Acoustic Snare w/V-Drums

[fartnokker]

Went out & played my first show last night using a DW acoustic snare w/the V-Drums. The experiment was an unqualified success.

I guess, to be specific, I'm now playing a realy hybrid kit, with acoustic snare & cymbals, with V-Drum kick & toms + efx sounds. By all accounts, the "pop" was definitely in the kit, and not only did it sound exceptionally good in FOH (I'm told), but my bandmates said they found it easier to lock in with me using the acoustic snare. Good monitoring is always key w/E-drums, but using the acoustic snare makes it somewhat less critical.

My general thoughts are this: The acoustic snare gives me better "feel" and articulation, and will probably make it easier to get good sound with the majority of sound engineers. I love the monster thunder that I get from the V-Drums kick & toms, and plan to keep using that live. It also gives me the flexibility to trigger a variety of effects & sounds for each song, so this hybrid kit is pretty much ideal for my current needs.

I'll most likely keep using the electronic snare for recording, or may use a combination of electronic triggered by & in addition to acoustic snare. We'll see...

So far, though, this setup has FINALLY produced the sound I was searching for. Of course, your mileage may vary...

-Danny

[acidbran]

Danny,
That is the set up I finally ended up on.
No matter what I tried, I found something was lacking.
I am all acoustic right now because I need the e's for personal practice, but I was using my yamaha snare, a real splash and crash and ride, 4 e pads and kick, and to the left of my real hats I had my pd 120 as an aux. snare. That was the winner set with me and my bandmates, also I could get a more even volume when I had an acoustic snare and ride to compare with.

I say, whatever makes the music and the time spent more enjoyable.
Jeff

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Jeff, using...
td 8,PD-120,
pintech pads,gibraltor rack, JBL G2 EON 15 AND Mackie srs-1500, BBE 462 yamaha maple customs, remo jazz kit, buttloads of cymbals... 96 Tahoe,leather.

[This message has been edited by acidbran (edited April 05, 2002).]

[puttenvr]

I use a hybrid kit too. It really gives you the sound AND playing posibilities which sometimes aren't there (or good enough) with e-drums. It's a kinda best of both worlds

[Steveo the Devo]

This is a nearly identical set up to what I use. It has a lot of advantages over the all electric or all acoustic style. Welcome to the hybrid club!

[MPCman]

If I'd ever use my ddrums live, I think I'd use real cymbals and an acoustic bassdrum. I don't know how an acoustic snare would work, I'm afraid of lots of crosstalk.

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My Personal homepage
MPCman's E-drum Picsite!

[puttenvr]

Originally posted by MPCman:
I don't know how an acoustic snare would work, I'm afraid of lots of crosstalk.

There is some x-talk. But with a full acoustic drum kit the drums also activate eachother. So: what the heck?

[MPCman]

Originally posted by puttenvr:
There is some x-talk. But with a full acoustic drum kit the drums also activate eachother. So: what the heck?

Yes that's true...
I guess next time I'm in a band and I have to perform, I'll take both the acoustic and ddrum snare with me.. if it doesn't work like I want it, I'll use the ddrum snare.



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My Personal homepage
MPCman's E-drum Picsite!

[fartnokker]

Not sure what the concerns are regarding crosstalk when using an acoustic snare. Since it is sitting on a conventional snare stand, not touching any of the e-gear, I have (so far) experienced no crosstalk problems whatsoever.

Maybe I'm just not understanding the problem...? Or maybe you guys are referring to rack-mounting your snare as well. I tried that when I first bought the V-drums, with not-so-good results.

-Danny

[Steveo the Devo]

Have to agree with you there. I have used an acoustic snare for a long time now and have never had it cause the crosstalk that you seem to be experiencing.
I have had plenty of crosstalk to deal with from the acoustic cymbals that are mounted to the same rack as the toms but not from the snare.
I must be missing something here.

[gingerbaker]

I agree that the an acoustic snare and real cymbals are sonically way superior to E-drums.

But, unfortunately, the biggest reason I got the V's was to reduce noise levels and save my hearing.

I would think if one uses a real snare and cymbals, one might as well just go back to acoustic drums?

Sure, you would lose some "perfect for the song" kits, but that is balanced by less stuff to carry, surely?

I'm not trying to preach here, or say hybrid is not the way to go for many people..just sharing my thought pattern.

Trust me,- every time my snare misses or gets the accent wrong and virtually every time I hit a cymbal pad, or try for the "in-between" high-hat sound, I think about going hybrid.

But for me--I like coming home and not have my ears ringing for three days. Sigh.

[puttenvr]

Originally posted by fartnokker:
Not sure what the concerns are regarding crosstalk when using an acoustic snare. Since it is sitting on a conventional snare stand, not touching any of the e-gear, I have (so far) experienced no crosstalk problems whatsoever.

My snare is near one of the electronic toms. And I play loud. So: sometimes the snare resounds in the drumpad (a piezo is a microphone, remember). Raising the treshold is one of the options, but as I said: with a real kit there is x-talk too. I don't care too much...

[fartnokker]

Gotcha, guys. Putt, you gotta be really nailing that snare, man! I've always been a relatively hard hitter, but you must be an 800lb gorilla!

Ginger, I hear you, man. If I wasn't using in-ear monitoring, I'd have my custom-made musician's earplugs in. I actually thought "what the hell, why not go all-acoustic again?" My reasoning (valid or not) is that I really like the sounds I get from the toms & kick, they pack up more compactly than a comparable-sized acoustic kit would, and I use some effects & electronic sounds every single night. I could use a multi-pad, I suppose, but if I'm digging what I'm getting right now, why change? Besides, recording is a breeze; mic the cymbals (4 mics, total) and plug in the V-Drums (with electronic snare) and go.

I'm sure I'll continue to use the electronic snare for recording, but the live sound is really good for me with the acoustic snare, and my bandmates like it as well.

Fortunately, we've all got tons of options to fit our particular needs. Right now, the hybrid is it for me in my main band.

Jude, you've got me second-guessing my strategy for the acoustic kit. I was thinking of working towards internal miking (a la May systems), but maybe a little trigger action would be a good idea. What do you use for your acoustics? Ddrum, or something exotic?

Thanks,

-Danny

[fartnokker]

Jeez, I wasn't thinking!!!! Didn't mean to offer you up as bait, man.

I specifically had all my shells cut with an extra air vent hole (& grommet kit) in case I wanted to do anything internal, but the triggering thing intrigues me. Once again, making best use of the stuff I've already got.

I'm not familiar with the Layon hoops... integrated peizo trigger in the actual counterhoop? Hmmmm....

-Danny