DRUMMER CAFE

is there a standard height that your rack toms should be at?  i usually have mine high enough so they don't hit the bass.  is it more efficient to have them higher?

Ive been playing a 22'' bass drum for years now which makes my tom placement much more comfortable. When i was playing my 24-14-16 set up i had the 10x14 to the left of the BD and pretty low. My 9x10 and 10x12 are actually sitting on a folded towel on the edge of the bass drum to avoid the rims buzzing on the BD claws. The toms are slightly angled towards me...well? my set up mirrors Weckls old set up. I STILL want the toms lower by going to the 8x10 8x12. I to like as little arm movement as possible when doing fills.

i hang one 8x10 on a cymbal stand somewhat over my 22 inch kick, but as low as possible. i hate toms sticking up in the air, from an aesthetic standpoint and a playing standpoint.

id like to hang my 9x12 on the same stand, but it would be just too high. so i go with a single tom, plus a hanging 14x11 floor on some gigs. on others, i dump that and hang chimes there instead, which i prefer.

im a low rider

...as low and as flat as possible without running the toms into my bass drum.  My rotos sit about ~2 inches higher than my snare; regular toms, ~3-6 depending on their depth. 
Cheers, Bob

I've been away from drumming for over 30 years (quit playing in 1976) and just bought a shellpack May 2007 (it's been a year and I'm still putting it together!). I have a single bass (18x22) but I use a Gibraltar double bass rack - the GRS-850DBL Curved. I first set it up and found the toms had to be mounted to high.  I don't have tom mounts on my bass drum.  I tore it all down last week (man I would not want to do that very often).  I changed everything around but now I have only got 10 of my 14 cymbals up.......I've got some DW cymbal arms on order.  What a difference it makes by just changing some of the drum angles slightly.  I like my toms as low as possible.  I'm right handed but I like my 9x12 tom right in front of me and my 8x10 is to the right and I have two floor toms 14x14 & 16x16.  I have a 10x6 snare off to the left of my hats and a new Signia Marquis snare - 14x14 right in front of me just below my 9x12 tom. The toms are not at much of an angle - I could even lower them more if need be.
I agree though.........each to their own.  There are some great drummers out there that play their toms as flat as a table and at huge angles.  It's all what you get use to - body-type plays a big part.