most important

jakester

Senior Member
i was wondering what is the the most important part of the drum set. is it the snare. is it the toms. is it the bass or is it the cymbals.
 
let me change the question. what is the heart of the drum set
 
Now, you should already know this. It's the drummer.

Dennis
 
Besides the drummer? Well, for me, that would have to be the throne - bad throne, bad playing....great throne, great playing. I learned that the hard way!
 
This isn't such a simple question. First you need a drummer. A throne can be optional. Next you need sticks to hit the drums with. But with out heads the drums are useless. So I'm going to go with heads.
 
That's an interesting question!

I don't believe there is a "right" answer because different drums and cymbals have different purposes so it's hard to evaluate them all on the same level. I'm going to have to think about this one for a while...thanks for provoking the thought! :)
 
This isn't such a simple question. First you need a drummer. A throne can be optional. Next you need sticks to hit the drums with. But with out heads the drums are useless. So I'm going to go with heads.

Without lugs the drums are also useless. So... lugs?

Oh wait, useless without tension rods too... I'll have to go with that.

Hmm can't do much without rims...

Need sticks to use drums...

But wait... No sound without a drummer...

Sorry OP but not a very good question. Everything is important.
 
Easy. The tasty beverage right to the left of my hi hat.
 
As if! Actually, you don't really need a drummer. A great bass player will do. Didn't you know he's the one running the band? I was mixing audio for the big bands we have here at Disneyland one Saturday and the drummer was stuck in traffic. The band decided to go anyway, and that was my proof right there that the bass drives the band. Nobody noticed there was no drummer. Everyone was dancing still.

In fact, when the drummer got there, the rest of the evening we kept wondering what that noise was on the stage!
 
Whatever it is, it ain't toms or crash cymbals.....they're colour. Nice to have to add flavour but let's face it, you could gig without 'em.

I could fudge my way through any gig with a set of hats, snare and bass drum....I'm guessing the answer lies somewhere there. If I absolutely had to pick only one of those, then give me a snare drum.

Dr. Watso.....I like the way you're thinking. Providing the tasty beverage is beer, then I'm not so sure that it's just important......I'd stress the point a little further and call it vital.
 
Without lugs the drums are also useless. So... lugs?

Oh wait, useless without tension rods too... I'll have to go with that.

Hmm can't do much without rims...

Need sticks to use drums...

But wait... No sound without a drummer...

Sorry OP but not a very good question. Everything is important.

You bring up a very good point. You need shells, hardware, sticks and most importantly a drummer that has the ability to play them well.
 
OK, now that there's a lively discussion about this, I'll revise my answer.

Since the question was "what is the the most important part of the drum set," it's got to be the person whose butt is on the throne! Drummers run the gamut from people who whack and bash the drums at that never-changing fff dynamic to those who could make Tupperware sound better than a set of Exports. Without a body in that seat and something coming into contact with those drumheads, they ain't making any noise. At that point, it's just there to look shiny or dusty or whatever condition the set happens to be in at the time.

The drummer makes the kit. Examining a kit for type of wood / type of heads / bearing edges / etc will only give you a ballpark estimate; they'll sound better, worse. Maybe they just sound okay. Yeah, we can all agree that all that stuff will say something about the quality of the sound, but in the end, you will not know what they sound like until someone hits them!

I'm not the first person to say they think that the drummer's the most important thing about the set, but I agree with those who did say that 100%.
 
Without a doubt, it's the cowbell. donk donk donk




Actually I'm going with the snare drum.
 
So if a definitive answer is established, what will you do with the info?
 
i dont know what i would do i was thinking since the drum set is the heart beat of the band then what is the heart beat of the drum set
 
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