New to the Lounge - need a kit

[Captain Nemo]

Howdy gents,

I'm Captain Nemo and live in Seattle. After talking with my motorcycle riding buddy last night about music, I decided I needed to play again. (He plays guitar and harmonica). I haven't played in years, and I've owned many sorts of kits - electronic even.

I like this 'cocktail concept' - tired of space hungry drums. I've already seen the Slingerland kit and the Yamaha Steve Jordon outfit. I think I like the idea of standing up, so was a little disappointed in the Slingerland deal.

From your site I tried to contact Willoughby, but had my mail returned. Tried to get a price or info on Dunnett, but didn't see anything.

Maybe you guys can steer me right. I need a snare and bass that sound 'normal' - you know, like a nice kit. No buzzing in the bass drum - sweet tones. And, I guess you can't really have a floor tom. That's all I know. They look like a blast to play, but I've never tried one.

From what I could tell, Dunnett has a system to lower the snare depth. That's pretty tricky. That way you could get different snare sounds.

But, I don't want this to be pricey - $1500 seems too much for a simple kit. Maybe I'm wrong.

Anything you can present to help me focus would be appreciated. Thanks!!

[multiperc]

Hey Cpt Nemo.
I didn't consider Dunnet or Willoughby, but I did try Phattie since I wanted something custom. Phattie didn't respond (I think they'll be back in biz soon), so I built my own. If you are at all handy and/or have tweeked your drums in the past, I'd recommend building your own. It saved me a bit of money (that's relative too), but more importantly, I got exactly what I wanted and have been able to further customize it without much additional cost or waste. Note, to my benefit, I've built drums before and I have a good amount of hardware around (from my other kits), so that helped in my case.

Poke around the site, do some searches, and take a look at the other links available. There are quite a few of us who have either custom kits, or customized kits; some of which are ingeneous. I used several resources found here (musicians friend, AIT, jammin sam, drummaker.com) for everything I needed to build a cocktail kit.

One note, I've been doing some lengthy rehearsals and it helps to be in reasonably good physical condition, (or to be young!!) to play standing for long durations. And for some, sitting works, too. And as many often say here, anything goes.

Good luck on your cocktail adventure.

[jmettam]

Hey Cap'n,

Welcome to the Lounge! And welcome to the world of Cocktail Drums!

Yes, there are many options for finding a kit that suites you. I haven't spoken with Willoughby in years but they have always been a bit hard to get hold of. I believe that Dunnett only does custom orders on Cocktail Drums so I'm sure that you will have to contact them about pricing. They are probably not cheap since they make top quality stuff. Also their drums are metal which I'll bet is cool, but not the typical Cocktail experience!

It seems that many people have gotten their drums through Phattie. They have a standardized kit and will also do custom work. Sometimes they will also have an unclaimed kit sitting around that they will sell at a discount. Also the folks at Whitney Drums are very nice. I have not actually played their drums but they look great and I personaly like the wooden rims. Again I think that you will have to contact them for pricing.

Making your own drum is probably the most exciting and rewarding route but it does take more time, patience, and skill. But, like Multiperc said, there are many experienced builders on this forum who can help you through it. Check out Kyle Bronsdon's 'Build Along with Kyle' page:

http://www.cocktaildrum.com/learn/const ... nsdon.html


Probably the best thing for you to do is figure out your budget first. Then you can sort out your options from there. Many people have had success getting a cheap GP Percussion Cocktail Kit from eBay for around $250 and then modifying that drum. It's not a bad way to get started and then you can improve the kit as time and budget allow. If you really want a top of the line kit, then go with Yamaha, Phattie, or building your own with Keller shells.

Keep us posted on your plans and please ask questions! You will get a lot of opinions here but everyone has the same goal: getting a kit that works for your own personal concept and style..

Good luck,

- John

[Captain Nemo]

John,

Thanks. I've already purchased a kit and posted on the General Discussion forum. It will have the snare and cymbals on a Tama stand instead of the bass drum - which is only a smaller, 'standard' drum. Not a true cocktail set up, and I'm a little sad when I see all the beautiful kits on this forum. But, I sort of had to do it this way to get the sound I needed, and I didn't want to just guess by buying unheard.

But I sure like the looks of something like the Club Jordan or the Peace Manhattan.

At least I'll be standing. I hope that counts for something.

[ratatattat]

speaking of motorcycling & drumming......This is where my quest for a cocktail set began about 2 years ago. I am playing with a group of guys, who I met through my motorcycling hobby. I have a six piece band, all acoustic, & I used to use only a snare drum because of the simple folky bluegrassish music. We started playing around town and pretty soon I started riding my bike to gigs. My bass player has a full size american standard upright bass & he also has an old guzzi with a sidehack, we fixed up a shock mount for his bass in the sidecar! I aquired my cocktail set from e-bay & made a case & I can carry everything on the back seat of my bike! A whole set of drums on a motorcycle! Aweird coincedence, but very much fun for me. I love to ride & I love to play. 2 of our members do not ride, we are trying to convert them, no luck yet! So Ride & play on!
Rat

[Captain Nemo]

Well ratatat,

I have a Guzzi V11 Sport and a Honda RC 51. I ride all the time. I have a real interest i drums, bikes, photography and wrist watches. I discuss it all here on my forum. Come on over. In the Summer I post lots of pics of my rides around Seattle.

http://p075.ezboard.com/bbeautyintechnology