Perfect Balance Pedal-- I played it, thoughts

Took the plunge and upgraded to this pedal, just got home from the first gig with it. Money well spent!

I really like the extra length of the footboard, you can do a lot more with it. Then there's the feel, oh my me it's effortless to play. Already finding my strokes are lot cleaner as I'm not fighting the pedal.

The smooth footplate is the way to go! The round cam and strap drive is a match made in heaven. It's like the old Camco chain cam with a strap but better.

The self clamping mechanism takes a little practice and it can be a little awkward to get it off the bass drum if you have big hands like me.

If you're a single pedal player get one.
 
So, my update... As I wrote earlier, I really liked the pedal, but it did not feel right for heavier playing. Two new developments:

1) it doesn't work for my doubles playing like other pedals do. I use two notes in a row (fast) a lot in my playing.... And the PB doesn't respond to my technique. The Yamaha direct drive is killing it for that now.... I'm loving that pedal.

2) it doesn't stand up to the pounding--- one of the drum teachers at my school (I own BANG! The Drum School in NYC) has a bit of a heavy foot, and one day after he was teaching the PB was just not working right... Some mechanism was wobbly and loose and it seemed unfixable.

So, my romance with the PB is now officially over.... Sad but true. I loved her once....
 
I bought mine early last month (July) from Cascio. I was impressed with the feel and look of the pedal out of the box; not like a toy at all as someone here said. (My usual pedal is a DW 5000, but I have several others, mostly vintage.) Didn't want to take it out on a gig that weekend because I wasn't sure which kit I would use and I wanted to have the clamp tension adjusted just right so I wouldn't have to screw around with it. So it sat on a shelf for over a month until last weekend, when I tried to attach it to my C&C kit, but something didn't feel right. As you can see, the rubber pads are not even close to being the same thickness on either side, so that when tightened down, only one side makes contact with the hoop! It's past my 30 day return window, and I'm really pissed that I may have to pay to ship this thing back to Sonor for warranty "repair." One of the customer service guys at Cascio is contacting Sonor for me. I'm amazed that this could make it past QC! I really do think I'll like it, once I can get the damn thing to properly attach. Feels great to me.
 

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It looks like the thicker pad is not in its hole. There's a hole in each pad that fits inside each other, the top and bottom. It looks like the connection got squashed. Pull the pads off and you should be able to tell what's up.

Those pads are sometimes able to pop off accidentally. A small drop of rubber cement or sealant will hold them on.

Also, in general, make sure you don't have the pedal tightly on the hoop. The lock button can seem like it's snapped in, but it can come loose if the pedal needs muscle to attach to the hoop. It should snap on easily.
 
Wally Young said:
It looks like the thicker pad is not in its hole. There's a hole in each pad that fits inside each other, the top and bottom. It looks like the connection got squashed. Pull the pads off and you should be able to tell what's up.

Those pads are sometimes able to pop off accidentally. A small drop of rubber cement or sealant will hold them on.

Also, in general, make sure you don't have the pedal tightly on the hoop. The lock button can seem like it's snapped in, but it can come loose if the pedal needs muscle to attach to the hoop. It should snap on easily.
Click to expand...


Thanks, Wally-

I pulled out the thicker of the two pads (glue was indeed involved) and succeeded in tearing one of the two plugs. Still looks like one pad is significantly thicker than the other. Hopefully I'll just have new rubber sent to me by Sonor and I'll replace. I remember seeing one of these pedals totally trashed at a local GC, with no pads at all. Now I know why.
 
Yep, I've found the pads on the floor and I'm thinking of getting a couple extra pads to keep in the bag.
 
Jordan at Cascio contacted Sonor for me and replacement pads are on the way.

And, ten days later I'm still waiting...

Sonor now says replacement pads won't be shipped until sometime in NOVEMBER. F8ck.

9/20 update- Cascio is doing me a SOLID and sending me a new pedal since the replacement parts are delayed indefinitely. That's good customer service!
 
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Okay, Cascio sent a replacement and it had the same problem- uneven thickness of the toe clamp pads. Both went back.

I checked with Chuck Levin's Washington Music Center (where I initially wanted to buy) here in the DC area and ALL of their recent shipment of pedals had the same issue. Haven't heard yet what Sonor is going to do.
 
Very strange.

The pads should be the same on both sides because it's the same piece, only rotated for the other side. The top and bottom fit into each other and the top also gets rotated to fit the bottom rubber. Maybe a monkey at the factory isn't rotating the top pad and is just smashing it together.

Maybe it's the metal of the toe clamp?
 
Well, you're not going to believe this, but my guy at Chuck Levin's just emailed me the response from Sonor, and it's pretty crazy:

“The design is such that the pedal needs to be mounted slightly to the left in order for the beater to strike the bass drum directly in the center. The different size rubber pads make this possible.”

Think about what they're saying...
 
That would only make sense if the pads had different angles.

It's the same pad design as the Giant Step Dock.
Those little rubber pads should be bouncing all over the place wherever they keep them.
 
Update. Played a gig on Sunday and it started to fold up whilst playing at the end of the first set.

Thought I'd caught the button with my foot or something but it kept happening. Anyone else having/had the same problem?

Funnily enough it stopped doing it when I threatened to run it over after the gig in a van :) If I've got to go through Sonor to get a replacement (as previous posts suggest) I'm not going to be too chuffed. Thought that finally a simple concept would work!
 
mikyok said:
Update. Played a gig on Sunday and it started to fold up whilst playing at the end of the first set.

Thought I'd caught the button with my foot or something but it kept happening. Anyone else having/had the same problem?

Funnily enough it stopped doing it when I threatened to run it over after the gig in a van :) If I've got to go through Sonor to get a replacement (as previous posts suggest) I'm not going to be too chuffed. Thought that finally a simple concept would work!
Click to expand...

You most likely have the clamp adjusted too tightly or loosely on the bass drum hoop. I had a similar issue that happened once when I adjusted the hoop clamp too tightly. It collapsed on me. Once I followed the instructions on setting the clamp the problem has never repeated itself.
 
Check out drumnetics pedal if you want something that's built like a tank and should never give you issues.. 2 years in and mine is like new (2-3 hours a night every night). And no springs which i like alot :)


feldiefeld said:
So, my update... As I wrote earlier, I really liked the pedal, but it did not feel right for heavier playing. Two new developments:

1) it doesn't work for my doubles playing like other pedals do. I use two notes in a row (fast) a lot in my playing.... And the PB doesn't respond to my technique. The Yamaha direct drive is killing it for that now.... I'm loving that pedal.

2) it doesn't stand up to the pounding--- one of the drum teachers at my school (I own BANG! The Drum School in NYC) has a bit of a heavy foot, and one day after he was teaching the PB was just not working right... Some mechanism was wobbly and loose and it seemed unfixable.

So, my romance with the PB is now officially over.... Sad but true. I loved her once....
Click to expand...
 
mikyok said:
Update.
Thought I'd caught the button with my foot or something but it kept happening. Anyone else having/had the same problem?

Funnily enough it stopped doing it when I threatened to run it over after the gig in a van :)
Click to expand...

The threats do work!
Mine did that a couple of times and it got me so angry I threatened to stomp it to death, but after I loosened up the clamp a little bit and made sure I heard the click, it hasn't crapped out on me again, yet.

Icetech said:
Check out drumnetics pedal if you want something that's built like a tank and should never give you issues.. 2 years in and mine is like new (2-3 hours a night every night). And no springs which i like alot :)
Click to expand...

What happens to the bass drum mic when it's really close to the head?
 
Club Date said:
Okay, Cascio sent a replacement and it had the same problem- uneven thickness of the toe clamp pads. Both went back.

I checked with Chuck Levin's Washington Music Center (where I initially wanted to buy) here in the DC area and ALL of their recent shipment of pedals had the same issue. Haven't heard yet what Sonor is going to do.
Click to expand...

I just checked mine which is now 3 years old. Pads are the same as yours (uneven), so I assume they've always been manufactured that way. That said I never noticed a problem on my hoop, the pedal never moves. I would have never noticed it if you wouldn't have pointed it out!
 
I had this pedal, there's so much to like about it but i found it a bit too figidy in the end and sold it on, i didnt like the clamp mechanism or that you have to carry round its own key.
 
RickP said:
You most likely have the clamp adjusted too tightly or loosely on the bass drum hoop. I had a similar issue that happened once when I adjusted the hoop clamp too tightly. It collapsed on me. Once I followed the instructions on setting the clamp the problem has never repeated itself.
Click to expand...

I did try loosening the clamp and then tightening the clamp with the key just incase it was too tight or loose. Still having the same problems, I think the locking mechanism is fooked.

Seems to go if I'm playing fast triplets/16th patterns/big accents or on faster songs in general. I don't bury the beater either.

I've e-mailed Sonor as the pedal is only 4 months old regarding a replacement. I still have receipts as well. If I can send it back to the store I'm tempted to pay the extra few pennies and get the dw9000 and put the strap on that.

Reliability on stage is a must. Used an original 5000 for years and never had an issue.
 
And so ends the evening's after work drum noodling session...
The tension springs went loose on me again.

I ordered a Pearl Demon Eliminator chain drive. It should be here Friday.

I'll still use the Sonor pedal for band practice. The contraption didn't collapse. The spring unscrewed. I'll put a lock washer of some sort on there and keep going with it.
 
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