Why the "hate" for nylon tips??

Acidline303 said:
Play to the head and not through it?

I've heard the exact opposite advice given in regards to getting a fuller tone with less physical force and allowing the energy of the strike to leave your arms/wrists/joints.

Maybe I'm misunderstanding that phrase. Pitchers don't stop moving after their release point, golfers don't after the driver strikes ball......why would a drummer stop their sticks on a dime after contact?
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Maybe you were watching Karate kid.
 
I didn't really mean HATE......I was just funning'....that's why the word was in quotation marks.

I've just heard some grumblings over the years about a dislike for Nylon tips and was wondering why some folks don't dig them. That's all......no real hate.
 
Way back when I was a teenager and into my 20's the nylon tips would fly off frequently and I switched to wood tips. Today however, I guess they found a better method of gluing those suckers on. I've always preferred nylon and today use them exclusively. Better cymbal sound, to me at least.
 
I generally play wood tips (that last forever) but as sticks have eventually gained a chip in the tip and I've run out of mixing and matching sticks that weren't chipped (and I too lazy to order or bother to buy new ones) I finally came upon some nylon tips I had bought years ago to try out. Been using them the last few months and I love them. Sound great on cymbals.
 
Jazz Man said:
I didn't really mean HATE......I was just funning'....that's why the word was in quotation marks.

I've just heard some grumblings over the years about a dislike for Nylon tips and was wondering why some folks don't dig them. That's all......no real hate.
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I don't like the bright sound they give the cymbal at lower volumes. I do love their durability though. I'm not a hard hitter so sticks tend to wear out for me at the tips. For rock gigs I have been using the same pair of 2BNs for about 3 months.
 
I normally use the Vic Firth Dave Weckl Evolution model wood tip. Figured I try the nylon tip version - they are hard to get by the way.

I like the way they sounded on the ride but I noticed they are weaker and lighter - didn't work out at all and now I know why they are hard to get - nobody wants them.

Definitely an epic fail for this model stick - I broke them quickly.
 
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I don't hate nylon tip sticks, they just aren't for me. When I have used them I'm not much of a fan of the sound and feel of the sticks.

Not something I see changing at any point so I stick to wood tips.
 
I recently tried wood tips again, this time some Oak sticks. After 4 gigs both tips had a small chip, so I had to rotate the stick to get a consistent sound. Annoying, distracting.
So I've gone back to nylon tips, and get 40-50 gigs before the shoulder wears a bit thin from crashing. I buy one pair per year, whether I need them or not.

I still prefer the solid feel of VF's but the better tip sound from Regals.
 
I've always used wood tips because I don't like the feel or tendencies of nylon. I found I too often couldn't control the sound of my drums or cymbals. Wood tips will shear, but some brands are more durable than others. For a few years I was playing Vater Fatback 3As and the tips would deteriorate pretty quickly. I switched to Vic Firth 55As at some point and found that the sticks were similar in size but that the Vic Firth tips lasted much, much longer. I prefer the rounded barrel tip on the Vaters, though.
 
I like nylon tips I use a jazz type on sunday nites in a jazz trio piano bass & drums and like the clear sound not loud but clear. Other times I play with a 25 piece German band and use larger sticks also with a bunch of old farts in a 18 piece swing band and back to the larger tips. I do try all wood sticks from time to time ;but still favor nylon tips. My style is not loud but in the grove with the bass player to balance the sound, to be felt but not over the top. jz
 
I'll save hate for things that really suck. Plastic at the ends of sticks doesn't fall into that category for me.

That said, I never use them. I tried them about 30 years ago and disliked them for a few reasons:

Sound. Too bright for me. I like the sound of wood against alloy. It's just a preference for me. I feel like wood can provide different sounds depending on angle and intensity. Nylon, no dynamics. It's always the same sound no matter what.

Feel. They remove all feel for me.

Breakage. The break quicker than wood and then you have a pair of unmatched sticks and a goofy unusable tip on one. It kills the whole stick.
 
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