pedal spring tension

[ticktock65]

So i just want to know what tension you guys have on your bass drum pedals, trying to see what works the best, like i my DW 7000's i have the tension as tight as it can go, i heard that the beater shouldn't touch the head when u rest ur foot on the pedal, so just trying to find out.

[PinkZepplin]

It's different for everybody. Mine are set up pretty tight with left one having just a teeny bit less tension to help comensate for it being my weaker foot.

[trysthedrummer]

I have my springs medium/loose, + red or blue cams on the eliminators.

[PQleyR]

I have mine loose enough that they don't offer much resistance when I press down on the pedal. Just enough to bring the beater back.

[sssssssss]

I've always played my pedals loose (Weckl kinda fashion) and that indeed makes them incredibly "groovy" and controllable. However, I always feel, when playing the pedals rather loose, that they seem to respond back a tad too slow when I push myself to the speed limit. A loose pedal would work great for anything but Pete Sandoval stuff :)). So, for those playing occasions (which to me only happened in practice so far:)), I recently got them significantly tighter than where they were and found this quite useful. I'm trying to get used to playing the grooves with the same amount of control and touch, but it isn't as hard as I expected. Mainly, it depends on the thing you're playing if you want it loose or tight - and, for me, it especially depends on my mood :D
Getting used to playing both on a loose double pedal and a tight double pedal might bring a whole lot of technical advantage. However, playing the pedals totally tightened up never made any sense to me, up until today, maybe except for building some good-looking muscles for your legs :P Personally, I never over-tighten them, the way Derek Roddy said he does, because a medium-tight adjustment will bring faster and more powerful reaction than you'll ever need. And of course with super-tight springs you get into the struggle of pushing them down in time, which again won't make your feet very fast.

[Royal]

Playing speed is limited by the tension (looseness) of the spring.
Try doing fast doubles with a loose/easy to push pedal.
I have springs as tight as I can work them.

[aydee]

I tried to figure this one out to no avail. Weckl and Blackwell are 2 guys with awesome pedal skills ( non metal ),. Weckl plays very loose spings and Blackwell plays them super-tight... so what does that tell us....


I have no idea.

[aydee]

Playing speed is limited by the tension (looseness) of the spring.
Try doing fast doubles with a loose/easy to push pedal.
I have springs as tight as I can work them.

check out Weckls triples and quads.....his spring is looser than a party girl on a saturday night.

[2bsticks]

Hi,

Recently attended a Weckl clinic and he was going over his tuning and gear etc. As far as the pedal, he uses a Yamaha Flying Dragon with the strap (no chain) If I remember correctly (old age setting in again) he will adjust the tension so he can comfortably play 16th notes (right foot only) not too tight, yet not too floppy either.

[Royal]

check out Weckls triples and quads.....his spring is looser than a party girl on a saturday night.

LOL
Well,I didn't know that, or how he does it.
I've tried looser tensions but it does restrict my pedal speed.
Maybe Mr. Weckl could play faster if he read this thread....:-))

[aydee]

LOL
Well,I didn't know that, or how he does it.
I've tried looser tensions but it does restrict my pedal speed.
Maybe Mr. Weckl could play faster if he read this thread....:-))

It might have something to do with the foot technique you are using. which I imagine changes depending onhow you attack the foot-board. I find heel toe easier with a with loose springs, heel up with tighter springs..

You are right, tight springs naturally rebound faster, but to nail the BD hit you might stiffen your foot in the process which might restrict you speed, anyway.

......Like I said on my first comment...' tis a puzzlement...

[azula]

It is all a viscious circle guys. I too have a flying dragon that i purchased yesterday. The strap is definitely better than the chain (to me). It gives the pedal a lighter feel which I love. However, there are almost an infinite amount of tweeks that can change the feel of the pedal that I am currently playing with such as beater height, pedal height, spring tension, and the tension of the bass drum head. So currently, I have the light feel that I was looking for, however, I'm not getting enough rebound from the pedal when I start to play quickly and the tension is a couple turns away from being the tightest. I'll keep playing with it, hopefully I can achieve the results I'm looking for.

[schist]

i heard that the beater shouldn't touch the head when u rest ur foot on the pedal, so just trying to find out..

If you've ever seen KC Howard (drummer for Decrepit Birth/Element/Odious Mortem) play, you'll see that his beaters almost do touch the head when he rests his foot on the pedal, but he can still shred like a muthaf*kka, and with power too.

In the end, its all dependent on the personal touch/feeling of the player. I haven't changed the settings on my Axis X 'Shortboard' double pedal since the day I got it, but I'm thinking of loosening the spring tension - not too much though, enough to get a light responsive feel from the pedal itself and still have the necessary rebound (basically, what 'PQleyR' said).

[princejay]

Buddy Rich did a solo with nothing but the bass drum that sounded like he was using a double-bass pedal when in actuality he was using one foot...and without a spring!

Honestly, pedal spring tension is something that's almost nothing but personal preference. I have a medium tension on my spring and it serves me fine. I can do thing quickly with lots of power with that setting.

[GRUNTERSDAD]

check out Weckls triples and quads.....his spring is looser than a party girl on a saturday night.

Do you have her number?

[norgo]

I was going to make a new thread on a topic like this until I found this one and also noticed you use the same pedals as me [I use 7002 DWs]. Sorry for hijacking ;)

I'm on my third week of drumming and I've been practicing my rudiments using thicker Vic Firth sticks. I recently switched to using thinner Regal Tip sticks and found myself to be able to play at faster speeds, more comfort and more stamina compared to when I was using large sticks which very often caused my hands to cramp up after a 30 minute session. I'd like to know if the same could be applied to spring tension on double bass.

I've been neglecting my practice of bass drumming, only using it as a guide to playing quarter notes when playing hand rudiments. Last night, I noticed that I had immense difficulty just playing 8ths on a 60bpm with double pedals.

With my current tight setup, I can easily play 8ths using a single pedal, however with limited power. I can only do this heel up. With heel down, I'm limited to quarter notes but my kicks have more emphasis.

Compared to the pedals I have tried in stores and at other drummer's kits, my tension is fairly high. Would it be recommended to start off with tighter tensions? Does it help offer more control if I was to loosen in the future?

[Matt-a-tat-tat]

it's all personal. what feels right for you. that's it.

[PQleyR]

I'm on my own little voyage of spring tension discovery at the moment, and I reckon loose is the way forward. It makes sense...as little resistance as possible, just like with the hands.

[rockinrider]

I find that I use different spring tension depending on the type of pedal I'm using.

I prefer a direct drive pedal such as a Speed King or strap drive. I keep these pedals pretty loose. (The Speed King feels loose even at its tightest.) I have to tighten the tension on the Turbo models (Round sprocket as opposed to the Offset sprocket) to get the feel I prefer. (Actually, I never get the feel I prefer with the Turbo models...)

[joshuacreamer97]

I feel that my foot adjusts to any setting over time. I used to hate my Iron Cobras, now I love them!

[Guillermo]

usually VERY tight... my legs are like tree trunks... ha, ha, ha...

But if I'm playing HARD and mostly heel up, I do loosen it a bit.

[kjsm]

doesnt having it looser to super loose just mean it isnt like the hands though? especailly if the batter head is not super tight, then how do you get the pedal to come back?
you have to have tension surely to get it to respond...too much tension and then ytou're having to work alot at it but ... well i'd like to know is there a way to play a loose ish head with loose ish tension, to even very loose head and very loose spring and still get any finesse and speed combined with power? how?

[beatsMcGee]

doesnt having it looser to super loose just mean it isnt like the hands though? especailly if the batter head is not super tight, then how do you get the pedal to come back?
you have to have tension surely to get it to respond...too much tension and then ytou're having to work alot at it but ... well i'd like to know is there a way to play a loose ish head with loose ish tension, to even very loose head and very loose spring and still get any finesse and speed combined with power? how?

i think that you have to have "some" tension. down below on this page some one mentioned a bass drum solo from buddy rich where he played blinding speeds and with no spring? im not sure if that is even possible, and id like to see proof. ive taken the spring of my pedal and you get zero rebound when it hits the head. only way he could get rebound is if buddy had his kick head super tight like you would tune a snare, but even then that would be dumb and sound bad. any way back to your point, to much tension can hinder but no tension is just as bad. adjusting your tension will feel odd until you get used to it, especially if your jumping from a tight setting to a loose one and vise versa. there is a you tube video where dave weckl talks about his tension and kick technique.. i found it interesting what he says. i included a link. i think overall once you develop the right technique on the kick you have start to loosen the spring to create less tension, but there are plenty of people that are amazing and stick with tight tension.. its all really how you learn, and what feels best to the individual.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Rf-w4i1iy58

[SEVNT7]

i think that you have to have "some" tension. down below on this page some one mentioned a bass drum solo from buddy rich where he played blinding speeds and with no spring? im not sure if that is even possible, and id like to see proof. ive taken the spring of my pedal and you get zero rebound when it hits the head. only way he could get rebound is if buddy had his kick head super tight like you would tune a snare, but even then that would be dumb and sound bad. any way back to your point, to much tension can hinder but no tension is just as bad. adjusting your tension will feel odd until you get used to it, especially if your jumping from a tight setting to a loose one and vise versa. there is a you tube video where dave weckl talks about his tension and kick technique.. i found it interesting what he says. i included a link. i think overall once you develop the right technique on the kick you have start to loosen the spring to create less tension, but there are plenty of people that are amazing and stick with tight tension.. its all really how you learn, and what feels best to the individual.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Rf-w4i1iy58
I sometimes practice playing exercises without the spring on my B.D. pedals. It will bounce off the head just like a stick hitting a drum and rebounding. Although it's not as bouncey as a tight snare, it bounces back none the less. More like a floor tom. The exercise I do most with no spring is "Constant release" (or Constant rebound). It's not easy but it works. I do it so my B.D. technique does not depend on the sping alone to get the beater off the head, or return it to the back or starting position (Top off the stroke for sticks ). If you cannot bounce one B.D. stroke off the drumhead, than you are burying the beater. It may not feel like your burying the beater, but your not getting your foot out of the way of the pedal soon enough. To get a good bounce on the "Freestroke" your hand must start and stop at the top and not restrict the bounce.You flick your wrist and let it recoil to the top, not pull it back. If you have a sense of pulling up to get the stick back to the top you're already to late. Use the same idea for your feet and it will work. If you still don't believe it's possible I wiil have a video of it soon. By the way my spring tension is as loose as possible. It's only job is to not let the beater fall to, and stay on the drumhead If I set it any looser it becomes slack and falls off the spring cam. (Yamaha Flying Dragons).............T (http://www.myspace.com/tmorandrums)

[beatsMcGee]

when i take my spring of my dw5000 pedal the beater just falls to the head... i mean i never practice without a spring on so im not going to act like i do this all the time lol... i guess i can see how it would/could work but like i said when i try it the beater just falls and i can get it to bounce back.

[SEVNT7]

As promised from previous post. 18276 It's a little sloppy, but I didn't warm-up first..... (http://www.myspace.com/tmorandrums). Youtube- (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=qCLVHgmFXRg).

By the way. The clicking you here from the pedal, is the stroke going past the top (back-90 degrees just like a full freestroke), causing the strap cam bolt to hit the cam bar (horizontal). The B.D. pad is a Girbralter B.D. practice pad, mounted on a snare stand. Not alot of bounce. It feels alot like a real B.D...........T

[beatsMcGee]

good stuff. thanks man

[Wavelength]

when i take my spring of my dw5000 pedal the beater just falls to the head... i mean i never practice without a spring on so im not going to act like i do this all the time lol... i guess i can see how it would/could work but like i said when i try it the beater just falls and i can get it to bounce back.

The problem is that you aren't used to moving your foot with a sharp enough twitching motion. The key is to get the foot out of the pedal's way right after the impact. It's kind of like practicing the free stroke with your foot, so like with the free stroke, use a full 90 degree stroke angle, throwing the beater from a horizontal position. It takes a while to get it right, but it's not that difficult. Just this morning I popped out the springs off my double pedal, and after an hour I'm already getting them bounce off the head all the time -- at a very slow rate, of course.

[SEVNT7]

Thanks Beats, Thanks for the backup Wave........T

[alexnyc]

I emailed JoJo Mayer about his pedal set-up: He said not only does he use a loose spring tension but also a nylon strap for smoothness and balance. He has a blazing bass drum foot. Steve Smith also uses a loose spring tension for his constant release technique. I'm experimenting with this and I also slid my beater down about 3/4 of an inch so it can rebound fairly quickly. It feels pretty good; just needs some getting used to, some muscle and balance development and maybe some fine tuning in the future.

[aydee]

Well, see Jojo Mayers got them super- loose and John Blackwell's got them extra-tight.

Both absolutely kill with the single pedal.

What does that tell us?

[KONA]

I just set my new Gibraltar 9611SD-DB (strap drive double) pedals up today. It will take some time to get used to. I read through this thread to get some idea on spring "tension" and from the looks of it - it's got a lot to do with personal choice and what kind of drumming you're doing. I'm glad I read this thread though - because it looks like I'm in good company with the setting I probably will go for - loose.

Good thread - some useful advice here in that to learn there are good players out there with loose, tight and in-between pedal settings makes it an easy choice to pick what to do here, and that is, try everything and pick what feels and works best.

Thanks,

Kona