My Trixon Cocktail Kit (Cocktail Craze of 2011)

Garvin

Pioneer Member
Must be something in the water indeed... Well, this isn't nearly as cool looking as DMC's Tiki-Kit, but I did just buy myself a new Trixon Cocktail kit. I posted a couple of videos on youtube, and I wanted to offer a bit of my own insight into playing one of these things, as well as a little about the recording process I used. I've reviewed the kit in another forum, but I'll cut and paste that in later.

Playing a cocktail kit is different. Being a jazz-minded player (in my mind anyway) has led me to relying heavily on the hihat for phrasing and just for general continuity of sound. Comoping on a cocktail kit just isn't the same without the hihat pedal. Also, the articulation of the bass is definitely different. Soft and subtle doubles are there, but not natural (yet). There is a bit of a difference in the layout and movement around the toms as well as they tend to lay flat on the same level. Some kits are configured differently but in my observation, traditional "cocktail kits" tend to be configured the way you see in the video.

For the videos, I used 3 different tracks. An audio track of the play along, a mic input (AKG-C1000S) for the drums, and the video track. I spliced all 3 together in imovie and am pleased with the results. It gives a cleaner recording sound than if I just played the audio through a speaker and used the onboard mic from the camera.

I'm fairly happy with the sound. Again, I'll post my review shortly. But for now, here are the videos.

Jazz: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MekCIe7NS-Y

Funk: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEVFs4JAA3I&feature=related
 
That really is something quite special. The kit sounds great! I'm most surprised by the snare, I thought it would be very high-pitched, but actually it sounds much more grown-up. It's got to be all in the tuning.
 
I quite enjoyed the sound of you kit, and your playing!
Just one thing, SMILE! :)
 
Just one thing, SMILE! :)

I know, right? Cocktailing is serious buisness... I don't know why I'm scowling.

And MFB, the snare is the worst drum on this kit. There is no range and it is actually horribly out of tune. I've been wrestling with it since I took it out of the box. I just keep it in a medium register because the overtone (which I usually love) is so horribly out of whack. But thanks. Being the tuning freak that I am, this is where the price is reflected most in this kit.
 
Hmm, odd, they all sound pretty pretty dang good on the recording.

I've begun smiling all the time when I play, dunno why, but it actually seems to have an effect on my playing. Happier? More Exciting?
 
Great playing and I love the sound of your set.

How about some photos and specs? Are those the cymbals that came with the set?

You are right, it is quite a bit different to play standing. It is actually pretty uncomfortable as I have to shift my weight from one foot to the other to reduce fatigue. I have always relied on my left foot to keep time and now it is not there. On the other bhand, I play bass drum now with my left foot about 30 percent of the time. I find I lose a lot of foot control and faciliity playing standing.

The stock snare I got with my set was terrible, a little 8 by 5. I converted that into a tom and I bought a Pearl M80 10 by 4 snare that sounds terrific.
 
Thanks DMC. Yeah, the snare on this thing has been a struggle. The only great sounding cocktail snare I've ever heard or played was the Club Jordan (I used to have one of those). I appreciate the compliments on the sound, but I'll continue to pass that praise onto the AKG mic.

Specs are as follows:

8″ by 5.5″ Snare
10″ by 5.5″ Tom
15″ by 25″ Bass Floor Tom

The cymbals are not stock. I bought a set of 12" Bliss Dream hihats, and used a little 8" Sabian splash. I play my Zildjian Constantanople ride as well (on a separate stand).

Playing without a hihat pedal does present a great "trial by fire" opportunity to solidify the left hand comping ;)
 
Thanks DMC. Yeah, the snare on this thing has been a struggle. The only great sounding cocktail snare I've ever heard or played was the Club Jordan (I used to have one of those). I appreciate the compliments on the sound, but I'll continue to pass that praise onto the AKG mic.

Specs are as follows:

8″ by 5.5″ Snare
10″ by 5.5″ Tom
15″ by 25″ Bass Floor Tom

The cymbals are not stock. I bought a set of 12" Bliss Dream hihats, and used a little 8" Sabian splash. I play my Zildjian Constantanople ride as well (on a separate stand).

Playing without a hihat pedal does present a great "trial by fire" opportunity to solidify the left hand comping ;)

Depending on your level of comfort with this, I would suggest getting a few extra OEM mounts from Trixon, bolting them to the shell and getting your own snare and mount your ride on the kit.

The cocktail set takes a lot of adjustment. The "floor tom" is at the core of the kit and the snare off to the side, which is the opposite of a standard kit. You have to re-lean many patterns and stickings. I'd say about 80 percent of what you've learned at a traditional set is useful; the other 20 - which is quite a bit - must be re=learned for the peculiarities of the cocktail set.

Have you jammed with anyone yet? Be prepared for other musicians. The will totally dig your cocktail set and wonder why more drummers don't play standing. This kit is ideal for busking or getting into venues were there isn't as much room, or where they'd freak if you brought in a sit-down drum set.
 
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