reducing volume of acoustic drums

[CDT-sHaG]

Hi Guys,

My band practices in a garage (20'x20') and the the drummer's drums are super loud..we use a lot of dynamics in our music so I do not want to sacrafice this...he does have skill and can play quietly on some things, but for the dynamics he needs to be able to wail a little bit at times.

I thought about getting him some of those pro-mark sticks...multirods or something..as I've read that they help.

any ideas? I would do some semi-permanent or permanent soundproofing but the problem is the garage needs to be just like it was before we were there, once we're through practicing. so we can't attach anything to the walls or ceiling..

Thanks..

[Bulls Hit]

Throw a sheet over the drums & cymbals - will give a bit of a muffling effect

[Rimshot]

Well, your drummer needs to learn how to play softer. This is a skill a lot of new drummers never acquired since hey are usually competing with heavily ampified guitars and such, but your "old time" drummers were a bit more versatile since they were often playing wth unmic'ed piano and stand-up bass.
To be fair to your drummer, a 20' x 20' untreated room is going to have a lot of reflections that will make the dynamics of an acoustic drum kit sound even louder. The other musicians need only turn down their volume (not cranking it up to 11 ). You will probably not notice his volume is too loud when you are playing in a large hall filled with people or in a treated studio room.
I have noticed this problem also in some of the reference recordings that we have done in our
rehearsals (we rent studio space at a local recording studio that is farly well treated, but the rooms are small). I am barely touching the drums, yet my sound is almost overwhelming the tenor sax in the reference mics. Once we record in isolated rooms, it sounds wonderful. When we play at a venue, it sounds fine ,but in the smaller rehearsal rooms, the drums seem to dominate. It may be something that you just have to recognize and accept. Realizing that you aren't really getting an accurate feel of how your music is going to sound in a real world environment. Small rooms make cymbals sound ear-shattering, but that sound is the quickest to decay and it doesn't carry in a larger room. The kick drum is what carries and travels.
Only use the rods when the music calls for it. They mpart a character to the drums and the music. like brushes do. You don't use them the same way, so your drummer won't really be rehearsing what he'll be playing They shouldn't be used just to control volume, but because you want that sound.

[fldrummer]

Maybe when your gonna play a loud song put a heavy pillow over the front of the kick drum covering it. That should quiet down the kick.

It might be a good idea to invest in a plexiglass shield or ghetto rid something in front muffling it. Even get poles and heavy duty blankets all around him but making sure they can see tho. Since your in a garage you might be able to do a shower type rigging able to move out of the way when not needed.

Their's always those muffling headphones that are like 5 bucks a pair you see lawn people wearing. Get eveybody one and that will reduce everything but you can still hear enough to play with(works with me).

Hope that helps a lil.

[CDT-sHaG]

thanks for the responses..

well we've all played for a long time and the thing is he gigs regularly with a blues outfit that makes him have to play loud (becasue half the band is going deaf and they crank their amps)...we have myself on acoustic guitar and vocal, an electric guitarist and bassist. we're not loud but he is..we are concerned about the noise, not only for ourselves, but bleeding through the walls. I think he needs some adjustment time to get his volume back down..

we'll try the towel/sheet thing forst, then the multirods and see what happens. we rehearse once a week in the garage and play at a club at an open mic another day.

thanks

[mrface2112]

GET HEADPHONES

mic everything up (drums, amps, bass, etc), run the mix through a headphone amp and make everyone wear cans.

seriously

it will cut down on your overall volume b/c you can hear everything more clearly and no one's competing to hear themselves (and thus no more constant turning up the amps).

fringe benefits:
1) you'll help save your ears

2) you'll get used to wearing cans for when you go into the studio


i forced my band to do it, and we now play MUCH softer than we used to, we can all hear each other amazingly well, and we've learned to listen to each other (and have gotten better as a result of that). that, and i can hear after practice and don't have muffled ringing in my ears for days afterwards.

that, and practice sounds like a concert in my head....and that's REALLY nice.


wade

[CDT-sHaG]

we did that (low volume w/ headphones) with a drummer who played some roland v drums..that was killer.. but: actually, we mainly ran everything through a mixer and used one powered speaker on a stand turned up just enough for everyone to hear....no headphones.. it was really nice to be able to hear everything so well and be so low in volume.

my problem with the "full-band in heaphones" is that is I lose the "live" feel of the band.. and we really aren't that loud as a band...it's just the drums acoustically..

we'll rehearse tomorrow night and I'll report back on what we try out and how it worked.

thanks again

[CDT-sHaG]

we set him up in a different spot (away from the garage door) and he used the multirods. sounded great. when he had to use his regular sticks he just backed off a bit....

[MichaelM]

Those rods don't last that long, depending on how hard the drummer plays.... Well, I've got a pair and the tips of most of the dowels have cracked. Also, the drums don't sound as good if your using fairly heavy heads (like pinstripes). I only use them at home when I'm playing by myself.

[Axis]

I have that exact same problem with my bands drummer. [put duck tape on the drums and cymbals

[VTgreen81]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Taping and muffling has a place in the studio, yes, if needed, but the only real cure is to learn how to play the instrument to get the sound you want. Anything else is a cheesy shortcut. It takes practice but it can be done.

[mrface2112]

i did the duct tape on the drums thing when i was 14, too. back when i didn't know how to properly tune drums and didn't understand that heads need to vibrate in order to sound their best (i wanted em dead!!).

AVOID duct tape.

get your drummer to learn how to play softer. it takes practice and he'll not be thrilled that you're telling him how to do his job. of course, everyone needs to turn down.....that's almost always the case anyway.


and again, i'll reiterate the need for headphones, since it's apparent that you haven't actually tried it--even if it's just the drummer wearing them. for a simple investment of only a couple hundred sheckels for cans and a can amp, you'll really be cutting down on the overall volume, listening to each other better, AND saving your ears. IMO, fuck that "live feel" crap......that's an excuse for playing excessively loud. the best live bands in the world monitor with IEMs, and they're no different than headphones, and THEY sure don't lose the vibe. sure the first few practices with em were kinda weird, but we're a MUCH better band (and much better musicians) now. AND my ears don't ring all day the next day.


wade