Too Many Rimshots?

[qwertyMan]

And, please, don't say "there's no such thing."

 

 

 

 

 

Am I playing too many rimshots? Is it "normal" to hit a rimshot for the backbeat pretty much always? I also find that when I'm doing fills/solos, I tend to accent a lot of my notes by hitting a rimshot.

 

This all wouldn't be too bad if it weren't chewing up my sticks! Even my Pro-Mark Oak sticks are getting flakey on the upper middle portion of the stick where it meets the hoop. And that's because I started using them pretty recently.

 

I also practice quite a few times a day. Sometimes around 3 times and each time about 30-50 minutes. On weekends I practice more. I also have die-cast hoops on omy snare. Does this make a difference?

 

Thanks in advance!

[e-b-e]

 

And, please, don't say "there's no such thing." Am I playing too many rimshots? Is it "normal" to hit a rimshot for the backbeat pretty much always? I also find that when I'm doing fills/solos, I tend to accent a lot of my notes by hitting a rimshot. This all wouldn't be too bad if it weren't chewing up my sticks! Even my Pro-Mark Oak sticks are getting flakey on the upper middle portion of the stick where it meets the hoop. And that's because I started using them pretty recently. I also practice quite a few times a day. Sometimes around 3 times and each time about 30-50 minutes. On weekends I practice more. I also have die-cast hoops on omy snare. Does this make a difference? Thanks in advance!

 

 

If you like the sound of a rimshot, then....go for it bro!

Obviously it's going to be rougher on your sticks; if thats the 'cost' associated with your quest for rimshots, then its the price ya gotta pay.

So 90-150 minutes per day or so , rimshots the whole time....yeah ....you're going to go through some sticks.

I'd guess it'd be a good thing that you have die-cast hoops on your snare, cuz a triple flanged hoop would probably have more chance of being dented.

[qwertyMan]

 

If you like the sound of a rimshot, then....go for it bro! Obviously it's going to be rougher on your sticks; if thats the 'cost' associated with your quest for rimshots, then its the price ya gotta pay. So 90-150 minutes per day or so , rimshots the whole time....yeah ....you're going to go through some sticks. I'd guess it'd be a good thing that you have die-cast hoops on your snare, cuz a triple flanged hoop would probably have more chance of being dented.

 

 

Yeah thanks. I'm also working on just doing less rimshots (it's sort of gotten to be a bit much). I don't really do them because of the sound as much as the feel.

[Thingfish]

If you eat lobster every day, eventually, it will taste like soap.

[manoeuver]

I can quit hitting rimshots anytime I wanna (hic.)

[iDrum4ever]

Rimshots are great.

Rimshots all the time, not great.

Same as dynamics.

Loud+soft = good

 

Now is your question, how do I not hit rimshots all the time?

If so, just check your drum angles. Too flat?

 

If you are asking about loving rimshots all the time, but

maybe it's too much. Well that's an artistic question that only your bandmates can answer.

[drumtechdad]

If God didn't want us to hit rimshots He wouldn't have given us rims.

[marko46]

 

If God didn't want us to hit rimshots He wouldn't have given us rims.

 

 

Amen my Brother- word.............

[Carminemw]

Rimshots are power definers. If you play live, play funky, play power type music, shot away. You wanna know if you play too many...I give you "Fool in the Rain"...one of the hardest groovin, hardest hitting tunes on the planet.

 

It really depends on the style of the music and what it calls for. Worried about rim shots...bah humbug. Go talk to Stewart Copeland, Vinnie C. and JoJO Mayer. They know rim shots!

[nklarow]

I use rim shots pretty much all the time. It feels better to me, but I can also control my rimshots. If I choose to do rimshots all the time, obviously I need to have some dynamics with that. So when I'm doing rimshots, it's not just "hit the drum as hard as you can," it's more like "I'm saving the loud rimshots for the loud parts of the song, etc..." If you're gonna use them all the time you need to control how loud each hit is. And the stick issue, I don't go through that many sticks. Probably a pair a month. That's not a huge deal.

[Carminemw]

Also you'll find that it the speed of the stick that will be the defining factor. Rim shots aren't just hitting it hard, you'll find that if you hit it with a whiplike quickness, you'll bring more sound, more volume and more emphasis to the shot, and the music...

[sharnrock]

I watched a video with John Tempesta of Rob zombie, and he said that he usually plays rim shots with the beat.

 

I do the same thing. I don't have to do rim shots, I just think they have a better crack to them. I can still accent stuff when I want to. It's all up to you if you like it or not. There is no rule book to playing drums.

[qwertyMan]

But does everyone else who hits a lot of rimshots get their sticks chipping away in the middle after like a week of practice?

[Carminemw]

Well yes and no. If the wood is soft and you're cracking mostly rim...yes depending on where the stick is contacting. I used to have piles of sawdust under my snare stand. They wood dent and then begin to chip. I did change sticks to the Vic Furth Harvey Mason model which has a coating and it seemed to help a little. I've even used tape around the contact should to help, but it did change the hard crack to a duller thud. Se La Vie...

[qwertyMan]

Hey, nice idea about the tape... I might just try that out.

 

'Cause my problem isn't cracking, just a lot of chipping away around the upper-middle section.

 

Maybe I just practice too much...

 

 

Wow, what a dumb thing to say!

[pasta]

Silver Fox sticks are supposed to have better longevity (but cost a bit more).

[qwertyMan]

 

Silver Fox sticks are supposed to have better longevity (but cost a bit more).

 

 

Yeah, I've heard of those.

[sharnrock]

I find that hickory is way better than Oak (for me atleast). Oak will usually break on me in just a few days. Hickory will kinda splinter little by little until it's so thin it breaks. They usually last around a month or 2

[qwertyMan]

I find that hickory is way better than Oak (for me atleast). Oak will usually break on me in just a few days. Hickory will kinda splinter little by little until it's so thin it breaks. They usually last around a month or 2

 

That's strange, but I'll keep that in mind.

 

What kind of sticks do you use yourself then? For decently priced sticks that last the longest, would most people agree on Pro-Mark or Vater?

 

I think that next time I go to GC I'll pick up a pair of Pro-Mark Oak sticks, Pro-Mark Hickory sticks, and a pair of Vater Hickory sticks, and then see how long each lasts.

[Carminemw]

I've used Vic Firth for years and years...very durable

[jenksdrummer]

 

And, please, don't say "there's no such thing." Am I playing too many rimshots? Is it "normal" to hit a rimshot for the backbeat pretty much always? I also find that when I'm doing fills/solos, I tend to accent a lot of my notes by hitting a rimshot. This all wouldn't be too bad if it weren't chewing up my sticks! Even my Pro-Mark Oak sticks are getting flakey on the upper middle portion of the stick where it meets the hoop. And that's because I started using them pretty recently. I also practice quite a few times a day. Sometimes around 3 times and each time about 30-50 minutes. On weekends I practice more. I also have die-cast hoops on omy snare. Does this make a difference? Thanks in advance!

 

 

If I'm not paying attention, I do rimshots all the time. It's a technique/lazyness thing more than anything else - I have my snare at the right height and angled towards my left hand, if I angle it more, I do more damage to the heads, less and I just hit the rim. Old habits hard to break...

[jenksdrummer]

 

I've used Vic Firth for years and years...very durable

 

 

 

 

ProMark 747's - I just broke my first in YEARS (granted, I started playing again last year, and I've not broken one of these yet - and the last stick I broke was in 1998...). Generally I have to chuck them because they look horrible and leave splinters everywhere. Even when it broke, oddly, it was my snare hand - which I've never broken a stick there - lol.

 

I am doing a lot more off-hand work now, so maybe that's something...lol

[neurokasm]

I play rimshots most of the time. I lika da sound, man.

[danrothmusic]

just like any effect--if you use it a lot, it looses its effect

 

you just gotta decide for yourself how much of an effect you want it to have, or if you want to reverse it and have a "normal" hit be the "effect," etc.

[1001gear]

If you want a nicely proportioned spread of ideas, probably way too many. That's pop drumming.

You can minimize the chips by one, staying off the edge of the hats and two, practicing your touch. Simply 'dropping' the stick into a rim shot without laying into it will still give you a satisfying crack. You might need a little more amplification is all.