Drums: Trick with Millusions Flame finish. The shells are made of 6061 T-6 Aircraft Aluminum. 45 degree (double) lathe cut bearing edges.
Rack Toms: Evans EC2 Clear top and Genera 1 clear bottom.
10" x 8"
12" x 10"
Floor Toms: Evans EC2 Clear top and Genera 1 clear bottom
14x14 with Legs
16x16 with Legs
Kick Drum
22x18... The Thunder from Down Under... This drum is GREAT! Great spurs too! It sounds like it's theres a microphone on it when it's being played acoustically.
Snare Drum
7x14 Trick
Hardware:
Rack: Pacific Curved Rack with Gibralter Add-Ons and DW Tom Holders
Pedals:
Bass Drum Pedal: Trick Pro1V
Hi-Hat: First Generation Axis modified to be a rack leg.
Cymbals:
I'm picky about cymbals. Really REALLY picky. I don't care who makes a cymbal, I only care how it sounds. For that reason my cymbals are from MANY different brands. Each one is "ear" selected based on the tonal character with complete disregard for the manufacturer. Yes, I have selected cymbals while blindfolded a few times and the results are not what you would expect! I RARELY selected a Zildjian or a Sabian based on sound, though I have some of them. So, below I will list the cymbals I regularly use and tell you why.
Hi-Hats:
I have 14" Meinl Raker hi-hat cymbals. Why? They SMOKED every other set in the shop. Nothing even came CLOSE. The "chick" with the foot, was cutting and bright. The partly open sound was washy and still cut through the rest of the kit... the volume is impressive. These are sweet cymbals!
I should add, that the best sounding hi-hat cymbals I've ever owned, or heard for that matter were made by UFIP. I had a set from the 80's and they were sweet. They were stolen in the late 90's. After searching eBay at LEAST once a month looking for a replacement set i bought back the ORIGINAL set that I owned and they now live on an X-Hat on the right side of my kit.
Rides:
Primary Ride is an early 70's Zildjian 22" medium ride. The bell cuts nice, the main body of the cymbal lacks a bit of "ping" but the underlying darkness is really nice. It's not trashy and the "wash" doesn't build up. It's a great rock ride. Useless for jazz.
Secondary Ride is a 20" wuhan (yes, wuhan) with aluminum rivets in it. The bell is small and cutting, the main body is dark and shimmering. It builds nicely. This cymbal is magic! It's HEAVY and mysterious, cast and hand hammered. I've never seen another like it and it's absolutely incredible.
Crash:
18" K Zildjian Ride. Yep, it says ride on it. It's a great crash. It's an awful ride... go figure. Remember a LONG time ago when a cymbal was a cymbal? They didn't have logo's on em for the crowd to see? They didn't have designations like "ping" and "ride" and "crash". You HAD to listen and choose how a cymbal would be used, and those days were better. This crash is fast and medium dark. I like it.
18" Sabian Crash. All by itself I hate this cymbal. I had to buy it to get the 18" K, but together, they sound great. By itself the Sabian sounds slow and clumsy. This is yet another good reason to buy with your ears. I put this cymbal on the stand and started working it and it sounds so good when used in the same kit as the K, I can't imagine not having the thing. Thanks to J.M.R for selling me the K and the Sabian.
18" Sabian AAXplosion Crash. I like this one a lot better than the other Sabian.
20" THOR. This no-name cymbal was made in west germany. Could be camber, probably is Meinl. It's dark. It's mysterious. it was DIRT cheap (used). It has a bit less volume than the 18" crashes I have, but it's completely musical sounding. It doesn't KNOW it's a cheap cymbal. I paid 30 bucks second-hand for it and I like it a lot! It's also a GREAT jazz ride.
Splash Cymbals:
10" Meinl Classic Series. This cast, hammered and lathed cymbal is really great. Made the Zildjians and the Sabians look like a joke in the store. I bought it blindfolded. It was a little pricey for the size... hands down the best splash I have ever owned and amongst the best I have heard.
12" Wuhan. OK, what can I say about a 10 dollar splash cymbal? It's REALLY nice. Seriously. I tried a dozen of 'em. This one was the best of the lot!
China:
18" Wuhan with Rivets. This is your basic Wuhan China with an added twist... It has rivets. Makes the trash even trashier. It's loud and obnoxious... a real reliable trashcan lid sound. I love it.
14" Wuhan, Cracked. Of course it's cracked, all small Wuhan cymbals break. Even if I buy a new one. it ends up cracked in a week, so why bother until it falls apart. These things even sound great when they're broken.
So, this odd grouping of cymbals probably comes across as a bunch of junk to the average drum afficianado. I have to agree that on the surface it sounds like I have second-rate stuff here. Together, as part of the whole instrument, I have to disagree. The combination of these cymbals sounds musical, in spite of the mixed brands. I think as a whole they are FAR better than the sum of it's parts, and that's the whole idea. For this reason, I have a distinct sound. My choice to NOT buy the status quo is in part the result of knowing what I want to sound like, and going for it. None of these cymbals are cheap junk. They are ALL quality products that sound musical in their own right (except the 18" Sabian, that's a a dog on its own.)
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