I purposely don't have my left bass pedal at the same angle as my right. Anyone else?

[AllanGuy]

I was messing around with my pedal settings today, because I have never been able to get the two to feel the same. It was more like, my right pedal was perfect, but no matter what I did my left pedal would not come back far enough, and I could not get the power I wanted. So I tried something. I adjusted the left beater slightly behind the right beater. Now they feel almost identical (im still messing with it a bit, but it's much closer than before). I was just wondering if anyone else did this.

[1001gear]

No.

 

 

 

dum question...

 

 

 

:poke:

 

 

You mean the beaters? I was thinking footboard. I have a Gibby Intruder from the 90s and the two beaters are on different mounts and eccentric to each other. So yes, different angles.

[AllanGuy]

No. dum question... :poke:

 

Hey, it works for me.

[1001gear]

Read again. So solly.

[Jarick]

Yeah my left bass pedal is sitting in a case somewhere far away from my drum

[AllanGuy]

 

No. You mean the beaters? I was thinking footboard. I have a Gibby Intruder from the 90s and the two beaters are on different mounts and eccentric to each other. So yes, different angles.

 

 

Ya, sorry for the confusion. I meant beater angles. The foot board angles are the same.

[marko46]

I think all that really counts is that it works for you Allen.

[SYMBOLIC]

No. You wouldn't do something like that with your hands would you? My pedals are set the same. Granted I'm not using a double pedal, but when I did they were both the same. It will mess with your mechanics.

[Thomas G]

 

No. You wouldn't do something like that with your hands would you? My pedals are set the same. Granted I'm not using a double pedal, but when I did they were both the same. It will mess with your mechanics.

 

 

Traditional grip? :poke:

[AllanGuy]

No. You wouldn't do something like that with your hands would you? My pedals are set the same. Granted I'm not using a double pedal, but when I did they were both the same. It will mess with your mechanics.

See, those were my thoughts at first, but I couldn't get it to work. Double pedals are not the same as double bass drums. There is a seperate drive shaft in the middle that your main pedal doesn't have, and I'm guessing a few other factors that effect it and make it different than the other. With your hands however, they are both the same, just like if I had two bass drums. I was just wondering if anyone else here did it, and I guess I was also offering a suggestion for other people with the same problem.

[AllanGuy]

Traditional grip? :poke:

Speaking from purely a logical standpoint, it doesn't make sense to use traditional grip on a drum set at all. They were used because war (I think cival war) snare drummers used straps to hold their drums, and had to play traditional because of the angle of the drum. We don't have that problem on kits. Speaking of which, logically, playing open handed would make the most sense also. This is purely logical. I don't play traditional, but I do cross over.

[D Carroll]

I am still mastering the one. No need to add a second

[danrothmusic]

When I use double pedals, they are slightly different.

 

and I don't think playing open-handed makes sense--it seems pretty uncomfortable to me

[Bitter Dawn]

Allan: I think I get what you're saying man. I can recall having my left beater positioned a bit different than my right, as I had this notion that there was a bit of response delay from the left pedal - no idea if I was right or not though or, if it was purely because my left foot/leg was weaker than my right so, I was trying to compensate. I use to spend hours tinkering with my older DW5000, all in vain to try and achieve a performance that I thought was better.

 

In regards to the open handed thing...it's just bloody weird.

[irnbru83]

Not going to lie, grooving with open-hand really seems more groovy.

 

And I started off with left-beater slightly further back than right, then switched to keeping them the same. It's not like the spring tensions or footboard angles are perfectly matched either, so it's probably completely moot. As long as you get a smooth action out of it and no unintentionally galloping, you're golden.

 

Your left leg is going to be an uncoordinated wuss in comparison to right one anyway. Same way my left hand is still slightly stupid compared to right.

[k7mto]

My slave pedal is angled inward slightly more than my drive pedal but it's because of the way I play my hi-hat, whose pedal is right beside the slave pedal. I play the hat with only the ball of my left foot. The rest of my foot hangs off the side of the pedal. Same goes for both kick pedals. I play heels up almost 100% of the time. I occasionally play heel down on the drive pedal but never on the slave pedal.

 

btw, the beaters are even with regards to height, angle, etc.

[drumtechdad]

 

Speaking from purely a logical standpoint, it doesn't make sense to use traditional grip on a drum set at all. They were used because war (I think cival war) snare drummers used straps to hold their drums, and had to play traditional because of the angle of the drum. We don't have that problem on kits.

 

 

Not to hijack, nor start a ruckus, but trad grip is fine on a kit. It actually makes accessing your floor tom--and especially your second one, if you use one--much easier with less twist of the body.

 

Plus, there's too many guys who can burn it up either way to say one is demonstrably "better" than the other, logical or not.

 

Like the setup of your pedals, the grip you use depends on what feels good, is effective, and perhaps most of all, what you're used to. I wouldn't worry about a small difference in pedal angle if it meets those standards.

[Thomas G]

 

Not to hijack, nor start a ruckus, but trad grip is fine on a kit. It actually makes accessing your floor tom--and especially your second one, if you use one--much easier with less twist of the body. Plus, there's too many guys who can burn it up either way to say one is demonstrably "better" than the other, logical or not. Like the setup of your pedals, the grip you use depends on what feels good, is effective, and perhaps most of all, what you're used to. I wouldn't worry about a small difference in pedal angle if it meets those standards.

 

 

Not to mention is allows for Moeller and finger technique without having to switch from German to French.

 

Although the floor tom thing is a mighty big one, too.

[The Downbeat]

Whats a left pedal?

[drumtechdad]

Whats a left pedal?

 

The one that works the hihat, man.

[manoeuver]

nope.

[The Downbeat]

The one that works the hihat, man.

 

Ah, Just making sure I was using it right!

[AllanGuy]

Not to hijack, nor start a ruckus, but trad grip is fine on a kit. It actually makes accessing your floor tom--and especially your second one, if you use one--much easier with less twist of the body. Plus, there's too many guys who can burn it up either way to say one is demonstrably "better" than the other, logical or not. Like the setup of your pedals, the grip you use depends on what feels good, is effective, and perhaps most of all, what you're used to. I wouldn't worry about a small difference in pedal angle if it meets those standards.

In my opinion, it's all personal preference. It seems to me that hitting cymbals in traditional would be a little awkward, but like I said, personal preference. I first learned playing matched, and I am playing quads is high school, so I have no need or desire to learn traditional.

 

My drum instructor is trying to get me to play open handed more, and he has some pretty cool ideas of where the future of drumming is going, and why he suggests playing open handed. He learned playing traditional, and says he regrets first learning that way. Anyway, Im all for it because then I can pull off some crazy ambidextrous (spelling?) stuff.

[1001gear]

Just do it methodically. I know the rhythm monster possibilities are insane. Learn where the infra structure is or you'll get lost and hurt yourself or disappear or other creepy stuff.

[drumtechdad]

In my opinion, it's all personal preference. It seems to me that hitting cymbals in traditional would be a little awkward, but like I said, personal preference. I first learned playing matched, and I am playing quads is high school, so I have no need or desire to learn traditional. My drum instructor is trying to get me to play open handed more, and he has some pretty cool ideas of where the future of drumming is going, and why he suggests playing open handed. He learned playing traditional, and says he regrets first learning that way. Anyway, Im all for it because then I can pull off some crazy ambidextrous (spelling?) stuff.

 

I never suggest that guys who started with matched learn trad unless they have the desire to. I do point out to folks who opine that it's not "logical" at the kit that there's way too many counter-examples for that to be true.

 

My kid freaked me out a couple years ago--he's a rocker who started matched, developed trad with his teacher on the sly, and brought it out in public for the first time at his school's jazz band concert. That was a surprise.

 

If you haven't, look for vids of Billy Cobham, who is a left-hander playing a rightie kit and plays open-handed most of the time. Open-handed may be "the future of drumming" but it's been around forever.

 

Just recently saw a clip of him while he was young and still strictly a jazz player, playing left-handed trad grip on a rightie kit--worst of both worlds! It was hard to watch . . .