Playing faster with a single pedal.

RaxCity

Senior Member
Hey drummerworld.

I just got a new Pearl Eliminator pedal, and it is a big improvement over my previous pedal. It is very adjustable, and I have been playing around with the settings for a bit, but I want to know what things I can do to be able to play faster, like doing fast doubles etc. Should I change cam, increase the spring tension, increase/decrease beater height, increase the beater angle, pull the footboard back, etc? I also want to get a decent amount of power out of it too when I am just playing normally. I don't have much experience in this area, so I'm looking for some advice from you guys. Also, right now I've pretty much got on the default settings. All advice is appreciated! Cheers :)
 
Make sure the pedal is comfortable...the rest is technique.
 
PRACTICE.


Sorry, but that is the answer... I have had plenty of different pedals and I usually adjust them until they feel good.. or like the previous pedal I had before. For the deathmetal stuff I am picky about my settings but more for endurance as I don't want to burn out my legs.


Playing in punk bands for years got my right foot doubles in check quickly... I don't think you should worry about a specific technique, or setting, rather than just practice doubles for a extended period of time every day.. I warm up with it usually if I want to focus on it. I try a few minutes of each.

RLKK RLKK RLKK RLKK RLKK etc... I move it around the kit too

RRKK RRKK RRKK RRKK RRKK

LLKK LLKK LLKK LLKK LLKK

RRKK LLKK RLKK RRKK LLKK RLKK

RLRLKK RLRLKK RLRLKK


I do it all to a metronome and make sure the outcome is tight solid hits... (Bonus independence exercise is to do 1/4, 1/8 and upbeats on the hats with the left foot while doing this)

I have been doing the bass drum exercise on my left foot with the double pedal lately and WOW is it tough.


I have an old Ludwig speedking I often use for fun and it has ZERO adjustments.


The only pedal things I would say is don't go max anything, and don't go minimum anything.. keep it in the middle and make very tiny adjustments... try it for a while after, not just a few minutes, if it feels worse go back and maybe go the other way, if it feels better leave it for a bit and maybe go a bit further the next day..


just remember things like beater distance, pedal height, spring tension all effect each other.. so if you adjust one thing and then another, you may have to tweak the first thing again.
 
Offcourse, there is differences in pedals and modern TOL ones offer almost infiante adjustment + weights you can add.

I like my regular DW 5000 and 9000 because they're dynamic pedals. They're not ultra modern made more or less only to play super fast metal, which is the only situation I think there's a little more speed to get, but only if one's already really developed.

Considering how much time we spend on our hands training them properly there's certainly room for most of us to be just as considerate in regards to our feet.

Propper warm-ups, stretching, shaking loose, working individual movements...

Doesn't have to be that complicated.

Start your day by playing 16th notes(start at 50bpm) for 1 minute heel down, shake loose, repeat heel up, shake loose. That's deliberate exercise.

I always go through several sets of basic 16th note permutations, fat back exercises in the Chaffee books. Go for quality. If you're not tired after that, increase by 5 bpm and you will be.

Stuff like what BB says works and just any typical exercise for the hands can be done between the RF and the hands.

When I play someting like a samba I often do a sort of 2 for 1 motion so that's something, but your foot has to be generally versatile for various dynamics and speeds.
 
Kind of related, I used to do a bit of mountain biking and read the magazines in the past. In one interview a downhill racer talked about how he used to scope out the tracks and adjust very possible adjustable element of his dual suspension bike to make it ideal for the course, and yet he'd still get beaten by his more experienced team mate. He asked for some advice and his team mate told him that he used to set everything "in the middle". That way he didn't need to get to used to how his bike handled in a different way every week and 'simply' used his skills to ride the course. So that's what the first cyclist did and predictably the wins and the enjoyment came in.
 
Kind of related, I used to do a bit of mountain biking and read the magazines in the past. In one interview a downhill racer talked about how he used to scope out the tracks and adjust very possible adjustable element of his dual suspension bike to make it ideal for the course, and yet he'd still get beaten by his more experienced team mate. He asked for some advice and his team mate told him that he used to set everything "in the middle". That way he didn't need to get to used to how his bike handled in a different way every week and 'simply' used his skills to ride the course. So that's what the first cyclist did and predictably the wins and the enjoyment came in.

I can relate to this. My teacher and I have been working on foot technique a lot over recent weeks and he has an ability to sit at any kit in the practice rooms he uses and somehow adjust to the pedal...... some of them are really crappy. When I asked him about this recently he explained that he used his crummy starter pedal for years and only traded it in once he had built his chops up. Now he says he can adapt to pretty much any pedal and, while some will feel better than others or be set up slightly differently, it is he who adjusts to the pedal rather than the other way round. Gut feel is that he still prefers DW 5000s though :)
 
It's just reality.

Like piano players we have to adjust.

I just came from a rehearsal which was a pain. Not because of the pedal, but there was no reso head. Very hard to be much of a dynamic player then.
 
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