The worst gig of my life

Here is a point I think you are missing.

"If I am told that I have to use someone elses kit and me and my band feel the gig is not worth the trouble then we will decline the gig."

Using another kit is so much trouble you would turn down the gig? I just did a gig this past weekend and used a shared kit. The only things on it that were in a spot I am used to is the bass drum, snare, hi hat, one tom and one crash. Guess what I used the most?

And add to it that you were complimented on your playing so you are wicked upset over a personal preference, not anything that had to do with the reason you're there, your music. It rings shallow.

I do understand the confusion causing you to begin the night upset. But seriously the music is important and if you get to play in front of people that is a great thing. Enjoy it by not letting secondary issues ruin it for you.
 
I love it when there's a backline kit. Means I don't have to haul/setup/breakdown/haul my own gear. Maybe I'm just way lazier than the rest of you.
 
I'm ok with sharing a kit a gig. I can swing it on most kits with no problem.

That said, I did once have to put the hustle on a clueless promoter that tried to get 4 bands to share a kit at a larger gig. A little smooth talk and the promise of a quick teardown will get you very far. More bees with honey.

As promised, I was off the stage within 5 minutes for the other band to setup. If that gig got off schedule it wasn't because of me.
 
I love it when there's a backline kit. Means I don't have to haul/setup/breakdown/haul my own gear. Maybe I'm just way lazier than the rest of you.

I'm the exact same way! It means I have to haul less and spend less time setting up! And saves some wear and tear on my kit! As long as you can configure the kit in a way that is semi easy to adjust to. Like Drummingman, I too would be frustrated to jump on a kit where I couldn't access the bell of the ride, be able to move toms/cymbals because of memory clamps, etc...
 
I'll reaffirm my stance..guitars are all the same. 6 strings and no more than a few frets difference. Shape and weight should be a non-factor. Adjust the strap and go for it. Amps are all easily set to the desired spots fairly quickly. I doubt anyone shares a pedal board much but if someone experienced with a board was told where the distortion and delay were, it would be fine.

Not to be a complete jerk, but you don't know much about guitars, do you? One clear cut issue with this is that not all guitars have 6 strings. Plenty of bands play with either 7 or 8 string guitars now. It's not uncommon at all actually. It's similar to a drummer having very specific parts that are carried with double bass and the backline kit having a single bass drum and single pedal. Yes, it could work in theory, but it wouldn't make any sense and would greatly impact the music. Not to beat a dead horse here.
 
I'll reaffirm my stance..guitars are all the same. 6 strings and no more than a few frets difference. Shape and weight should be a non-factor. Adjust the strap and go for it. Amps are all easily set to the desired spots fairly quickly. I doubt anyone shares a pedal board much but if someone experienced with a board was told where the distortion and delay were, it would be fine.

And I agree wholeheartedly that a drummer should be able to make it work. I can do any of my songs on a smaller or larger kit, but I use a pretty basic setup and I don't get overly fancy. I really was just making the point that although someone like Peart clearly is capable of making something smaller work, it would still have a significant effect on what he's created with his normal setup. Would it sound bad? Of course not, but it wouldn't sound the same. Some people take their art more seriously. I don't.

And I'm not defending the OP's desire to only play on his own kit. It's unrealistic, and I actually think kit sharing would be a fun challenge. I've never done it, but I do play on 3 different kits every week and they range from crap to ok to really nice. One of my toms floats around during songs and occasionally one of the hihat stands will break loose, but I deal with it. If all else fails, keep time somewhere and ride it out.

I own quite a few guitars.

I can assure you they're all very, very different. You have no idea what you're talking about.

That's a side issue though.
 
Not to be a complete jerk, but you don't know much about guitars, do you? One clear cut issue with this is that not all guitars have 6 strings. Plenty of bands play with either 7 or 8 string guitars now. It's not uncommon at all actually. It's similar to a drummer having very specific parts that are carried with double bass and the backline kit having a single bass drum and single pedal. Yes, it could work in theory, but it wouldn't make any sense and would greatly impact the music. Not to beat a dead horse here.

I had absolutely no idea that you could get 7 and 8 string guitars.

That's bloody interesting is that.

Mind you, my mate on guitar struggles with 6 quite enough :)
 
Those of you who have been saying all guitars are the same may want to consider some of the ways in which 6 string guitars differ:

Differences in feel:
Radius of the neck
Fingerboard material
Fret height and thickness
Action (distance between strings and fingerboard)
Gauge of strings (heavy vs. light)

Differences in Construction:
Solid vs. hollow vs. semi-hollow body
Weight
Shape
Number of pickups
Pickup type - single coil vs. humbucker

The irony is that despite the portability of guitars, a guitarist can and will pick up another, potentially very different guitar to her own and be able play the song of their choice.

When you can carry your drum kit over your shoulder, then you can always insist on playing your own kit.

TBH, I really don't get what all the foot stomping, hair tossing and pouting is all about.

You want to play drums live, play drums.

You want to have everything absolutely controlled? Stay at home and make youtube covers.
 
I actually feel pretty good when I do a kit share gig and manage to make a decent job of it. Makes me feel proud. Best gig I've ever played was on a shared kit, the cymbals were so high I nearly had to stand up to reach them, and the floor tom was so low I missed it the first couple of attempts (and then when I hit it, it felt like banging into a bowl of custard the head was so loose).

I did my first ever audition at a studio with a house kit. (And I got the gig).

But hey, each to his own. As someone else has said, there's no right or wrong, we can all make our own rules for what we want to do and don't want to do, and where we will or won't play.
 
I'm the exact same way! It means I have to haul less and spend less time setting up! And saves some wear and tear on my kit! As long as you can configure the kit in a way that is semi easy to adjust to.
Yeah, less wear and tear on my gear is a positive I've considered as well. For backline gigs, I bring my stick bag, cymbal bag, throne, snare, and kick pedal as these are the only critical things I would imagine swapping out. I've only ever used my own pedal and sticks though. All the backline or house kits I've used have been good enough to pretty darn nice. I think it also helps that I'm a small-kit player anyway, so as long as the key pieces are in place, I'm pretty good to go.
 
Wow, reading all the posts it is clear a nerve was struck.

I would always rather use my kit. I play in a cover band, so we don't do as many multi-band gigs as the original music bands. Occasionally we will do a benefit for charity where there is one kit, and I make the best of it. Sometimes it's fun because the supplied kit will have something cool that mine does not. Sometimes the setup is weird to me and I have to deal with it.

What is kind of funny is that we all debate which brand/wood/acrylic shell/series/suspension mount/head/cymbal etc..etc.. is best, and some really have strong opinions on what they want or like best, and then the opportunity to play in front of a crowd comes and you don't get to use all this awesome gear that you put so much thought and money into.

I do have a gig coming up in April where I have to use someone else's kit. I plan on contacting the other drummer to touch base and bring my own seat, pedal, snare, and cymbals. It is only one set and close to home, so I am hoping to have fun- after all if you are playing the drums- how bad can it be?
 
What is kind of funny is that we all debate which brand/wood/acrylic shell/series/suspension mount/head/cymbal etc..etc.. is best, and some really have strong opinions on what they want or like best, and then the opportunity to play in front of a crowd comes and you don't get to use all this awesome gear that you put so much thought and money into.
Yeah, good point, but it's a double-edged sword. Since I put so much time/work/research/money/etc into my kit, I'm not too keen on bringing it to a dive bar gig where there's a not-so-remote chance of beer getting spilled on it or some other mishap. On the other hand, in a nice venue in front of a large audience, it would be nice to have my "signature" kit on stage rather than a backline kit. But I think not having to haul my gear will be consolation enough for me in those situations.
 
What is kind of funny is that we all debate which brand/wood/acrylic shell/series/suspension mount/head/cymbal etc..etc.. is best, and some really have strong opinions on what they want or like best, and then the opportunity to play in front of a crowd comes and you don't get to use all this awesome gear that you put so much thought and money into.
?

That's actually a pretty fair point.

Personally, I don't give a toss about any/all of the above which perhaps colours my thinking. But yeah, good point well made.
 
I actually feel pretty good when I do a kit share gig and manage to make a decent job of it. Makes me feel proud. Best gig I've ever played was on a shared kit, the cymbals were so high I nearly had to stand up to reach them, and the floor tom was so low I missed it the first couple of attempts (and then when I hit it, it felt like banging into a bowl of custard the head was so loose).

I did my first ever audition at a studio with a house kit. (And I got the gig).

But hey, each to his own. As someone else has said, there's no right or wrong, we can all make our own rules for what we want to do and don't want to do, and where we will or won't play.

Total mixed bag for me. I've played on some beautiful kits. One of them I specifically asked the owner how he got his toms sounding so beautiful and thanked him for letting me use them. Then there was Huddersfield
 
Not to be a complete jerk, but you don't know much about guitars, do you? One clear cut issue with this is that not all guitars have 6 strings. Plenty of bands play with either 7 or 8 string guitars now. It's not uncommon at all actually. It's similar to a drummer having very specific parts that are carried with double bass and the backline kit having a single bass drum and single pedal. Yes, it could work in theory, but it wouldn't make any sense and would greatly impact the music. Not to beat a dead horse here.

I play guitar and grew up in a house full of them. I had a nice long, likely boring response, but I really hate never ending back and forth discussion on the Internet. If I was having this chat in person I'd have already gotten bored with it, karate kicked the air for no other reason than to look like the village idiot that I aspire to be, and found something else to appease my ADD brain. I respect your and everyone else on the Internet's opinion. We can disagree. It's what makes the world beautiful.
 
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