Y'know I was just thinkin'...

aydee

Platinum Member
...

A couple of things...


1) I keep at least 5 or 6 different kinds of sticks in my stick bag. Different weights, lengths, .. Everything from jazz 7As to the heavier Jay Wannamaker rudiment sticks.

Which sticks I play really depends on my mood or the kind of tune we are playing.

Is that unusual? Not ideal? I think most people use 1 make/size/model of stick..

thoughts?

ALSO

2) In anticipation of my move to apt. dwelling, I had bought the Roland TD-9 VDrums. I thought my accoustic kit would be on a sabbatical for a while. However, that decisions got delayed, so I now I'm playing both...

...and its driving me crazy!!!!

They both feel so incredibly different. If I play the VDrums for about an hour and then just get up and sit on my Yammies, it feels like ..well..like when you just get off a roller coaster..a little wobbly. Its like I never played an acoustic kit for a bit.


Anyone else , who swings both ways.. ahem.. feel this way?

...
 
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I can only speak for the stick issue. I have a variety of sticks also. Some look like tree limbs and they range down to my 7A's. At time the 7A's feel great and at times they feel too light. My favorite right now though are are some Vader Fusion sticks. Round, wood tip and a bout a 5A size but great sticks. Variety is the spice of life. Unless you are married.
 
Variety is the spice of life. Unless you are married.

Variety is my wife. For life.. I hear ya, GD ; )

I think we'd be the exception rather than the rule. I think most guys find their one comfort zone and stick to it ( No pun intended. )

Multiplicity can get tricky for me sometimes, e.g. if I'm used to pulling something off with a certain ( lighter ) pair, and I happen to have something else in my hands at the time, I do bump the kerb occasionally.
 
1) I keep at least 5 or 6 different kinds of sticks in my stick bag. Different weights, lengths, .. Everything from jazz 7As to the heavier Jay Wannamaker rudiment sticks.

Which sticks I play really depends on my mood or the kind of tune we are playing.
...

um ye i can only share my opinion about the stick issue because i really dislike electronic kits; i just cant get the same feeling and the same tones on the heads when i hit them on different places.

So as far as the stick issue goes, i dont have that much of a variety of sticks because i just feel comfortable playing my Ahead 2Bs (alltho i do have a few 5As and 7As).Like in your case, the sticks i use also depend on the mood im in; if im in a bad mood and really wanna break right through my drum heads i pick up my Ahead 2B, but if i feel inspired i pick up my Vic Firth 7As because I do use lighter sticks (7As for Swing or 5As for fusion) and I have to admit though sometimes it just feels good to pick up a pair of gud old Vic Firth 5As!
 
I've gotten attached to a few different kinds of sticks, having tried pretty much everything in sight. Sometimes I like a longer stick, so I'll pull out the Jack DeJohnette's. Other times I like a big, fat, heavy sound....so I'll use the Vater Maple 5B. I've still got a pair of Jojo sig. sticks that feel good, when the stars align right.

Most of the time I try to stick to one (pun intended). It may be entirely psychological but I feel like my hands and playing are more steady if I use one kind of stick consistently.
 
I switch sticks from time to time. Sometimes one stick will feel great in my hands and other days it wont. It also depends on the music. If im playing faster music i will use lighter sticks. I usually use vic firth 5b extremes as my light sticks and promark oak 2bs as my heaviest stick.. I'm also on the fence right now about getting an electric kit. I also switch out cymbals too for dif. styles of music.
 
True that,
I have 3 or 4 types I use they're Regal Tip 7'a,Vic Firth 5a's,Pro-Mark 420's & Vater 3a's all nylon tip

as expected smaller sticks for slow & easy tunes and heavier sticks for more rockin stuff.

Bonzolead
 
As far as sticks, I use a ton of different ones. I have two different kinds for musicals, one of which I also use for jazz. I have every type of rod and brush known to man. One type of stick for rock. One type for classical snare, one for marching. The list goes on and on. However, I do find that within each situation, I don't change.

As far as the electric/acoustic thing, it's just like two different instruments. When you get used to both, you can play both effectively, but you shouldn't use the same exact approach on both, because they aren't the same think. It's just like for a guitarist who plays acoustic and electric. Same frets, same neck length, etc, but a totally different feel.
 
I play Vdrums and Acoustic. I always have the Vdrums set up at my house to practice with tracks and songs. Also use the kit live depending on the size of the room and stage.

I also carry about 3-4 different size sticks. I will use different sizes for volume control with the acoustic kit. I have 2B Oak - 7A's
 
...They both feel so incredibly different. If I play the VDrums for about an hour and then just get up and sit on my Yammies, it feels like ..well..like when you just get off a roller coaster..a little wobbly. Its like I never played an acoustic kit for a bit.

Anyone else , who swings both ways.. ahem.. feel this way?...

Yes. I originally ventured into an electric kit, a Roland TD-6S, and found what you noticed. But also, I found that I played the Roland Kit much differently. With the sizes of everything being reduced, the space between everything having been contracted and the bounce of the mostly rubber pads being hyped up, I had to adjust everything to a point where anything other than simple rudiment practice felt really detrimental.

I gave the 6S a good three months but ultimately sent it packing. I tried out a lot more e-kits and found the TD-20/12 to be the only ones that feel close enough in all respects that they don't feel very different from my acoustic kit. Of course, the ones that feel right are the most expensive things out there. Not really what I wanted to spend for "quiet practice time" but it is what works... for me.
 
I keep some hickory and oak Pro-Mark 808 Nylons, as they're my preferred sticks for all "normal" situations. I do keep a pair of Elvin Jones Jazz models for a lighter touch if need be, an older model of oak marching sticks [not listed on their website, and my stick bag's in the car and I don't feel like going to get it right now] that I only use for warmups & stretching my forearms [or in case I need a weapon, haha], 1 pr. each of Hot Rods, Lightning Rods, brushes, and Regal Tip wood handle Blasticks for low volume situations, a pair of marimba yarn mallets for cymbal rolls & soft tom notes [I haven't found a double-ended stick/mallet combo that I like; the Zildjian Travis Barker comes close but I don't want paint all over my cymbals], and lastly, a pair of signature [sort of] sticks given to me by my main idol and #1 drummer, Phillip "Fish" Fisher, of Fishbone. They have the band's logo and the word "FISHSTICKS" on them, haha! I never use 'em, they're for good juju. I just touch 'em right before I start every gig. :)
 
I ain't a pro like a lot of you guys and gals, heck I'm not even good lol (I do have my moments, though), but when I was young I used 2b's and 5a's. When I took up the drums again way later in life I found I couldn't get my old speed so I started using 7a's. I almost always use 7a hickory Pro Mark Millenium 2's, either wood or nylon tip, but when I play a song like Turbo Lover by Judas Priest where I don't need speed I will go to something slightly longer and/or heavier so I can hit the beat on the snare with more uniform authority if ya know what I mean.

Yes I have a bunch of different sticks due to trying out various weights, diameters, etc. But mainly I have a lot of 7a hickory Pro Mark Millenium 2's "in stock". I hate playing with chewed up sticks.
 
Aydee said:
...and its driving me crazy!!!!

Abe, I'm hearing you. Current band is the first non-rock band I've played with since doing a few fill-ins for a Dixieland band in the early 90s and I have little idea what I'm doing. At first I just had a snare with brushes. Then added a djembe. Then added a ride. Look out Portnoy!

Then added hats and a stomp box. Look out Bruford!

Settled with that for while before getting rid of the stomp box and replacing it with a Rhythm Traveller kick and added a tom - plus a splash. Woo hoo, look out Bozzio!

I've used this "full kit" three times now (can't play it at home) and still getting used to using a kick pedal again. Dunno about you but I'm looking forward to some routine - apart from my various input devices - mini-sticks, brushes and, occasionally, hands mallets and a mini-tambourine.

Adjusting is a character-building exercise :)
 
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1) I have a pair of 5As and a pair of Swarms, though I'm not sure what I'm going to do with them (they're so incredibly light).

2) I know the feeling. I've lived in apartments my entire life, and had a VDrum set for a while but I can't stand it. I'd rather buy an acoustic set and figure how where I can play it (which I'm still doing).
 
I have several different pairs of sticks in my bag...been using Vic Firth "Steve Gadd" sticks for about 2 years now when I play in church (every week) for keeping the volume down and for the feel (I like personally).

However when we play gigs outside of the church arena (contemporary christian rock) I find myself using heavier, longer sticks for the sheer volume I need to handle the guitar amps and cranked up vocals...

Also, been nursing tendonitis and a suspected small tear in my right bicep for several months now, using the larger sticks makes it less painful to play for longer periods of time...not quite as much of a gripping situation...
 
I use quite a variety also, the only ones I would use all the time are the Hornet 5A'a but at $16 a pair I just can't justify it.

I realy Like the Pro Mark Shira Kashi Oak 747's, but mostly have Vic Firth 5A's and 5AN's due to cost, I also prefer nylon tips as they last atleast twice as long.
 
...

So here's both the Yin & the Yang, the good & the evil, etc etc, right next to each other. And yet a world apart

both kits.jpg


And here's my United Nations of sticks:

stix 2.jpg

( there's more variey but it didnt fit on my 16' tom )
 
Dude, did you steal my stick bag? That's almost exactly what i use.

I also use the vdrum deal to practice on. It drove me crazy at first, because i could
pull alot of stuff off on the electrics that i couldn't do on the acoustic, but it's electric or
nothing for practice......so it's electric.
 
I also use the vdrum deal to practice on. It drove me crazy at first, because i could
pull alot of stuff off on the electrics that i couldn't do on the acoustic, but it's electric or
nothing for practice......so it's electric.

You said it! Its like you cant have your cake nor eat it.

Reminds me of what Steven right said once.. " you know when you lean back in your chair, and you keep leaning back and keep leaning back till you reach that tipping point... when you are sort of suspended.. neither falling forwards .. nor backwards...?.......

.....I feel like that all the time.
 
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