Let's talk about drums

[Embenny]

While I'm doing all this gear research, does anyone have any recommended learning resources? A whole world of online guitar lessons sprang up way after I really needed them, but I presume there are some great online resources for drumming, too, and I very much can benefit from a program that starts with the fundamentals.

I've heard some people say good things about Drumeo. I wonder though, if there's a drum equivalent of Justinguitar, which I see talked about all the time as a high quality free resource for beginners.

I'm not opposed to paying for lessons, but I don't want to be skipping over a free gem of a web site. I've mostly played by ear and practiced by playing along to music I enjoy, but I know from experience both learning and teaching guitar that you can make faster progress when following an effective program for your level of skill.

[øøøøøøø]

Also, I think I have to get an acrolite snare because literally everyone is telling me to get an acrolite snare. That's been the most frequent piece of advice on this thread so far.

50% of the time, crowd-sourcing opinions on the internet will steer you laughably wrong.

But not this time! I have never encountered anyone that regretted buying an Acrolite

[BTL]

If you're looking at new kits, I have bought, gigged 100% stock, and later sold off two Gretsch Catalina Club kits with Zildjian A Custom cymbal packs, and the second became the house kit for a local live music venue.

I went to a number of showcases where that kit was part of the backline, and I don't recall ever hearing a better live drum sound.

Different? Yes. Better? No.

YMMV

[Embenny]

50% of the time, crowd-sourcing opinions on the internet will steer you laughably wrong.

But not this time! I have never encountered anyone that regretted buying an Acrolite

Hah, too true, though I give OSG a bit better than those odds. People here seem to be a bit more reliable than the average internet forum.

No Acrolites have popped up locally yet, though. Keeping an eye out for sure.

[redchapterjubilee]

That's one of the few "universal drum truths". Everyone should own an Acrolite or Supraphonic.

[s_mcsleazy]

That's one of the few "universal drum truths". Everyone should own an Acrolite or Supraphonic.

this is kinda the truth. i used to play in a band who's drummer had a premier kit that he really loved but whenever it came time to record, he'd bring in his ludwig standard kit that had a acrolite snare. thing just recorded better.

[øøøøøøø]

To me, the Acrolite/Supraphonic is kind of like the Precision bass or Telecaster of the snare drum world.

There are all sorts of fancier, higher-tech, rarer, more expensive and more exotic things that take themselves way more seriously. Exotic woods, stave shells, wood hoops, heavy brass, hammered copper...

and somehow, the bog-standard aluminum... er... "Lud-A-Loy" shelled Supraphonic or Acrolite works a higher percentage of the time for a higher percentage of things.

I'd even probably rather have the cheaper more common aluminum Supraphonic than the rarer, more valuable chrome-over-brass variant.

[s_mcsleazy]

since we're talking about drums, what do you all think of COB snares vs. wood snares. i've had both in the past and i love the COB more if i'm playing more aggressive music but a wood snare if i'm player more mellow music.

[redchapterjubilee]

I've never had the exact same drum in both metal and wood so i could never truly compare. Metal shells are so much thinner, harder, more reflective, but tend to be rolled/flanged (as opposed to cast) so the edges aren't as sharp as wood shells can be. But most "vintage" drums will have roundover shells too. So it's really hard to make a true comparison. My kneejerk thought on shell material is that it matters less than shell depth/thickness, edges, and head selection/tuning/muffling. I also don't think wood makes much a difference in solid body electrics either so take my opinion with many grains of salt.

In my case, I own 4 snare drums currently: my trusty '68 Supraphonic I've had for 30 years; a mid '80s Corder chrome over maple 5.5" drum (Corder used Keller 6-ply shells in the '80s like DW did at first); a '50s Premier Olympic birch/beech drum (birch rings and beech shell or vice-versa...I forget which); and a Yamaha super sensitive style late '70s cast steel 6.5" drum. The Supraphonic and the Yamaha have a lot of low end. The Yamaha is brighter but with dry Evans heads it's much more manageable and it has less sympathetic snare buzz than any of the other drums. The Corder is the PERFECT recording drum. It has 42-strand snares and using the internal muffler cuts some of the ring. Lots of mid content and sits in a mix just right. The Olympic drum has a REALLY shallow snare bed and I cannot get that drum to sound like I think it should. It needs to be recut. 42-strand snares makes lots of snares sound mighty but the Corder has a great snare bed. With 42's on the Supra it rattles more. I just recorded over the weekend for the first time with the Yamaha and it sits really well in a mix too (I need to tune it a little higher next time). If I want something more soft or woody I'd tune the Supra down and maybe muffle more. If I wanted something more "metal" I'd use a thinner head, tune it up a little higher and muffle less for more ring and projection.