Bearing edge comparison: vintage - 30° - 45° - 60°

What would you prefer?


  • Total voters
    32
Finally, all the pieces are in play for complete paralysis by analysis!
Just watch these videos for a year, guess which combination is best and in the end just buy an old Export, because "no one in the audience can hear the difference anyway". 🤪
There are noticeable differences, some would be huge in recording. You're right though, you get everything setup just so and sounds great to you and you play better, because things sound and feel as they should. You then set up on stage and realize the sound man has chocked everything out and your hard work and dedication to detail has been wasted and you proceed to play like crap!

I disagree with the audience doesn't notice. The audience may not know one head from another, but they can tell when things are off. Case in point, a group of us and our wives went to see a Pat Benatar Tribute band. The first thing out of my wife's mouth was how great the drums sounded and how awesome the drummer was. Then, everyone else made the same comment throughout the night. He was a great player and held his own. Played the parts correctly as you would expect. The guitar player on the other hand was phenomenal. He was tearing through the parts with masterful fluidity. Only problem, the mix was off. You couldn't quite hear him a we should have and the comments were all negative. He's so loud, he doesn't sound good. They should have gotten a better guitar player, etc, etc. The same has happened with other performances where I thought the drummer was fantastic, but everything on his kit was mud.

People may not fully understand it, but know if they are being moved. 5 pounds of duck tape on everything and it won't matter how awesome you play.
 
There are noticeable differences, some would be huge in recording. You're right though, you get everything setup just so and sounds great to you and you play better, because things sound and feel as they should. You then set up on stage and realize the sound man has chocked everything out and your hard work and dedication to detail has been wasted and you proceed to play like crap!
Yeah, it was mostly a joke. That's why I used quotation marks. I'm not sure where I stand on all of this.
There are so many factors to a drum's sound, that it would take tons of these comparison videos to estimate which combination works best for you. Type of wood, ply/stave/steambent, edges, thickness, depth, weight of hardware, mounting system, hoops, heads, tuning... How often do we see people with phenomenal sets at home posting how they love their "beater sets" for gigging? :)
 
I disagree with the audience doesn't notice. The audience may not know one head from another, but they can tell when things are off.

This, while the audience can't pinpoint a specific difference, the overall result as a band will affect how they perceive you. It's our job to go a step beyond and figure out the minute details that together add up and make up the overall "aura" of the performance.

There are ways to work around a specific drum's sound with head choice and tuning, but I prefer to start with a drum I don't have to "fight" with.
 
based solely on the video I liked the vintage the best. I own a 80s Yamaha Tour series kit with pretty sharp 45* on the outside edge. A mid 2000s Starclassic Performer with 45* slightly moved inward from the edge and a 2019 Clubdate kit with rounded edges. I think the performers and clubdates sound kind of similar and the tours have more attack with less sustain and maybe less lows. None of the shells are made of the same material though, Birch/Mahogany, Maple/Poplar, and all Birch. I like them all
 
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