Members Kirk Markarian Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 SO, I just received my Axis AL2 Longboard double bass pedals today. What a humbling experience. I love the way they feel, a lot less effort to get decent results. Of course, it feels weird. For two reasons. One, I have never played double bass before. Two, they are much lighter than my DW 5000 Single Pedal. I don't need tips or exercises, those are easy enough to figure out. I just gotta say, I don't feel as awesome as I used to. For an hour, I practiced getting smooth results at slow paces. No luck. My left foot is gimpy as all get-out. I am guessing that it will take at least a year to get solid with this, but I want to be awesome at it. I do think I will swap out the Sonic Hammers, though. They are really annoying. I just hope I'll get better at this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Carminemw Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Even though you're gonna plug it out by yourself, when I just started using double bass just recently, I took GL Ston'e Stick Control and did it with just the feet. It helped alot in getting my feet loose... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members qwertyMan Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 I don't even own a double bass pedal, but never the less whenever I'm tapping out drum beats wherever I happen to be, I always try to incorperate double bass and practice, and I've been doing this for a while. When I have band practice at my Keyboardist's house and use his brother's drum set, he has a double bass pedal, and I'm telling you man, I could actually use it fairly well. It was a dw 7000 though, and the springs were WAY too loose, but still, I was able to play some slightly fast stuff (not chugga-chugga-chugga crap). Really, if you just practice by tapping your feet on the ground it works pretty damn well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members John Flynn Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Believe it or not, I learned how to play DB using a hi hat pedal (advantage of having an e-kit ;-) I assigned the hi hat controller to be a bass drum, and then changed the setting of the hat to be closed in the open position. That way I could still hit the hat and get a closed sound, while using the hi hat pedal as the second bass pedal Anyway, this was a while back with my old Yamaha kit (the Roland module I have now won't let me do that trick) Point is ... I'm sure you're a much better drummer than I am (cause I'm really not that good) So, if I could figure it out with a hi hat pedal, I'm sure you'll get it with a real double bass pedal It just takes time, and a lot of practice. I did have the advantage of using Portnoy's instructional video which really helped a lot! Of course, when I finally had the opportunity to play on a real DB pedal, it felt really weird (lol). But I was able to adjust to it in no time. BTW, I have a DB pedal on order (should be here tomorrow). I haven't played the drums in 3 years (until last month when I bought another kit). So I'll be learning it all over again too! Good luck. I'll bet you'll get better at it before I do Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Wellhungarian Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 SO, I just received my Axis AL2 Longboard double bass pedals today. What a humbling experience. I love the way they feel, a lot less effort to get decent results. Of course, it feels weird. For two reasons. One, I have never played double bass before. Two, they are much lighter than my DW 5000 Single Pedal. I don't need tips or exercises, those are easy enough to figure out. I just gotta say, I don't feel as awesome as I used to. For an hour, I practiced getting smooth results at slow paces. No luck. My left foot is gimpy as all get-out. I am guessing that it will take at least a year to get solid with this, but I want to be awesome at it. I do think I will swap out the Sonic Hammers, though. They are really annoying. I just hope I'll get better at this. Don't worry that's where all single bass players started. It just takes time to build up even strength in your feet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Kirk Markarian Posted September 28, 2007 Author Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Thanks for all the support, guys! I'll be back at it again today. I need feet of steel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SYMBOLIC Posted September 29, 2007 Members Share Posted September 29, 2007 Don't give up, you are just starting. Think about if you tried to play leading with your non-dominate arm/hand. You would have difficulty playing songs that you can play easily leading with your dominate arm/hand. What you need to do is get out the metrenome and work on the left leg to bring it up to speed. Work the same rudiments that you use for your hands with your feet. It will take time, but remember when you started out playing drums you weren't able to do the things that you can do now, right? Double bass is something that you have to work on and develop, the blistering death metal guys didn't fall out on a drum set were able to play at those tempos. Keep it up! James Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members IggyBot Posted September 29, 2007 Members Share Posted September 29, 2007 The hardest thing for me to remember (Even after a year of practicing with my double pedal all the time) is "sticking" Like your hands, you have a right/left foot lead, and that foot always plays on the downbeats, while your non-dominant foot plays on the upbeats. This is still the hardest thing for me to figure out when listening to someone playing double bass/pedal. Have fun though, I love my double pedal, when used correctly, it can add a lot and give you a really unique sound/style. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Kirk Markarian Posted September 29, 2007 Author Members Share Posted September 29, 2007 Well, guys, it got a little easier today, but the Axis pedals are strange beasts. I was so used to my DW that it's hard to do the little press-rolls that I was able to do before. I'm not gonna give up though. I will eventually find the right seat height, the right beater position, the right footboard angle and the patience to master it. I am not worried about blistering speed. Just consistency. Yeah, this is just like being 10 all over again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Kevin K Is A OK Posted September 29, 2007 Members Share Posted September 29, 2007 i feel like the sonic hammers would completely destroy the feel of a pedal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SYMBOLIC Posted September 29, 2007 Members Share Posted September 29, 2007 When I got my longboards I set them up the same way as my DW's and then adjusted from there. You don't want to completely change what your use to, so that's a good starting point. I would also ditch the sonic hammers if possible. To me, it's like putting a trailer on a sports car. Remember to set up both sides the same, which will help with developing the left foot. James Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Drumming4Him Posted September 29, 2007 Members Share Posted September 29, 2007 Might want to begin with simultaneous strokes in 8th or 16th notes [depending on the BPM] before you "jump" to alternating strokes. Not sure if you've worked with the book "the New Breed," but essentially that is the first exercise, except with the hands. It'll really help fine tune your footwork. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members HBdrummer Posted September 29, 2007 Members Share Posted September 29, 2007 Kirk.. Maybe try a little gizmo by Hantzen Futz it's a foot board training thingy that I've see adverted in MD. I think you can pick one of these things up for less thn 50 bucks. It might be (along with practice) a good tool to strengthen that left hoof. I don't currentely own a double kick, but I have been tossing that idea around. it'd be cool to have for throwing little ornaments on my playing. Good luck, bro.. I hear the AXIS pedals are the schiznit! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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