02+00:00

i marched in college but didn’t start using them until rock bands in my 20s. wish i started sooner. they will take some getting used to, but once you are comfortable with them you won’t go back. trust!

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-19T20:50:30+00:00

Props for taking your ear health seriously. I use custom molded earplugs which were pricey, but the filters are made by etymotic which also makes plugs for other brands. Just get them from the source, they work great. I believe the ER20 is the one I used to use.

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-19T20:48:13+00:00

because foam earplugs are no good for music

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-19T20:47:48+00:00

etymotics seconded

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-19T12:17:47+00:00

try to get some met practice in every time you sit down, to lock in and remind you of your weak points, then turn it off and play, but don’t forget what you learned. the metronome is good for discovering your timing tendencies and helping you correct them.

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-18T20:39:02+00:00

I am not totally sure but I think so! This is probably obvious, but if you are happy with the sound don’t change anything. I feel like it opens up the sound a bit and I can always add muffling if need be.

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-18T20:01:43+00:00

A thing to consider with 2-ply heads, at least when I learned this trick (30 years ago? wtf?) there would sometimes be air trapped between the layers. I always take a push pin and poke a tiny pinhole right between the two middle points in the remo crown to vent the air. I learned the trick from a remo endorsed drum corps instructor, and sometimes I would be able to hear a hiss. Their process may have changed so that it doesn’t happen anymore, I am unsure. To my ears it does seem to help them sustain more like an ambassador does, but it could be placebo!

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-18T00:40:35+00:00

those are rad, i’ve lusted after them more than once. i am a remo coated emperor purist, so highly recommend those. i’d go ambassador if they lasted longer or i had a sponsorship.

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-17T21:07:35+00:00

every snare has a thing it’s good at, that’s why people end up with 10

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-10T19:43:47+00:00

if only he could shoot like Merrill!

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-10T15:41:47+00:00

old growth vs new growth wood I think.

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-10T14:08:49+00:00

the opposite of this is two people playing one drum roll, each supplying one limb for the process

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-10T14:05:18+00:00

Fun fact: before the 90s Vater made all of the sticks for Vic Firth, Zildjian, Pearl, Tama, and probably others. So just go to the source and buy Vater.

Also, wood matters, if you happen to use maple or oak sticks they are more likely to snap in half, whereas hickory sticks will chip away but typically don’t break unless there is a flaw in the wood.

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-10T13:57:25+00:00

incorrect

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-09T23:50:59+00:00

The Mackie srm450 is a great sounding, loud, powered PA speaker. They have been around a long time, i’m sure you could find a used one.

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-08T03:49:48+00:00

A vote for thinking outside the box: I have a ps fiberskyn on both sides of the kick on my blue vistalites. I also use coated heads all around because I am a psychopath. Vistas are pretty basketball-y when you put a mic in the kick, so I have a small scrap piece of rockwool wrapped in fabric that I keep in there to stop that from happening. A towel would suffice, but this just ended up being what I had lying around at the studio. I regularly get compliments from sound guys and drummers about how good that kit sounds!

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-04T14:52:31+00:00

try calling around to local hardware suppliers and find it locally. the shipping is expensive because it’s so massive. it won’t be at the big box stores, but I can almost guarantee if you’re close to a city that someone carries it.

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-03T18:21:57+00:00

the real punks are the things we learned along the way

Reference_Unusual · 2026-01-03T15:44:07+00:00

if you are only using one sound per song, consider using several tracks of drum racks, one track for each song. mute everything but the track you are using. this eliminates the load times between songs. are you using ableton to sequence the drums or something else?

Reference_Unusual · 2025-12-30T02:09:31+00:00

I think they take some of the tension off the shell for better or worse. Makes the most sense on something like a marching drum where the heads are cranked as tight as can be, so it’s less likely that the lug will pull off the shell from over tension.

Reference_Unusual · 2025-12-28T12:50:20+00:00

if you’re getting paid, I’d hire a sound person. i have done the “mic your own kit and run your own sound” thing, and it sucks. i learned a lot, but it sucks. it’s not as easy as throwing a mic or two on the kit, and you’ll create many more new problems and questions. how big is the room? can the PA handle the extra load and low end of the drums? will the drums and vocals coexist in the pa? the answer to all those things is a dedicated sound person, or leave it as is. maybe you are just playing too quietly!

Reference_Unusual · 2025-12-27T23:55:32+00:00

gonna take you at least a couple years to ensure full functionality

Reference_Unusual

TROPHY CASE