As we enter another week of what’s expected to become a long quarantine, some of us may not have touched our drums in a while. With that in mind, it’s time to finally clear the garage or that corner of your room because that will be your practice space for the foreseeable. Here are some of the top products to help make that happen…
1. Practice Pad & Sticks
DUH!! If you don’t have a practice pad or a pair of sticks already laying around, are you even a drummer? I know it’s the obvious and not the most exciting first choice, but depending on your space or how well you get on with your neighbours, it may be your only choice. ProLogix Practice Pads are FANTASTIC for keeping the volume low and the intensity high due to their range of pads, which consist from light resistance all the way up to extreme resistance. There’s a pad for everyone! Just grab a snare stand, the pad, a throne and sticks and you’ve got HOURS of practice ahead.
2. Low Volume Cymbals
The concept first came to market in 2015 and BLEW EVERYONE AWAY. Finally, a low volume solution to authentic cymbals was here. Since then, may brands have created their own version, with various models available. This allows the house-bound drummer to practice without shattering windows or driving everyone in your house round the bend with ear-crushing frequencies. Result! The Low Volume cymbals by Zildjian are crafted from a state of the art pattern combined with a specialist alloy allowing them to be up to 80% quieter than standard cymbals. That’s HUGE!!! Especially if you live in a multi-story building with lots of neighbours, it could literally be the difference between being able to practice and not! Just like that with a few stands and a few practice pads, you’ve basically got a quiet practice kit. The Low Volume Cymbals look fantastic, but perhaps the practice pads aren’t quite doing it for you. If only there was a way you could use your gigging kit but without putting silencer pads on it…
3.Mesh Heads
BOOYAH!! Remo made the silent(stroke) solution for allowing your acoustic gigging kit to become a practice paradise INSTANTLY!! The heads are all single ply to allow for a soft, spring like feel and reduce noise drastically. Applied the same way you’d normally put a drum head on the drum, these silent stroke heads allow for practice no matter what the situation! Combine these with those Low Volume cymbals and YOU my friend, have a fully operational “beats laboratory”. Now, if only there was some way of making your quiet drums SOUND like real drums quick, easy and without lots of triggers on all the drums…
- Yamaha EAD10
GAME. CHANGED. We’ve made it no secret how much we love the EAD10, and anyone who actually plays one feels the same within the first few seconds. For those of you who don’t know, the Yamaha EAD10 instantly transforms your acoustic drum kit into a powerful digital/electronic hybrid with sampled sounds and studio quality digital effects. The system allows you to play and record your acoustic drums along with your favourite artists from your music library and share them online! Now I hear you, “that’s all well and good if you can play your acoustic kit, but my kit has low volume cymbals AND mesh heads!”. WELL, they recently updated the software on the EAD10 with a patch specifically for Low Volume/Mesh Head drum kits! So just like that you’ve got a realistic sounding silent kit. Stick on some headphones and go for it! Now, all that’s great if your drums happened to be at your house, but what if you’re a drummer and literally have NOTHING…
5. Electronic Drum Kit!
I literally heard the “acoustic drums” purest let out a sigh. Well, surely you’d much rather play an Electronic Drum Kit than not play a drum kit at all. Electronic Drum Kits have come a long way since the days of the Simmons Pads. Firstly they’re built much better allowing for longer durability. Secondly they sound fantastic with modern drum samples and are easy to combine with existing software to incorporate your own sounds. Finally, they’re MUCH cheaper than they might have been 10 years ago. These days just under £400 gets you a fantastic electronic kit that sounds great, has lots of built in features and doesn’t take up much floor space. I’m talking of course of the Yamaha DTX402, with the model above, DTX432 being just a bit more expensive but is ALWAYS a winner at Christmas time or with pros who need a silent practice station that doesn’t take up a lot of room. Alternatively, if you want what some consider the “Rolls Royce”, the Roland TD-17KV would be a fantastic, mesh head alternative that also doesn’t take up a whole lot of space and sounds AMAZING
So there you have it, plenty of options for the drummers in lockdown. The great thing is that once all the dust has settled, you now have a permanent practice station right in the comfort of your own home that won’t irritate anyone. The entrepreneur in you might also see this as a valid online teaching opportunity as well! That’s a win win if you ask us. Head on over to the site and pick up some of these goodies now!
One Reply to “5 Amazing Products For The Drummer In Lockdown”
Aaron Brown
Hey guys. I’m thinking of getting a breaks/hip gig style smaller kit for small gigs (when we’re allowed!) and using at home with triggers and an EAD-10 for practice with LV cymbals. It’s a daunting landscape between Ludwig Breakbeats, Tama club jam, PDP New Yorker, Pearl, Natal, Sonor etc. How do you fancy doing a bit of a head to head piece for comparison?? The prices range from worryingly cheap to no-thank-you but it feels unlikely that we’ll be able to go to a store and compare them all ourselves.
Cheers!
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