Ironwood drum set

[Deathmetalconga]

Okay, it's taken two months to get it in more or less final form. This is from www.spiritdrums.com, drums made of solid-shell Cooktown ironwood from Australia.

All drums are square sizes, 8 10 12 and 14 inch toms, 18 inch bass drum, snare is 13 by 4. Cymbals are all Zildjian A Customs, 20 inch ping ride, 13 inch hats, 17 inch crash, 12 inch splash, 8 inch splash, 18 inch China.

Accessories include Pete Englehart agogo bells and foot-operated talking drum from www.b-radpercussion.com and LP plastic block foot pedal.

Hardware is mostly DW, Tama hi-hat stand with legs removed and custom fabricated cymbal stackers, bass drum cradle and foot percussion holder, Gauger aluminum RIMS mounts.

All heads are Remo Fiberskyn FAs batter and coated Ambassadors resonant. Bass drum head of Spirit Drums logo by www.drumart.com.

Sticks are wok chopsticks mostly, with Vic Firth brushes, Trilok Gurtu signatures, assorted mallets and plastic brushes and rutes.

Below are the three clips I have so far - the swing-type playing and a song we call James Bond in Matanzas. I was playing my left-foot clave rhythm and this keyboardist I play with started playing along. It's a rough first cut and we are going to refine it. Blue Veil is a song on the Hang Drum.

http://www.drummerworld.com/forums/a...0&d=1252687553

Attachment 20313

Attachment 20314

Attachment 20315

Truly awesome. I need to head up there and talk to the guys at SpiritDrums. Damn that Ironwood is dense! Could you imagine the sound if they offered free-floating on all of them?! Then again, that'd probably make them weigh a lot (I'd imagine that bass drum is already a cannon- sound and weight wise).

How do you find that talking drum in a musical sense? How often do you apply it?

Seriously, that has to be one of the best I've ever seen! It's positioned almost exactly how I would have it, too. I would have the ride so it's easily crashed, but that's about perfect!

Awesome set, you're very lucky. I like the bass head, too. I look forward to hearing it, but I could imagine it would sound a thousand-fold better in person. Can imagine it would've taken a fair bit of coin from you, too. Worth it, though! Those Fiberskyns look like they have a kickass tone, too. That warm, rounded tone with a slight buzz.

Why do square drums never look square? My 16" floor also looks taller than it is wide...

Congratulations!!!

[Salicete]

That’s a great looking kit, and so many different sound options. I would love to have a go behind that kit!

[Quadruple Groove]

Oh cool, its the Duallist, hows that working out for you?

haa looks like a great kit, especially love the seat and the outer bass head, howd you get that made?

[metalheadeza666]

sweet set, nice finish, creatively unlimited and...a dualist...

very nice though, we have to hear some noise from you soon : )

yeah, how do you like the dualist? i'm intrigued...

[badlydubbedsean]

hey im liking those lugs, and with the wood and the heads it looks very natural. beauty!

Spectacular!

That kit is reminiscent of the heavy shelled power-depth Sonors of the 80's. Very imposing look. I can only imagine the deep thunder of those drums.

There is a kind of a mystique there, because AFAIK, no one else makes Ironwood shells. You have a kit even more exculsive than a Brady.

The fiberskyn FA and percussion bits really add to a "Earth sounds*" personality for the kit.

The only thing I'd like to see if a pic that has more intense lower lighting. The wood has a cherry-like color.

Great stuff!



* Yes, I was digging the Terra Sonus Sound clips.

[Carter.it]

Never seen a kit like this man!! i really like it!!
what kind of sound do you have with those heads??

[stickers]

Very Unique kit. Looks good. have fun. It must have been pain to turn the whole kit around for the second pic..hehe

[Harakirie]

really really ncie man i love that room :D
The Zildjian china looks friggin INSANE !

nice nice

[DreamTheater4life]

Originally Posted by Deathmetalconga

Okay, it's taken two months to get it in more or less final form. This is from www.spiritdrums.com, drums made of solid-shell Cooktown ironwood from Australia. All drums are square sizes, 8 10 12 and 14 inch toms, 18 inch bass drum, snare is 13 by 4. Cymbals are all Zildjian A Customs, 20 inch ping ride, 13 inch hats, 17 inch crash, 12 inch splash, 8 inch splash, 18 inch China. Accessories include Pete Englehart agogo bells and foot-operated talking drum from www.b-radpercussion.com and LP plastic block foot pedal. Hardware is mostly DW, Tama hi-hat stand with legs removed and custom fabricated cymbal stackers, bass drum cradle and foot percussion holder. All heads are Remo Fiberskyn FAs batter and coated Ambassadors resonant. Sticks are wok chopsticks mostly, with Vic Firth brushes, Trilok Gurtu signatures, assorted mallets and plastic brushes and rutes.

I will start recording with this in the next few months. In the meantime, you can listen to songs with my old set at www.terrasonus.com

Cool Kit man. You just need to get rid of that Dualist and it;ll be perfect ;)

[NUTHA JASON]

i love that pedal powered talking drum. did you put that together?

j

[Dimm_Slayer]

Do you have any clipps of your playing?

[Tom B.]

you have really shiny cymbals, do you clean them a lot?

I like the strat in the background too...

[Deathmetalconga]

Originally Posted by Tom B.

you have really shiny cymbals, do you clean them a lot?

I like the strat in the background too...

The cymbals are Zildjian A Customs, which are naturally shiny, and these are all either new or slightly used. I like them shiny so I wear cotton gloves during takedown and setup and use Mr. Metal to get rid of stick marks. I really like the 20-inch ping ride - plenty of definition and great spank from the bell.

The Strat is a "guest" instrument, along with a Shane bass and a rehabilitated sitar. Not hi-end instruments, but if someone comes by, I always have something for them to play! Plus, instruments are just beautiful things to display.

www.terrasonus.com

[Deathmetalconga]

Originally Posted by Dimm_Slayer

Do you have any clipps of your playing?

Not yet. The set is new and the clips on our Web site are my previous set. I'm thinking I should just record some of my playing on the set and upload it because the sound is fantastic.

[Deathmetalconga]

Originally Posted by Quadruple Groove

Oh cool, its the Duallist, hows that working out for you?

haa looks like a great kit, especially love the seat and the outer bass head, howd you get that made?

Thanks. The seat stand is a Roc-N-Soc nitro. I took off the saddle style seat a month ago and swapped it with the round cushion from an old medical exam stool - smaller but softer than the Roc-N-Soc. I still use the leopard print seat cover I had a tailor make a long time ago.

As for The Duallist, I love it, but it's too controversial a piece of equipment to discuss here. People have heated opinions about it, especially if they have never played one. A freewheeling and enlightening Duallist discussion is at http://www.drummerworld.com/forums/s...hlight=dualist


The resonant head is from www.drumart.com and the design is the Spirit Drums logo. Drumart does amazing work, very beautiful and professional and they'll skillfully touch-up any low-quality art work you send them. The great to deal with and I'd recommend them to anyone looking for a custom head.

The only downside is they use Aquarian heads and I'm a Remo loyalist (shhh - don't tell anyone!). But the head does sound and look great.

[jollymosher]

Sweet! thank you very much for the honor of gazing upon such well kept drums and cymbals. cool and expensive drums!

[Danny]

your kit's absolutely awesome!

(It seems you're sitting a pretty extreme angle, pedal positioning-wise...)

GREAT stuff!

[defunkt]

What exactly is a talking drum?

[Deathmetalconga]

Originally Posted by defunkt

What exactly is a talking drum?

It's a traditional African drum with hourglass-shaped body, usually one to two feet long and diameter of four to eight inches. The heads aren't attached to the shell, but are lashed to each other (the original floating heads). The drum is held under one arm and squeezed while the other arm hits it with a stick or fingers. This raises and lowers the pitch. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talking_drum. It's believed the sound of the drum mimics the tonalities of some African languages, whence the name "talking drum."

The drum I have from www.b-radpercussion.com is a modern version. A foot pedal - much like a bass drum pedal but designed to produce much more power and leverage - controls the action of the drum through a bike cable, leaving both hands free. So far, no one has accused me of cheating, but I DO have a Duallist ...

I actually made my own foot-operated talking drum from an LP Nada drum, a foot pedal, bike cable and a custom metal basket, and played that for about 10 years. But the b-rad design works much better and is ingeniously engineered - the whole thing breaks down quickly for transport. The drum came with one tom mounting bracket at the top, but I flipped it over and added another two brackets, fabricated some legs and now it sits like a floor tom, not a suspended tom.

www.terrasonus.com

[defunkt]

Thanks. I bet it sounds awesome
Also why get the dualist and not a double kick pedal?

[Deathmetalconga]

Originally Posted by defunkt

Thanks. I bet it sounds awesome
Also why get the dualist and not a double kick pedal?

Oh man, you don't know what you're asking! Check out this thread for all the thoughts on the most controversial piece of gear ever: http://www.drummerworld.com/forums/s...hlight=dualist

Plus, where would I even put a FIFTH pedal? The Duallist does everything I would want a double pedal to do and it frees up my right foot to operate the hi hat, percussion block and talking drum. Maybe there are things a double pedal can do that a Duallist can't, but if The Duallist can't do it, I don't need to play it.

I'm going to a Guitar Center drum off tonight and I've worked out a composition playing the Afro-Cuban rhythm guaguanco with the left foot playing clave and 16th note shuffles on the Duallist. Works just fine for me!

www.terrasonus.com

[hauk]

thats a great looking kit. i've looked around the spirit site, they seem like great drums

[Deathmetalconga]

Originally Posted by Synthetik

Spectacular!

That kit is reminiscent of the heavy shelled power-depth Sonors of the 80's. Very imposing look. I can only imagine the deep thunder of those drums.

There is a kind of a mystique there, because AFAIK, no one else makes Ironwood shells. You have a kit even more exculsive than a Brady.

The fiberskyn FA and percussion bits really add to a "Earth sounds*" personality for the kit.

The only thing I'd like to see if a pic that has more intense lower lighting. The wood has a cherry-like color.

Great stuff!
* Yes, I was digging the Terra Sonus Sound clips.

Well, i never thought of them as "imposing," but now that I step back from it, the deep shells and raw finish do give them an imposing attitude.

I would have actually preferred a 20 inch bass drum, but those are extremely hard to get, even by Spirit Drum standards. The logs must be 22 inches, which means they literally weigh tons if you can find them. But even the 18 inch drum sounds resonant, thick and punchy.

You are perceptive to notice how the Fiberskyns add to the persona of the set. The shells and lug style give it a primitive quality and the Fiberskyns accentuate that.

You are right about the sound - it is thunderous. It dominates the entire house and I have to be careful when I play; ideally, when no one else is home.

The shells with RIMS hardware in total weigh around 100 pounds for the set of six drums. Add in the DW 9000 series stands and it's a workout to move. I like to lift heavy objects, however, and I need to lose weight more than the drums do.

www.terrasonus.com

[HardcoreLogo]

Very unique, looks like alot of fun to play.................sorry, you may have allready listed it, but what is that "mushroom" shaped cymbal beside your floor tom? Also, I believe the guitar is a fender Squire, which is an entry level "strat" copy, not like the pricey American strats(I play guitar....lol) but none the less, a cool setup!

[Deathmetalconga]

Originally Posted by HardcoreLogo

Very unique, looks like alot of fun to play.................sorry, you may have allready listed it, but what is that "mushroom" shaped cymbal beside your floor tom? Also, I believe the guitar is a fender Squire, which is an entry level "strat" copy, not like the pricey American strats(I play guitar....lol) but none the less, a cool setup!

Man, ain't no foolin' you ... that is a low-end Strat copy, Mr. Sharp Eyes. It's just a guest guitar for a pick-up jam if someone comes over, so it works okay for that.

The mushroom cymbal is actually a melodic metal drum called a Hang Drum; see http://www.oddmusic.com/gallery/om16250.html. It's a newer instrument, invented around 200, a kind of steel pan drum turned outward to be played with the hands. There are many, many tunings and most people prefer a Chinese pentatonic scale, as it's the most versatile. This one is tuned to a Middle Eastern scaled called Hijaz in the key of D, which has more tension than pentatonic scale.

You can hear me play this drum at www.terrasonus.com on a song called Kosmosis.

[defunkt]

You have the weirdest yet coolest gear

Originally Posted by Deathmetalconga

Well, i never thought of them as "imposing," but now that I step back from it, the deep shells and raw finish do give them an imposing attitude.

I would have actually preferred a 20 inch bass drum, but those are extremely hard to get, even by Spirit Drum standards. The logs must be 22 inches, which means they literally weigh tons if you can find them. But even the 18 inch drum sounds resonant, thick and punchy.

You are perceptive to notice how the Fiberskyns add to the persona of the set. The shells and lug style give it a primitive quality and the Fiberskyns accentuate that.

You are right about the sound - it is thunderous. It dominates the entire house and I have to be careful when I play; ideally, when no one else is home.

The shells with RIMS hardware in total weigh around 100 pounds for the set of six drums. Add in the DW 9000 series stands and it's a workout to move. I like to lift heavy objects, however, and I need to lose weight more than the drums do.

www.terrasonus.com

Here is a compare: classic, imposing heavy sonor kit:


And a kit that I don't consider imposing:

[Deathmetalconga]

HAHA! I actually have one of those little kids kits.

I see what you mean about imposing attitude. That Sonor kit definitely has it, and so does mine.

www.terrasonus.com

[Randy]

Originally Posted by Synthetik

And a kit that I don't consider imposing:[/u][/b]

Dude, where did you get a picture of my kit!? :D

[deadbirdsoup]

wow thats such a sweet kit!! so much options, very unique!!! i like!!!

[atomicsoy]

oh kewl... are you from aussie? did u get that made? kewl... u could give me that dualist! heehe very interesting pedals... hmm..

[Deathmetalconga]

Thanks, eyeofthebeholder and atomicsoy (great handle by the way).

l live in Boise, Idaho, around 12,000 miles away from Austrailia I figure (I recall checking it on Google Earth). This set was made from an approximately 350-year-old tree. It probably started as a sucker around 1650.

The six-piece shell pack and snare was about $5,300, which is what you'd expect to pay for a high-end custom drum set.

I read about Spirit drums in the Oct. 2000 edition of Modern Drummer and I made it my goal to get a set before I died. I like unusual and fine things and the Spirits definitely have a magical, thunderous, authoritative, rich primitive sound that cannot be duplicated. I also like the exclusivity - only about a dozen of these highly exotic kits have ever been made, although there are a fair number of snares in circulation. I also hear they made djembes and congas as well. Flutemakers and luthiers also prize ironwood for its acoustical properties. It's three times as dense as maple and sinks in water. Unfortunately, in Australia, it's often use for mindless applications like fence posts and railroad ties, but it's poisonous to cattle and must be cleared from some areas anyway.

The wood is almost indestructible - I was mounting one of the heavy toms and the ball joint slipped, causing it to crash down on the bass drum. There was no scratch at all in the drum and a very slight bend inward on the steel rim flange. Serious attitude!

Someday, I will get a set of Spizzichino cymbals.

www.terrasonus.com

Spirit drums: normal playing can kill small rodents at 25 paces. Knocks over a whole row of corn at full volume.

[Deathmetalconga]

Originally Posted by Synthetik

Spirit drums: normal playing can kill small rodents at 25 paces. Knocks over a whole row of corn at full volume.

HAHA! Reminds me of a thread I started to collect funny advertising terms about instruments. Were you around then? Got deleted in the last Off-Topic Lounge holocaust.

I noticed an ad once for a snare drum that had "crowd-cutting backbeats." I thought it was strange, the idea of assaulting your audience, so me and my band mates have been coming up with others like:

"Sternum-crushing bass"

"Audience-decapitating cymbal crashes"

"Stool-softening tom fills"

"Ear-impaling rim shots"

"Nose-hair-curling tabla solos"

"Divorce-triggering volume"

"Aura-bleaching sitar solos"

Now we can add ""Cornfield-leveling sound output" and "Rodent-exterminating volume."

People added a bunch more and I wish I still had the list.

www.terrasonus.com

[KalashnikoV]

wow, it's impressive just to look at! I can only imagine the wide range of creativity you can release on something like that, especially with the unique use of the talking and hang drums. The kit looks like it could play any style of music that the musician can, and I'm sure it sounds even better than it looks. Hopefully I'll have something as nice to play on one day, I hope you enjoy it!

P.S. Your heads match your carpet :P

[Deathmetalconga]

Originally Posted by KalashnikoV

wow, it's impressive just to look at! I can only imagine the wide range of creativity you can release on something like that, especially with the unique use of the talking and hang drums. The kit looks like it could play any style of music that the musician can, and I'm sure it sounds even better than it looks. Hopefully I'll have something as nice to play on one day, I hope you enjoy it!

Thanks - it is indeed fun to play and it has a pretty big vocabulary.

I couldn't afford something like this until I turned 40 last year. You're still pretty young, so hang in there, do well in school, find a good career and you will have the disposable income someday soon.

www.terrasonus.com

[tamadrummer132]

how much did it cost u?

[Ozzy Biz]

Originally Posted by tamadrummer132

how much did it cost u?

Originally Posted by Deathmetalconga

The six-piece shell pack and snare was about $5,300, which is what you'd expect to pay for a high-end custom drum set.

It's good to read the whole thread before posting.

Biz