Bo Eder
Platinum Member
So originally I was bringing out my Pearl Bonham kit for a buddy to use so he could play the blues. It ended up that I played 2/3 of the sets because he decided he wanted to play bass instead. The playing was so much fun - usually even when you jam with people, there's some discussion as to what you're about to play and the feel the leader is conveying to you, but it was so cool to have the leader say "We're in A" and off he goes, and you're flying by the seat of your pants. Of course, it's the blues so the format is something everybody recognizes, but the last few months I've been working things out in rehearsals and then the gigs are usually structured and a different kind of fun. This was just refreshing!
Another thing that took me by surprise - I was told they wanted to mic the bass drum and put out an overhead mic. So, I just assumed I needed to tune down and install the ported front reso head so we can insert the mic in there, which the sound guy did. But after we were done, he told me with this kind of kit, he was expecting me to have a full non-ported front head because he assumed I was going for a Bonham sound.
So maybe this is good news. If sound guys see a giant bass drum, they're expecting it to have a full front head and to ring like crazy. I shouldn't have assumed otherwise! However, the whole "mic-in-the-bass-drum" thing is so obligatory (even my Disney sound technicians are a little flummoxed when confronted with a non-ported bass drum), I was pre-programmed in this case. I will rectify this the next time I take the kit out. With my luck, I'll meet a sound guy who insists he be able to get a mic in there.....but maybe I'm on to something with the 26" bass drum. The Bonham legend of non-ported bass drums is getting to be a given nowadays. I sincerely hope this is the case!
Another thing that took me by surprise - I was told they wanted to mic the bass drum and put out an overhead mic. So, I just assumed I needed to tune down and install the ported front reso head so we can insert the mic in there, which the sound guy did. But after we were done, he told me with this kind of kit, he was expecting me to have a full non-ported front head because he assumed I was going for a Bonham sound.
So maybe this is good news. If sound guys see a giant bass drum, they're expecting it to have a full front head and to ring like crazy. I shouldn't have assumed otherwise! However, the whole "mic-in-the-bass-drum" thing is so obligatory (even my Disney sound technicians are a little flummoxed when confronted with a non-ported bass drum), I was pre-programmed in this case. I will rectify this the next time I take the kit out. With my luck, I'll meet a sound guy who insists he be able to get a mic in there.....but maybe I'm on to something with the 26" bass drum. The Bonham legend of non-ported bass drums is getting to be a given nowadays. I sincerely hope this is the case!
