DRUMMER CAFE

little background:
so id been using vater manhattens for a while now.  I liked the ball tip because of the extra bounce and clear tone of every hit.  with the new band I play differently than I had and im noticing all sorts of stuff that I want changed to suit the music.   im not 100% happy with my cymbal sound and im in the works of getting some istanbuls (not something to do quickly).  but what to do until then.  then I got to thinking about my sticks.  I picked up some vater new orleans jazz, which is essentially the same as the manhatten but with a teardrop tip instead of ball.  perfection.  its like adding the perfect eq to an already good sound.  a nice scooped mid sound, lots of warm lows with pleasantly sparkling highs.  im a happy man.

the point (or points maybe):
the tiny details and how they effect the sound matter.  I go to great lengths to study and research all this stuff because im a geek for it.  when I wanted to try new sticks I knew what to look for (and made a spreadsheet with all the options of sticks I like from various makers to bring with me to the shop ... going a bit far maybe, but there are just so dang many!) knowing the technical ins and outs of your gear can only make you a better musician.  youll have a better understanding of those tiny things that make differences and be able to exploit them to your benefit.  giving you more control over your sound.  and thats a good thing.

kind of a rant, kind of an experiential story, kind of a lesson.  I simply want to recommend that you search and read and share and explore.  about everything.  even if it seems alien to your interests.  dark and light are defined by each other you know.   there are no real rights and wrongs in art, but there are betters and worses for some situations.  and the old addage right tool for the job makes sense.  learn the tools.

I'm with you. I didn't go quite so far as a spreadsheet (that's dangerously close to the day job for my liking) but having tried a spectrum of "standard" sizes I factored out the attributes I liked - width, length, taper size, material ... then looked for matches for all of those in a single stick. I ended up with Manhattans!

and the cool thing is, you now know WAAAAY more about sticks than the kid who will sell them to you in the music store, so knowledge is a good thing.  

I actually was looking at Pro-mark 7A's a few months back because with my acoustic rock band the Vic Firth 7A's were too loud for rehearsal (they have no mics in rehearsal) and the pro-marks are lighter even in the same number.  While I was doing this, I overheard a father tell the store clerk that his little boy wanted to start playing drums, and didn't know what sticks to try.  This kid was tiny.  The clerk said, "Want to try these, they're 2A's?" and handed the poor kid these big baseball bat sticks.  Nothing else was offered, or tried.

After they left, I felt like a wimp for trying out 7A's, when he gave 2A's to this 8 year old...  I said to the clerk... "weren't those 2A's too big for that kid?"  

And the clerk said... "He didn't know what the hell he wanted."  

It kind of irked me that he steered the small person wrong at the very beginning of his musical journey, and had no desire to let the kid and his dad try a couple sized for comfort on the practice pads they had right in front of them.  I was also annoyed I didn't jump in and say anything.  

I just bought my 7A's just like Elvin Jones might do, and went home clerk-annoyed.

Spreadsheets for everyone!

I like teardrop tips and the elongated beads like a weckle stick

I first pick a brand that feels good for the gig, never worrying too much about sound.  I use big sticks for loud gigs and smaller sticks for quieter gigs/faster playing.  

I stick with the brands that last the longest and are the most consistent.  

I really like Agner swiss made drumsticks.  They are made from american hickory (and you can get beech and maple) - that guy just knows how to make them.  They have never failed from bad grain and chip on the tip very rarely.  Very good wear resistance and straighter than most sticks.  Good prices too.  One of my little secrets that I'm sharing with you all *since you all share your little secrets with me*.

When I played alot of snare drum I was picky about sticks.  Now I don't care so much because every pair I picked/rolled was usually warped a little or has a different pitch.  So now it's like, who cares?  As long as they aren't too bad and even then I'll have them worn out in a week or two.  No biggie.

And that post was made about a year and a half ago ... Ive just gotten worse since then.  

Im working a new spreadsheet for cymbals ... but thats huge and taking a while  

wow.... wayyyy back in the day.  back before dirt was dirty.


I like ball tips, but only when you chip two sides of the tip flat.  I really like teardrops, but I haven't pulled together the will to go buy some new sticks.

I'm gettin kinda scared now, I like promark 5a's or 7a's that's about it. I don't roll them or tap them. what's the matter with me? help me joe I'm in serious need of an education

You can stil get dogs in those premium bricks though.  

Warped and such...

I always break them open and check.

I wholeheartedly agree with Felix with respect to companies Zildjian and Pro-Mark (oh, do I ever), and maybe Vater—though I notice that they're quite similar to Vic Firth in that my primary rollings usually are found to be wasted effort.  Regal Tip sticks need a rolling, too.

I will usually stand for no visible deviation when rolling, but in rare cases (a particularly wobbly batch, I'm in a rush, etc.) I'll accept up to 1/16" of wobble as noticed from the tip when testing.  This is rare, though; I usually have the time (backed by my caring) to check so thoroughly.