Hi,

It seems we have to give our age to enter this correspondence:

56.

And our gear:

Gretsch and Ludwig for the most part.

Now my modest point is about how different we are. I sit down at a set of drums, even at 56, I am tickled pink, I am in my element, all is good with the world. For me that rosy glow encompasses most kits on earth. I like to hit em, polish em, tension them up, etc.

The concept of having an actual hate on for a drum mystifies me.

Trigonometry, I can hate weird unseen goopy stuff squeezing between my toes I can hate, Membranophones, nah.

Cheers fellers and back to work,

Patrick

Yep, to what you said.

An old musician once told me " Close your eyes......if it sounds good it IS good"

Good words to live by..... Is it how it sounds, how it responds, how it is tuned,how it resonates....???? or What company made it...??

I have a set of cheap....very cheap ... percussion plus ... I have them tuned to my liking and I would challenge anyone to "prove" they sound BAD....I also have vintage slingerlands that are tuned to my liking and the same applies.

If it sounds good it is good.........Ive heard DW kits that sounded awful to my tastes.... and a few that sounded phenomenal. Same also applies to other "brands".........Tired of seeing DW ads..... Not me....the stuff isnt junk....

A DW kit with YOUR WOOD.....YOUR HEADS..... YOUR TUNING.....YOUR SIZES.... should sound good to YOU!

Z

AS for thier list of endorsees,it's all about the bucks! Not saying they don't make great drums,just putting things in perspective. I've never played a DW set but have heard a lot of them played at shows HOWEVER ,really,once a kit gets pumped thru the sound system at an arena are we really hearing the fine nuances of the drums?

I think a good sound man could make a 60's MIJ kit thunder .I have always said put good heads and tune them right and,you can make any drum sound good.

I simply am taking this path, As my buddies Chet falzerano and kevins reminded me you can't fence with an unarmed opponent!Sumo DudeD' Drummer

This thread seems silly. What drummer (or drum enthusiast) could get tired of seeing a specific drum company's products? I love seeing all the awesome vintage stuff on here, including the neat Japanese stuff, and also what's presently made. Seems like maybe someone's cranky cause they can't afford 'em, or something. How can one tire of any drums? Maybe it's a touch of the "Ford guy" hates Chevy? I could be wrong. flower

I think Dw drums are the best for that modern rock/pop sound. Ive only played on one dw kit and it was okay but nothing can compare imo to a gretsch vintage or usa custom set. Maybe I prefer gretsch since I mostly play jazz. Ive heard some of the Dw jazz drums and they sound like Gretsch drums so I dont know what sense it would make to buy Dw when you could just buy a Gretsch kit for that sound. I used the Dw light flat base stands for a little over a year and they didnot hold up at all. I play out 4 to 5 times a week and these stands just wore down very fast to the point that the flat base would give out and I would have to catch the stand from falling over. A friend gave me some vintage Ludwig flat base stands and I have not had any issues. Dw drums seem to be the best drums for that rock sound today and they do have alot of cool shell and finish options that other companies cant compete with.

Back in the mid 'eighties I went out to see Don and look around his plant. I had a couple of ideas for his pedals and how they could be fortified against my style of playing: he ignored me, but that is hardware which is an altogether separate issue. He did however, do more for the science of drum making than all the other companies up till that point put together. He illustrated, for example, a long held belief of mine that the two heads MUST be absolutely parallel around their entire circumference if purity of overtone was to be achieved. I'd known this for years but none of the drum designers I ever talked to took any notice whatsoever (and believe me I have talked to a lot since 1970). He also went to great lengths to match the timbre of the individual shells in each kit. He enthusiastically endorsed the use of Rims mounts at a time when half the drummers in the charts were playing electronic drums. He produced some magnificent finishes and enthused vehemently over the virtues of the unwrapped shell. He went to equally great lengths to establish an optimum bearing edge - that was not the same for each drum, I might add. And etc etc etc. I could go on all day long extolling his virtues but it is just so much wasted breath in the face of irrational prejudice. I play an 'eighties Gretsch and a Fullerton Rogers because I already owned them, but otherwise, I would be out at Don's place asking for his recommendations. BTW: see my new posting regarding an audience's reaction to drum tone.

I still call hogwash on most of the above post timbre matching, rims mounts,unwrapped shells, as far as i am concerned are all gimmick sales propaganda and here is why.. some of the very best drum sounds (overtones) i have ever heard ever! were Native American drums made from a log, horsehide, or buffalo, and rawhide lashings and hit with a stick with a stuffed hide bag on the end so so much for high tech...

My whole point of this thread was that in the 60,s and early 70,s when you saw groups on tv or live you saw Rogers,ludwig,slingerland, gretch,pearl,primere,and others now seems like all you see is DW and i guess if i offered every tom dick, and hairy drummer free drums they would play my brand as well point being it is not about how great or not that they are it is all marketing and sales..

In the glory days of drums they were made by folks who cared about quality and inovation... it is my story and i am sticking to it.. :)

60 years old and i have played rogers for 45 years and Ludwig for maybe total 3 I have played DW and they have no soul...

Who can argue with a statement like that!!!!! of the very best drum sounds (overtones) some of the best i have ever heard ever! were Native American drums made from a log, horsehide, or buffalo, and rawhide lashings and hit with a stick with a stuffed hide bag on the end so so much for high tech... then why did you pick what you play then ????go get yourself a log and some skins then!!Cooked Egg I find this to be very Immature and laughable