Drumming now for almost 6 years and learned something new every day, I am just starting to up my game and only just starting to be comfortable calling myself a drummer. I like your advice its clear non pushy and effective hence I just subscribed. Great video thank you.
I just want to say how I love your videos. It's a wonderful thing you're doing for those who may not know and those who may know, but just enjoy good, thoughtful content. You're preserving wrists, spines, ankles, energy..., preventing 'headaches'..., saving folks' hard-earned money form being wasted on unnecessary medical bills... Thanks for doing what you do and the way you do it.
I just recently started taking drum lessons and after a few lessons we noticed a lot of weird placements for my kit set up. There were a ton of little things i had overlooked or just never gave any thought to. I lowered my hihats adjusted my double bass petal, raised up my drum throne. Now i feel like i flow and am much more comfortable around the kit. These things may seem small but they really are important to not overlook.
Nice! I love to hear things like this. I’m about to upload a video that talks about little about why a good teacher is so important. I’m glad you’re making progress on the kit. Thanks for the comment!
Good lesson! On my left side, using a double BD pedal, I push the BD pedal about an inch forward so the "Ball" of my left foot is closer to the "Toe" of the HH pedal and when I move to the BD pedal it lands a little more back in the middle of the footboard.
That’s a great tip. I don’t play double very much, and I have found that my feet do contact the pedals very differently for kick playing than hat playing. Thanks for the comment!
Solid concepts! When I learned to start with my throne in trying to find my best kit set-up, and then snare, pedals and so on, I immediately felt more comfortable and relaxed while playing. A simple four piece configuration is usually a breeze to set up. If the rack tom has a greater shell depth which makes for a high position mounted on the bass drum, using a second snare stand, or better yet, "flying" it off a cymbal stand for more sustained resonance, easily solves the problem. It gets more challenging as more elements such as double pedal, extra toms and cymbals are added. It often comes down to finding a workable compromise in positioning, as close to ideal as possible. It may take a fair amount of experimentation to get there!
Well said. The major x factors in drum kit setup is that you can choose as many or as few parts as you want, and they can come in so many sizes, and they are almost infinitely positionable. Lots of experience and experimentation. Thanks for the comment!
Yes, exactly 🙌🏼 First the throne, then pedals then snare. Though I find it more useful to set up the pedals first rather than the snare, because I have more flexibility with where my snare drum is, less so with the pedals. Another factor is I play a double bass pedal and it is easier to set it up before I put the snare stand down. Then again as you shown in the video: floor tom(s), rack toms and cymbals and accessories.
When I look back at pictures of my kit when I was much younger, my pedals were closer to 90 degrees apart. I can't imagine now that was very comfortable then, but I don't remember it bothering me. My setup now is much closer to the natural fall of my feet when seated. One thing that I get questioned on a lot is the way I square up myself to the front of the stage as opposed to having my kick square to the front. The kick is aimed a little to the right, but this way I can interact with the others on stage as well as all four people in the audience a little easier.
"Torso twist," is a thing I've been hearing a lot about lately, and you nailed it. Four people in the audience?! I usually only get 2 or 3!!! Thanks for your comment!
Solid information als always. The placement of the left hand side pedals is kind of a challenge, because just one can be in the ideal position. In a performance situation I play 95% on my Hihat so it's clear that I would rather live with a double pedal which placement is not perfect. Doublebass guys will do it the other way. Among the smaller drum channels dealing with equipment topics this is my favourite!
I always angle the bass drum too, my feet are pointing in a V shape and my pedals and bass drum follow these lines. If you look at a kit with 2 bass drums they are always angled in the V shape, this can be done on single bass drum kits too.
I can't tell why or how, but somehow I nailed most of that right at the first try back then when I started. It just took a few days to find the final positions of the cymbals and my snare wandered sometimes an inch to the left or the right, but since then I´m feeling comfortable and "at home" at my kit. It just feels right...
I've been playing for almost 60 years and my entire setup is based on comfort because playing for hours can affect my playing and my entire body structure. Regarding my pedals, I have attached a short cable to each one, with the hi hat heel facing the front left leg of my tripod throne. Likewise, my bass pedal is attached to the front right leg of my throne. This is about a 45-degree angle and a natural position for my body. Of course, this didn't happen overnight because I did a lot of thinking about it because I was constantly saying to myself, "There has to be an easier way!" The cables are 1/8" vinyl coated wire with a locked loop on each end. They stay attached to the throne at all times but can be removed easily by sliding off the rubber feet to remove one loop. The opposite end slides onto the pedal before attaching it to the hi hat or bass pedal. My pedals are Yamaha (Hi Hat - HS65A and Foot Pedal - 7210) and work perfectly. The cables cost less than $10 from a local hardware store and I only had to adjust and set them up once for the perfect fit. After that, no more adjustment. They are always perfect for my body and my playing. "One and done". Hope this helps.
I got long arms so the snare in that tight in, feels weird. I like to sit on my throne, close my eyes, do a hit motion that feels good and natural. That’s where I place my drums. Also I like the edge of the high hat, almost directly about the snare rim. High hat about 5-6 higher than snare head. I play lots of jam sessions so lots of random kits and setups. Helped me figure out what I like and what feels weird.
I moved my rack toms off the kick drum to a stand, which I really feel more comfortable with. However, I struggle with my high hat feeling too close for my left foot or too far away for my hands
I'm a beginner but I feel like my setup is pretty good. I've watched quite a few videos about it. I'm not here to criticize anybody but I'm a member of a beginner drummer Facebook group and I've seen some really crazy setups. To the point where I wonder how a person could even play like that. I also know this, thinking about moving my setup gives me anxiety lol
Sounds like you’ve put a lot of thought into your setup. A really good way to fight that anxiety is to get some gigs. You’ll get really good and really fast at setting up your drums when you have to do it a lot. I remember how stoked I was when I got my first kit and a really “good” drummer set it up “right” for me. I didn’t want to move a thing! Don’t be afraid, though. In the long run you’ll only make it better.
If you play with correct hand and foot technique then the ergonomics of the kit setup will be correct as you discribe to allow that correct tech to be used. I allways find people with un ergonomic setups are working around poor technique. Every time i have worked hard on bettering my technique i have then found slight kits movements are needed.
for me, i have to try the angle where my favorite drummer plays facing the high tom and the snare facing the same center each other, i got to try the same angle on my drum kit and its kinda accurate and closer to the music video.
@@CommonSenseMusician yeah. but I saw a set up on the music video "What I've Done" by Linkin Park, on the last chorus before the chromatic build up, the camera shows a top angle of the drum kit and I thought I could try that set up. at least my cymbal stands aren't high enough.
@@CommonSenseMusician I had missing, 2 last stands for the splash and China Sabian Cymbals would be great. at least I also need the electronic drums because they are expensive and the 18" inch low Tom besides my snare as a left one.
My feet are not at 45° from each other. Neither yours are at 45°. Naturally they are almost (almost) parallels. Just slightly angled with the tips looking outwards. I’m a technical engineer, so the angle thing bothers me LOL
*_"SHAAAAAA,"_* ( 😃 *giggle, giggle* 😉 *eye'wink* ) *"Party on GARTH, but hey man, I already look like a pro **_"DRUMMING ROCKER!!"_* I have my "nose pierced," twice, both my "ears pierced," about "a dozen times" each, ANDDDD the "cartilage parts" too, my "hair is permed," like in a "gazillion extremely tight" curls, ANDDDD "grown out passed my butt," plus I have like another "gazillion tattoo's," ANDDD, my "favorite one" is of "you and your bunny-face!!!" "THENNN, SHAAAAAA, I have about a "gazillion silver," "gold," "copper," "LiL'-seashells," "pez candies" and "beaded bracelets" on each wrist, anddd oh... my "ironman watch," anddddd, like "each finger" has different kinds of "rings" on them.... There's my "wicked cool," "torn and tattered" in all the "right places," "denim pants," CAN'T FORGET my "leather biker jacket," with all those "cool buttons," and "patches," and "chains" on it, my "three-toned cowboy boots," ANDDDDDDDDD, of course last but not least, my "oversized Slash-tophat!!" Sooooooo, what else "do I REALLY NEED," like I said, I already look like a really super, wicked-cool, poster on bedroom walls, PROFESSIONAL!!! 😨 😉😂 *ANYWAY, KEEP ON KEEPING ON BROTHER DRUMMER!!!!!* 😎🤘🏼
Drumming now for almost 6 years and learned something new every day, I am just starting to up my game and only just starting to be comfortable calling myself a drummer. I like your advice its clear non pushy and effective hence I just subscribed. Great video thank you.
Thank you so much, and welcome to the party!
I just want to say how I love your videos. It's a wonderful thing you're doing for those who may not know and those who may know, but just enjoy good, thoughtful content. You're preserving wrists, spines, ankles, energy..., preventing 'headaches'..., saving folks' hard-earned money form being wasted on unnecessary medical bills...
Thanks for doing what you do and the way you do it.
Thank you so much. This comment made my day!
I just recently started taking drum lessons and after a few lessons we noticed a lot of weird placements for my kit set up. There were a ton of little things i had overlooked or just never gave any thought to. I lowered my hihats adjusted my double bass petal, raised up my drum throne. Now i feel like i flow and am much more comfortable around the kit. These things may seem small but they really are important to not overlook.
Nice! I love to hear things like this. I’m about to upload a video that talks about little about why a good teacher is so important. I’m glad you’re making progress on the kit. Thanks for the comment!
Good lesson! On my left side, using a double BD pedal, I push the BD pedal about an inch forward so the "Ball" of my left foot is closer to the "Toe" of the HH pedal and when I move to the BD pedal it lands a little more back in the middle of the footboard.
That’s a great tip. I don’t play double very much, and I have found that my feet do contact the pedals very differently for kick playing than hat playing. Thanks for the comment!
Solid concepts! When I learned to start with my throne in trying to find my best kit set-up, and then snare, pedals and so on, I immediately felt more comfortable and relaxed while playing. A simple four piece configuration is usually a breeze to set up. If the rack tom has a greater shell depth which makes for a high position mounted on the bass drum, using a second snare stand, or better yet, "flying" it off a cymbal stand for more sustained resonance, easily solves the problem. It gets more challenging as more elements such as double pedal, extra toms and cymbals are added. It often comes down to finding a workable compromise in positioning, as close to ideal as possible. It may take a fair amount of experimentation to get there!
Well said. The major x factors in drum kit setup is that you can choose as many or as few parts as you want, and they can come in so many sizes, and they are almost infinitely positionable. Lots of experience and experimentation. Thanks for the comment!
Yes, exactly 🙌🏼 First the throne, then pedals then snare. Though I find it more useful to set up the pedals first rather than the snare, because I have more flexibility with where my snare drum is, less so with the pedals. Another factor is I play a double bass pedal and it is easier to set it up before I put the snare stand down. Then again as you shown in the video: floor tom(s), rack toms and cymbals and accessories.
Thank you for the comment!
Love the Attack skins. Been using them since mid 90's.
The ones on that drum are OLD and they still sound killer. It’s the Terry Bozzio pack. Seriously good stuff.
When I look back at pictures of my kit when I was much younger, my pedals were closer to 90 degrees apart. I can't imagine now that was very comfortable then, but I don't remember it bothering me. My setup now is much closer to the natural fall of my feet when seated. One thing that I get questioned on a lot is the way I square up myself to the front of the stage as opposed to having my kick square to the front. The kick is aimed a little to the right, but this way I can interact with the others on stage as well as all four people in the audience a little easier.
Works for me too!
"Torso twist," is a thing I've been hearing a lot about lately, and you nailed it. Four people in the audience?! I usually only get 2 or 3!!! Thanks for your comment!
Solid information als always. The placement of the left hand side pedals is kind of a challenge, because just one can be in the ideal position. In a performance situation I play 95% on my Hihat so it's clear that I would rather live with a double pedal which placement is not perfect. Doublebass guys will do it the other way.
Among the smaller drum channels dealing with equipment topics this is my favourite!
Thanks so much! Always great to hear from you.
I’ve enjoyed the tips keep doing you 😊
Thank you!
Thank you for another great video and accumulated wisdom. Love that DW kit too, enjoy!!
Thank you!
I always angle the bass drum too, my feet are pointing in a V shape and my pedals and bass drum follow these lines. If you look at a kit with 2 bass drums they are always angled in the V shape, this can be done on single bass drum kits too.
Yep. Makes a lot of sense to think about it that way. Thanks for the comment!
Great video! I just put up a drum kit setup video a couple weeks ago with some of the same principles you just stated. Great content!
Checking it out in 3...2...1... Thanks for the comment!
Really great stuff. Thanks for connecting!
many thanks!
I can't tell why or how, but somehow I nailed most of that right at the first try back then when I started. It just took a few days to find the final positions of the cymbals and my snare wandered sometimes an inch to the left or the right, but since then I´m feeling comfortable and "at home" at my kit. It just feels right...
Nice. Sounds like you got it right. Thanks for the comment!
I learned this lesson years ago from Billy ward. definitely changed my way of playing.
Whoa! Billy Ward? That must have been amazing. Thanks for the comment!
I've been playing for almost 60 years and my entire setup is based on comfort because playing for hours can affect my playing and my entire body structure. Regarding my pedals, I have attached a short cable to each one, with the hi hat heel facing the front left leg of my tripod throne. Likewise, my bass pedal is attached to the front right leg of my throne. This is about a 45-degree angle and a natural position for my body. Of course, this didn't happen overnight because I did a lot of thinking about it because I was constantly saying to myself, "There has to be an easier way!"
The cables are 1/8" vinyl coated wire with a locked loop on each end. They stay attached to the throne at all times but can be removed easily by sliding off the rubber feet to remove one loop. The opposite end slides onto the pedal before attaching it to the hi hat or bass pedal. My pedals are Yamaha (Hi Hat - HS65A and Foot Pedal - 7210) and work perfectly. The cables cost less than $10 from a local hardware store and I only had to adjust and set them up once for the perfect fit. After that, no more adjustment. They are always perfect for my body and my playing. "One and done".
Hope this helps.
That’s such a great solution. Thanks for sharing!
I got long arms so the snare in that tight in, feels weird.
I like to sit on my throne, close my eyes, do a hit motion that feels good and natural. That’s where I place my drums.
Also I like the edge of the high hat, almost directly about the snare rim.
High hat about 5-6 higher than snare head.
I play lots of jam sessions so lots of random kits and setups. Helped me figure out what I like and what feels weird.
Playing a lot of kits definitely teaches you what works and what doesn't. Thanks for the comment!
another very good video! keep going please
Thank you so much. I definitely will!
I moved my rack toms off the kick drum to a stand, which I really feel more comfortable with. However, I struggle with my high hat feeling too close for my left foot or too far away for my hands
That’s the exact issue I had with my toms on a stand. I also played 13” hats for years, which made it a little worse.
I'm a beginner but I feel like my setup is pretty good. I've watched quite a few videos about it. I'm not here to criticize anybody but I'm a member of a beginner drummer Facebook group and I've seen some really crazy setups. To the point where I wonder how a person could even play like that. I also know this, thinking about moving my setup gives me anxiety lol
Sounds like you’ve put a lot of thought into your setup. A really good way to fight that anxiety is to get some gigs. You’ll get really good and really fast at setting up your drums when you have to do it a lot. I remember how stoked I was when I got my first kit and a really “good” drummer set it up “right” for me. I didn’t want to move a thing! Don’t be afraid, though. In the long run you’ll only make it better.
Nice and good
Thanks!
@@CommonSenseMusician you're welcome and greeting drummer and big regards 🙏✌️👍😀
I agree, but I place my snare between high and mid Tom, this jelps me to access the Toms more easily....
Great idea. I played that way for a long time and really liked it.
If you play with correct hand and foot technique then the ergonomics of the kit setup will be correct as you discribe to allow that correct tech to be used. I allways find people with un ergonomic setups are working around poor technique. Every time i have worked hard on bettering my technique i have then found slight kits movements are needed.
This is really well said. Technique definitely dictates setup. Thanks for the comment!
for me, i have to try the angle where my favorite drummer plays facing the high tom and the snare facing the same center each other, i got to try the same angle on my drum kit and its kinda accurate and closer to the music video.
I think it’s super valuable to try some of the things we see other players do. I hope it works out for you!
@@CommonSenseMusician yeah. but I saw a set up on the music video "What I've Done" by Linkin Park, on the last chorus before the chromatic build up, the camera shows a top angle of the drum kit and I thought I could try that set up. at least my cymbal stands aren't high enough.
Nice!
@@CommonSenseMusician I had missing, 2 last stands for the splash and China Sabian Cymbals would be great. at least I also need the electronic drums because they are expensive and the 18" inch low Tom besides my snare as a left one.
That will give you a lot of great options. Very fun to play.
No BS. Thanks
Thank YOU.
My feet are not at 45° from each other.
Neither yours are at 45°.
Naturally they are almost (almost) parallels.
Just slightly angled with the tips looking outwards.
I’m a technical engineer, so the angle thing bothers me LOL
Yeah, I definitely noticed that. The NIH website says that most people are 45s, but I’m definitely narrower than that.
*_"SHAAAAAA,"_* ( 😃 *giggle, giggle* 😉 *eye'wink* ) *"Party on GARTH, but hey man, I already look like a pro **_"DRUMMING ROCKER!!"_* I have my "nose pierced," twice, both my "ears pierced," about "a dozen times" each, ANDDDD the "cartilage parts" too, my "hair is permed," like in a "gazillion extremely tight" curls, ANDDDD "grown out passed my butt," plus I have like another "gazillion tattoo's," ANDDD, my "favorite one" is of "you and your bunny-face!!!" "THENNN, SHAAAAAA, I have about a "gazillion silver," "gold," "copper," "LiL'-seashells," "pez candies" and "beaded bracelets" on each wrist, anddd oh... my "ironman watch," anddddd, like "each finger" has different kinds of "rings" on them.... There's my "wicked cool," "torn and
tattered" in all the "right places," "denim pants," CAN'T FORGET my "leather biker jacket," with all those "cool buttons," and "patches," and "chains" on it, my "three-toned cowboy boots," ANDDDDDDDDD, of course last but not least, my "oversized Slash-tophat!!" Sooooooo, what else "do I REALLY NEED," like I said, I already look like a really super, wicked-cool, poster on bedroom walls, PROFESSIONAL!!! 😨 😉😂
*ANYWAY, KEEP ON KEEPING ON BROTHER DRUMMER!!!!!* 😎🤘🏼
That was an amazing read. Thanks for the comment!
@@CommonSenseMusician IT TRULY IS, my *absolute pleasure!!!*
The toms should be set up in front of the snare drum, and the ride cymbal should be set over the bass drum, tilted towards you a bit.
Nice! Thanks for checking in!
The ride always goes on the right or left side. That is why the ride rhymes with side. lol
Thanks, Capt Obvious! Very enlightening.
@@Drumwolf62 why its rhymes! lol , strangest comment i've ever read.
I’m a drummer, now going to check my set up and see if i’m close to your arrangement! Thank you.
Sorry but you have short legs. This video will not apply to tall guys like myself that are 6 feet tall or taller.
I’m actually 6’1”. What would you recommend for taller guys?
i'm glad you are sorry,
Way over thought.
You’re not wrong.
Very Nice
Thanks!