Tool - what gear does Danny use on stage?

Danny-T · #1 01-06-2007, 07:20 PM

Hi all I am a real tool fan and i was wondering wich gear danny uses on stage for is fantastic shows he is really one of the best drummers I have ever seen :p now i was wondering wich drums that arent verry expensive who can come to such a beautifull sound if you can give me some info about wich typpe drum i need to buy for that magnificent sound :p (ps: I have now a gretch black hawk) thx for giving me the info I need!!

tool rocks

Johnny from the block · #2 01-06-2007, 09:45 PM

I know he uses two different sonor kits at the moment (both with double kickdrum) and paiste cymbals and gong.
from the sound I would tell he's using a 22" paiste 2002 heavy ride...for the rest of his pecs you should probably type it in on google or something;)

cheers

Daveian · #3 01-06-2007, 10:24 PM

Hi there, i got this from http://en.wikipedia.org

Danny has recently gotten a brand new Designer kit from Sonor, which he has designed himself and used on Tool's recent 10,000 days album and tours. The set-up is as follows:

Drums: (Diameter x Depth)

14"x8" Bronze Snare (by Jeff Ocheltree, made out of recycled Paiste Cymbals)
8"x8" Tom
10"x10" Tom
14"x16" Tom
16"x18" Floor Tom
Two 18"x24" Bass Drums
Danny has been a Paiste cymbal endorser since 1992:

13" Signature Sound Edge Hi-Hat
7.5" 2002 Cup Chime # 2
8" Signature Bell
6" 2002 Accent Cymbal
8" 3000 Bell
8" New Signature Dark Energy Splash MK I (inverted)
10" New Signature Dark Energy Splash MK I
22" 2002 Novo China (custom)
18" Signature Full Crash
18" Signature Power Crash
22" Signature Dry Heavy Ride (custom)
22" Signature Thin China (custom)
20" Signature Power Crash
11/18" Noise Works Dark Buzz China Set
Drum Heads (Evans):

Snare: Power Center on batter side, Evans Hazy 300 on snare side.
Toms: G2 clear on batter side, G1 clear on resonant side.
Bass: EQ3 clear on batter side, Retro Screen Mesh on resonant side.
The hardware is mainly composed of Sonor stands, Pearl Eliminator or Axis Longboard pedals (Pearl or SONOR beaters) and a DW 5000 hi-hat stand.

Danny uses his own signature model of drumstick made by Vic Firth[3]. He previously had endorsed a signature model with Trueline Drumsticks (now Trueline's Tribal Assault model [4]).

Recently, Danny began using an electronic drum pad previously designed exclusively for him by Vince De Franco, These pads are called the Synesthesia Mandala Drums, and have replaced the six Simmons SDX pads formerly in his setup. He uses a program called Battery, from Native Instruments, on an Apple Mac G5 to manage the samples.

Additionally, he uses a Korg Wave Drum and a Roland MC-505 and Handsonic.

Previously, Danny was switching between two drum kits, one being his old SONOR Designer series (Bubinga), the other his Paiste 'Drumtree' kit. The latter are Custom Cast bronze drums made from recycled Paiste cymbals, manufactured by master drum tech and drum maker Jeff Ocheltree.

I hope this will answer your question ;)

Johnny from the block · #4 01-07-2007, 11:06 AM

Dude! that is some seriously detailed info.

Quote:

14"x8" Bronze Snare (by Jeff Ocheltree, made out of recycled Paiste Cymbals)

I could hardly believe this... never heard of a snare made out of old cymbals! Kinky.

and

Quote:

22" Signature Dry Heavy Ride (custom)
22" 2002 Novo China (custom)

Damn guess I can forget my guessing-skills about cymbals by hearing:p
thought these were the 22" 2002 heavy ride and the 20" paiste signature china :(

anyway thx, I know you helped me and especially danny-T a lot;)

cheers

Danny-T · #5 01-07-2007, 12:32 PM

thx for this info
I' shall keep it in mind
But all that gear is a little to expensive so, anny suggestion on wich kit i should buy
thx!! for the reply

Danny-T

Danny-T · #6 01-07-2007, 12:50 PM

What about the heads wich heads should I use for the moment for this perfect Tool sound
(it musn't be perfect, but the sound must be going in the direction of it) or should I buy some demping rings and keep on tuning my toms t'ill it is better what is your suggestion???

greetzzz

Johnny from the block · #7 01-07-2007, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Danny-T

What about the heads wich heads should I use for the moment for this perfect Tool sound
(it musn't be perfect, but the sound must be going in the direction of it) or should I buy some demping rings and keep on tuning my toms t'ill it is better what is your suggestion???

greetzzz

like Daveian said mette:

Quote:

Snare: Power Center on batter side, Evans Hazy 300 on snare side.
Toms: G2 clear on batter side, G1 clear on resonant side.
Bass: EQ3 clear on batter side, Retro Screen Mesh on resonant side.

I would certainly get rid of those gretsch-heads and replace 'm if you want a better sound. To begin with, you can change the batterheads with clear G2's. I doubted on getting them too, but went for the aquarians after all.
You already got the falam patch on the kick, but put some pillow in it;) or go get a PSIII
and for the snare... well I don't think you can come close to Danny's snare with your 14x5.5 Blackhawk;) no mather what heads you put on it...

Maybe you will take my advice for granted when I post it here, more experienced drummers will agree with me on this one I guess ;)

(you're welcome)

Fardunda · #8 01-09-2007, 12:20 AM

I would recommend buying good quality batter and reso heads and tuning them correctly with top and bottom heads equal and NO dampening

DamoSyzygy · #9 01-09-2007, 02:41 AM

Quote:

I could hardly believe this... never heard of a snare made out of old cymbals! Kinky.

The alloy itself is not uncommon. Bell bronze snares have been around since the stone ages, and are a B20 alloy, same as most top-end cast cymbals.

altered_beast · #10 01-09-2007, 02:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Johnny from the block

like Daveian said mette:

I would certainly get rid of those gretsch-heads and replace 'm if you want a better sound. To begin with, you can change the batterheads with clear G2's. I doubted on getting them too, but went for the aquarians after all.
You already got the falam patch on the kick, but put some pillow in it;) or go get a PSIII
and for the snare... well I don't think you can come close to Danny's snare with your 14x5.5 Blackhawk;) no mather what heads you put on it...

Maybe you will take my advice for granted when I post it here, more experienced drummers will agree with me on this one I guess ;)

(you're welcome)

Danny is actually using EC2 heads now. I have an interview with him from Drummer magazine here in the UK from about 4 or 5 months ago. I will scan the stuff in later and either email it to Danny-T if he wants to PM me his email address or I'll post it up here for all to read. Someone let me know. The kit Danny is using now I would guess is either a late Designer Series or one of the newer SQ2 kits. The SQ2 will cost you a bomb. What I would suggest you do is go for one of the intermediate to high end type kits (Mapex Pro-M, Sonor 3005, Yamaha Tour Custom) in similar sizes to Danny and use similar heads. I am looking into having a custom Bronze snare made after I've had my custom aluminium one done, this may be a route for you to consider, although many manufacturers make bronze snares, including Tama and Mapex. I have a 14 x 6.5" Mapex Black Panther in Phosphor Bronze and it is awesome, though I can imagine the inch and a half making a lot of difference.

As far as heads go, check the Evans site for Danny's spec and also look at what a lot of your other favourite drummers are using.

When I sized my kit I based it around what I had already (a 12 x 8" tom) and the type of music I play and how I wanted the kit to look. I will have in a fortnight a 10 x 7.5", 12 x 8", 14 x 14" and 16 x 16" set of toms, 22 x 16" kick (my 22 x 14" that I have now is pretty punchy and while I wanted a deeper drum I didn't want to lose that punchy sound) and 14 x 6.5" bronze and steel snares.

As far as cymbals goes... well... good luck!

Al

Cheers

Al

Johnny from the block · #11 01-09-2007, 05:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fardunda

I would recommend buying good quality batter and reso heads and tuning them correctly with top and bottom heads equal and NO dampening

bah... no dampening on a blackhawk... on't know if that will give you such an amazing sound. At least not for me it won't

Quote:

Originally Posted by DamoSyzygy

The alloy itself is not uncommon. Bell bronze snares have been around since the stone ages, and are a B20 alloy, same as most top-end cast cymbals.

yeah right, heard about them - never played them though - but from old paistes? ... New to me:)

Johnny from the block · #12 01-09-2007, 05:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by altered_beast

Danny is actually using EC2 heads now. I have an interview with him from Drummer magazine here in the UK from about 4 or 5 months ago. I will scan the stuff in later and either email it to Danny-T if he wants to PM me his email address or I'll post it up here for all to read. Someone let me know. The kit Danny is using now I would guess is either a late Designer Series or one of the newer SQ2 kits. The SQ2 will cost you a bomb. What I would suggest you do is go for one of the intermediate to high end type kits (Mapex Pro-M, Sonor 3005, Yamaha Tour Custom) in similar sizes to Danny and use similar heads. I am looking into having a custom Bronze snare made after I've had my custom aluminium one done, this may be a route for you to consider, although many manufacturers make bronze snares, including Tama and Mapex. I have a 14 x 6.5" Mapex Black Panther in Phosphor Bronze and it is awesome, though I can imagine the inch and a half making a lot of difference.

As far as heads go, check the Evans site for Danny's spec and also look at what a lot of your other favourite drummers are using.

When I sized my kit I based it around what I had already (a 12 x 8" tom) and the type of music I play and how I wanted the kit to look. I will have in a fortnight a 10 x 7.5", 12 x 8", 14 x 14" and 16 x 16" set of toms, 22 x 16" kick (my 22 x 14" that I have now is pretty punchy and while I wanted a deeper drum I didn't want to lose that punchy sound) and 14 x 6.5" bronze and steel snares.

As far as cymbals goes... well... good luck!

Al

Cheers

Al

If you would be so kind, post the scanned stuff here, so we can all enjoy it! thanks!

and thx for the info

altered_beast · #13 01-09-2007, 08:28 PM

I'll get it done in a bit and put it up either later tonight or tomorrow.

Cheers

Al

#14 01-10-2007, 02:28 PM

I've said this before on other forums and posts of this nature....but, even if you buy the same kit, it's not going to sound the "same" as a recorded performance, right?

Just like,...everyone who ran out and bought Tama Superstars and evan looking glass and hydraulic heads to sound like Niel Peart's "Moving Pictures" recording where ALL dissapointed! It just doesn't happen like that.

Figure out and discover what sound YOU LIKE, what drums you like and take it from there!

Note: I'm not slamming anyone here, ....I'm just saying....be YOUR OWN drummer! :)

TopCat · #15 01-10-2007, 02:37 PM

Whilst this may not help too much....it's so great, I had to post it.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=-EsLO7iTBaA

altered_beast · #16 01-10-2007, 05:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fusssion

I've said this before on other forums and posts of this nature....but, even if you buy the same kit, it's not going to sound the "same" as a recorded performance, right?

Just like,...everyone who ran out and bought Tama Superstars and evan looking glass and hydraulic heads to sound like Niel Peart's "Moving Pictures" recording where ALL dissapointed! It just doesn't happen like that.

Figure out and discover what sound YOU LIKE, what drums you like and take it from there!

Note: I'm not slamming anyone here, ....I'm just saying....be YOUR OWN drummer! :)

Seconded, but I will put up the interview for info purposes later. I didn't get chance last night, I've been burning the candle at both ends lately and needed some rest and have band prac tonight. I may get it done but no promises. At the latest I'll have it done at the weekend.

Oh and DC's drums do actually sound that good live, I saw Tool in December. Stunning.

Danny-T · #17 01-11-2007, 04:24 PM

Thx all you guys for the information
I am a lot further now thx
Btw thx for the upcomming intervieuw, I am looking forward to it :)

concerning what you said about be your own drummer and make your own sound. I think every drummer must do that, but you must start somewhere so why not with the sound you like most......

other bands who have a nice drumsound like muse, stone sour, deftones. if you guys got some information about those drumkits I woul certenly like to hear what you guys have to say!!!

Thx all!!!!! and have a great drumnight ;)

altered_beast · #18 01-11-2007, 05:05 PM

I have something on Abe Cunningham as well in one of my other Drummer magazines. Want that? He plays Tama drums and Zildjian cymbals, I know that much off hand.

Danny-T · #19 01-14-2007, 12:24 PM

yeah would be great thx

have you got some videos of your band on youtube, I want to see you play :) i want to see what your kit can do :) it looks verry nice :p

greeeetz

altered_beast · #20 01-14-2007, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Danny-T

yeah would be great thx

have you got some videos of your band on youtube, I want to see you play :) i want to see what your kit can do :) it looks verry nice :p

greeeetz

Haha, no, no videos or recordings or anything yet, but thanks for the compliment : )

I'll scan those interviews in a bit, don't feel very good today tho...

Cheers

Al

altered_beast · #21 01-14-2007, 04:38 PM

Ok, this is an interview with Abe Cunningham from the October 2006 issue of Drummer magazine.

Hopefully this will work as I intend... Danny Carey interviews in a minute...

Edit: apologies for some of the text - it's right into the spine on the magazine and I couldn't get it scan right, I tried twice and got different results so you're gonna have to guess the word from the blurry mess!

altered_beast · #22 01-14-2007, 05:05 PM

Interview with Danny Carey from June 2006 issue of Rhythm magazine.

A couple of the pages didn't come out 100% straight but you can still read the text.

Guess there will be issues of Modern Drummer with interviews with DC and AC in too, but MD isn't that easy to come by over here!

Enjoy!

altered_beast · #23 01-14-2007, 05:39 PM

Finally, an interview with Danny Carey from the September 2006 issue of Drummer magazine.

This one's quite good cos it came out after 10,000 Days was released, as opposed to the Rhythm one which would've been done before it came out. Also, I, personally, prefer Drummer magazine to Rhythm, it seems a bit more down to earth to me.

Just while I think to answer it, you enquired also about Stone Sour. Their drummer, Roy Mayorga, I believe now endorses/ is endorsed by DW Drums. I saw a very small piece on him in one of the magazines, but I don't know what cymbals etc he uses - I would assume either Zildjian or Paiste - don't seem to see a massive amount of metal drummers using Sabian's, beside obviously Vinnie Paul, Travis Smith and Tomas Haake.

One thing I should just mention - the GearBox section of this interview misses one of Danny's floor tom's - I think it's a 16 x 14" floor tom he uses before the 18 x 16"

Hopefully these interviews are of some use to you all.

Cheers!

Al

Johnny from the block · #24 01-14-2007, 09:23 PM

Duuude! thx a lot, haven't read all yet, but that's quite some holy library you're releasing upon us there, thanks!

btw I saw a ad with taylor hawkins and underneath it: zildjian ... and some date in the 17th century... Do they really exist that long?

altered_beast · #25 01-14-2007, 09:36 PM

Yes, 1623. Originally in Turkey tho.

wnameth · #26 01-15-2007, 01:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Johnny from the block

bah... no dampening on a blackhawk... on't know if that will give you such an amazing sound. At least not for me it won't

No dampening is easy. stick a EMAD with the dampener rings (i use the larger of the 2) then i use the stock yamaha Reso with a added 6" ring. Nothing is inside the drum and it sounds great, so did my pearl Export with the same configuration.

its all about the EMAD> :)

=Wes

Johnny from the block · #27 01-15-2007, 09:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wnameth

No dampening is easy. stick a EMAD with the dampener rings (i use the larger of the 2) then i use the stock yamaha Reso with a added 6" ring. Nothing is inside the drum and it sounds great, so did my pearl Export with the same configuration.

its all about the EMAD> :)

=Wes

arent dampening rings used for dampening :p, hehe sorry couldn't resist, admit it looked a bit weird...

I meant no dampening (nothing in it... but also no dampening rings, moon gell, built in dampening systems or what so ever) and also no pinstripes:p

Johnny from the block · #28 01-15-2007, 10:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by altered_beast

Yes, 1623. Originally in Turkey tho.

ain't but one thing I can say on that:

Bizarre

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nR2emR9xvCE

Danny-T · #29 01-16-2007, 11:00 AM

whow thx a lott
I know what I am going to do now
read it 10 000 times ;)

thx a lott

Johnny from the block · #30 01-17-2007, 02:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Danny-T

whow thx a lott
I know what I am going to do now
read it 10 000 times ;)

thx a lott

in 10 000 days...?

(mouhahahha)

Johnny from the block · #31 01-26-2007, 05:02 PM

btw here's something you might find useful:http://www.drummersdigest.com/en/ind...=214&Itemid=25

Fatticus · #32 01-28-2007, 07:36 PM

His signature Sonor kit is made partly from Aniba Ayahuascus Rosaeodora wood.

Good to see some Danny Carey fans on here.

harryconway · #33 01-28-2007, 07:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fatticus

His signature Sonor kit is made partly from Aniba Ayahuascus Rosaeodora wood.

This story about a rare wood is most likely made up by Danny. Aniba Ayahuascus Rosaeodora ; Ayahuascus = a DMT-based hallucinogenic preparation, and "rosaedora" is most likely brazilian rosewood, which isn't rare AFAIK.

..And it goes on on teh wiki : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diving_petrel

The diving petrel isn't a rare bird. Magellan and common ones can be found by millions. Except for the Peru one though.

Tool (and Danny by extension), in a way, enjoys messing up with the fans like that. It's part of the message they're trying to pass. The whole "think for yourself" thing started by Timothy Leary. Don't believe everything people put in front of you

Fatticus · #34 01-28-2007, 08:13 PM

i considered that

it also didn't seem to me that he'd be all for making a bird go extinct

harryconway · #35 01-28-2007, 09:47 PM

This is the link to the Mandala drum. http://synesthesiacorp.com/home.html Amazing instrument. One of my band mate co-horts has 2 himself. Daveian mentioned them. To my knowledge, all the sound samples in the Mandala come from Danny's personal library. Vince De Franco is the other half of the equation.

drummguy731 · #36 01-29-2007, 03:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by harryconway

This story about a rare wood is most likely made up by Danny. Aniba Ayahuascus Rosaeodora ; Ayahuascus = a DMT-based hallucinogenic preparation, and "rosaedora" is most likely brazilian rosewood, which isn't rare AFAIK.

..And it goes on on teh wiki : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diving_petrel

The diving petrel isn't a rare bird. Magellan and common ones can be found by millions. Except for the Peru one though.

Tool (and Danny by extension), in a way, enjoys messing up with the fans like that. It's part of the message they're trying to pass. The whole "think for yourself" thing started by Timothy Leary. Don't believe everything people put in front of you

You know your stuff man, major props. That's definately what I'd do if I get famous, just mess with the interviewers. But anyway, from what I know, his tom sizes are 8, 10, 14, and 16. Not 8, 10, 16, and 18.

MagnZ · #37 01-30-2007, 06:15 PM

Is he using pearl pedals now? When did he switch from axis to pearl?

Holomorph · #38 01-30-2007, 06:54 PM

I've actually only seen him use Pearl pedals, though I've read a few times about Axis ones as well.

Also, I'm not sure about the EC2, the Evans site does say G2 and magazines sometimes get that stuff wrong.

altered_beast · #39 01-31-2007, 01:47 PM

I was a bit confused about the EC2 thing which is why I specifically emailed them to ask and got the reply that he was definitely using EC2's now. I've seen a pic as well but I can't think where.

Holomorph · #40 02-11-2007, 08:39 PM

Actually I'm still not sure about the whole G2 and EC2 thing. I have that issue of Drummer as well, it's October 2006 I think, and if you check out the September one with the interview they get quite a few things wrong in his setup. Plus, some recent pictures I've seen have G2s (except the ones on that Rhythm interview, the floor tom on page 142 has an EC2, though the setup box says G2). Pretty confusing. Maybe he does use G2s on his Ocheltree kit (i've definetly always seen G2s on those) and EC2s on his new Designer (it's harder to tell from the photos but perhaps it's because the Designer toms are naturally more resonant?). It would also somewhat explain why magazines and such tend to give different answers.