changing setups constantly

[GoatOfSatan]

I usually change my setup every few week or month, is this bad for trying to learn and get better? should I try and stick to 1 configuration?

[Cephalic]

I see it as good since you get to experiment with many different set ups, which should be helpful for when you can't play your kit and ideal set up.

Also, it's a good way to find what set up is perfect for you.

I too change set ups usually every other week. Partially just because I don't have enough hardware right now, so sometimes I'm in the mood for more toms and have to get rid of some cymbals, or vice versa. But once I get my rack and all needed hardware, I'll probably try even more set ups because of all the new options and placements.

[drummer625]

It's not bad at all. I used to change my set up about every month too. After a while you'll find the setup that you like.

[NUTHA JASON]

i think adjustments are good particularly in the earliy stages of you career...this is when you will be discovering the ergonomics of your body and finding what angles work for you. also it is a good idea for a drummer to be versatile in their ability to play anything...a drummer should be able to sit behind any drumset, no matter how odd, and do the job (battle of the bands people here will know all about this).

HOWEVER changing too drastically or too often will also bring about some problems. muscle memory and fitness are our friends. changing angles will require different sets of muscles to work and so relearning an aquired skill may have to take place. cahnging configurations drastically will mean that a tom pattern that used to make musical sense now sounds weird. new configurations can open new avenues but a lot of the time they are a crutch to creativity a good drummer can play any pattern regardless of which way the toms are arranged. a lot of you play open handed...you remember how you had to relearn some of the even most basic beats when you started riding you hihat with your left hand for the first time....remember how after a fill you had to concentrate on realigning your arms so that your right was on the snare. this is a drastic rearrangement which requires relearning already aquired skills..but at least here there are many benefits from open hand playing that makes the relearning worthwhile.

the central message here is moderation. a tweak here, a swap there ...and all done fairly irreguarly will be better than constant huge changes.

j

[joeysnare]

even though all drummers should learn how to do this, as an open handed, right handed set player, ive had to learn how to play the snare and ride with both hands, also learn how to start your rolls with either hands.

[Paradiddle my snizzle]

I like to play a lot of samba and then i sometimes move my hihat way out because i only need to use my left foot (heel down) on it, and it can get really tiring to only play the hihat with your heel up. When i play rock etc i have it close to me so i can hit it properly with my right hand.

[pimp_my_RIDE]

This was never a problem for me because i have never played on my own drumset, so I was stuck on the schools kit so I had to adapt to how everyone else screwed around with and then when I finaly started playing gigs I was fine because I could adapt to it, so yes, changeing setups is a good idea from that standpoint.

[Auger]

Lerning to play on varying setups can be really helpful.

I used to mess with my setup a lot just for fun/experimentation's sake when I was learning. It paid off later on: I ended up playing in a band that gigged in New York City a lot and I often ended up on a 'house drumset' with only a short time to adjust it before we started to play since multiple bands would be booked for an evening. It was really easy for me to just sit down and feel comfortable at a strange drumset and I got a lot of complements from drummers in other bands on how I could play well on an unfamiliar setup that was giving them all sorts of problems.

[neilpscuz]

It is a good idea to move things around every so often.I've read of many well known drummers who do just that.Besides,how will you ever find out where the best place for that extra cym,tom,cowbell,etc,really is?

[Anduin]

I wish I had a picture of every time I've set up my kit. 'Cause I'd have about a million pictures, all different. That said, over the past few years I've settled much more into a regular setup. These days I move cymbals here and there every so often, but the general config is much more stable than it used to be.

But to address the question, I think it's good to keep changing, for reasons mentioned in this thread. On the other hand, if you're preparing for a big gig and you rehearse on one setup, I'd keep it pretty much the same when you set up on stage.

[Anduin]

On the other hand, if you're preparing for a big gig and you rehearse on one setup, I'd keep it pretty much the same when you set up on stage.

But now that I think of it, I don't follow my own advice. Last couple of gigs I've used radically different configurations from what I generally practise on.

[jkesler99]

Absolutely! Change it up, bro! Do some CRAZY crap! You'll never know what you really love until you try some out-there stuff. I never intended to keep my rack in it's current configuration when I first changed it, but as it turns out I love it this way!

[beatsMcGee]

ha! that is some crazy looking kit you got there...

[Guillermo]

Yes.. I completely agree with NUTHA JASON's response...

I, myself do constant changes... sometimes I go for something a little wild... but ANGLES of BASS DRUM PEDAL... and THRONE HEIGHT... I pretty much have a zone in wich I work now... also Hi-hats, wich I may vary depending on what I'm doing... but NOT DRASTICALLY.

I think it is important to be comfortable WITH MORE THAN ONE setting... since drum and cymbal positioning DO HAVE AN EFFECT in the sonority and overall approach to your playing.

[mikei]

Since I have only been playing for such a short amount of time, I constantly find myself moving things to more ergonomical places.

Last night I was up till 1AM moving my ride closer to my 2nd hihat I use quite frequently. I also moved my china near the ride.

I now take into consideration my natural movement to make sure I have the proper room to flail my arms around without hitting what I do not mean to.

I even on occasion still adjust the tension in my double bass pedal and the hieght of my throne. However, I love my tom and snare placement, so I do not mess with those now.

[Cephalic]

I, myself do constant changes... sometimes I go for something a little wild... but ANGLES of BASS DRUM PEDAL... and THRONE HEIGHT... I pretty much have a zone in wich I work now... also Hi-hats, wich I may vary depending on what I'm doing... but NOT DRASTICALLY.

Yea, that's what I meant when i said I change set ups a lot. Everything is still in that ideal space for me, just in different places around the kit, so I never have any sort of "muscle memory" problems.

If anything, it just keeps me interested by having something new to jam on.

[photon]

I've been switching back and forth between a 4 piece and 5 piece set up. I love the ride positioning with the 4 piece but I miss my 10" inch tom when I do that. Apart from that I seem to constantly be adjusting my high hat position since I switched to traditional grip. I just never seem to have enough space to strike my first rack tom without the butt end of my left stick catching the top hi hat cymbal. Problem is that I like my hats to be fairly close. I hate the fact that I always seem to have to compromise one thing to gain another.

[fijjibo]

I've been switching back and forth between a 4 piece and 5 piece set up. I love the ride positioning with the 4 piece but I miss my 10" inch tom when I do that. Apart from that I seem to constantly be adjusting my high hat position since I switched to traditional grip. I just never seem to have enough space to strike my first rack tom without the butt end of my left stick catching the top hi hat cymbal. Problem is that I like my hats to be fairly close. I hate the fact that I always seem to have to compromise one thing to gain another.

Im having that problem with my four piece at the moment.

My hihat doesnt go low enough......

[brittc89]

Itll boost your creativity and resourcefulness behind a drum kit, so I would say it is a good thing but I dont know if doing it so often is neccessary. I think youll find a set-up that you really dig pretty soon and end up staying with that for a while but you may just end up adjusting constantly, and thats cool too. Good luck man.