- In this video,
we're gonna compare three different kinds of drum stick
alternatives for reducing drum volume.
We'll give you an in-depth example of each of them
and how they compare to regular drumsticks.
You're gonna have to
slow this down.
The teleprompters' way too fast.
- [Dylan] I've already changed it twice,
why don't you just let me do it for you?
- Have at it man.
- That was actually a joke.
If you don't know me,
I'm Cade's brother Dylan,
and I'm a part of the Collaborate Worship Team.
And I'm super pumped to present this video to you today.
So, let's get started.
Our church's auditorium is on the smaller side
and being long and narrow with lots of flat surfaces,
dealing with sound can be a little bit tricky at times.
When we moved into our current space,
we knew that we wanted to keep our acoustic drums
and just find a way to make it work.
Since a drum shield would block our center mounted screen
because we're not huge fans of drum shields.
We had to find another solution.
That brought us to the sticks.
We tried a few different sets of drumsticks
since being in this space
and we wanna share our results.
I will briefly go over the pros and cons
of each type of stick,
and then give you some detailed examples of each
using normal sticks as a control.
All of these sticks will be linked in the description
for you to check out.
All right, first up, we have the rods.
These are what we currently use in Love.
The pros, they cut volume by about 40%.
They have pretty good balance
and drum still sound good miked.
Plus you can usually pick them up for $10.
Now what about the cons?
Really, the only one that we found
and that's that they don't last near as long
as regular sticks.
When you get the cheaper $10 versions,
it's an even shorter lifespan,
but we have found some ways to make them last longer,
stick around to the end and we'll show you how.
Next up, we have the Adoro Drums, silent sticks.
Now the pros for these
is they cut down volume by at least 50%.
They bounce nearly as good as regular sticks
and they sound great miked,
The cons?
It takes some time to get used to how light they are
and getting cymbal hits just right also takes practice.
They're also a bit more expensive than the rods,
but on the flip side,
they don't wear out nearly as fast.
Now they make two versions of these sticks,
one for electric drums
and one for acoustic.
So, when you're buying these,
make sure that you choose the right one accordingly.
Okay, last up
we have normal drum sticks just in a lighter wood.
We have one drummer that plays on the lighter side
and uses these sticks and they sound great.
Pros is they sound and feel identical to normal sticks,
but cut volume down by about 15%.
Since these are essentially normal drum sticks,
they give an attack that the rods
and the silent sticks just can't really match.
What about the cons?
Obviously they don't cut volume by a ton.
So, your drummer really has to use some restraint
to make these work in a scenario like ours.
As far as lifespan,
they get chewed up a little quicker than a normal stick
because of the softer wood,
but not by much.
Okay, so those are the three options
that we have tested at our church.
And now we're gonna give you a detailed example of each.
First showing you the normal sticks as a control.
Then we will end with a side-by-side of all three options.
Before we get into the examples,
I wanna take 20 seconds to tell you about
our online training Church Sound Made Simple.
Here's the thing,
changing up your drum sticks alone
will probably not solve all of your drums sound issues.
You gotta get it right at the board.
Imagine a team where everyone is confident
in their mixing skills
and the results are consistent each week.
That's why we created Church Sound Made Simple.
Check it out at churchsoundmadesimple.com.
All right, now let's head to our church
and test out these sticks.
If you're enjoying this video,
be sure to let us know with a like.
It really helps us video get out
to your fellow Church Sound techs
so, that they can get some help from it as well.
And I'm curious to know.
Which stick alternatives do you think sounded best?
Let us know down in the comments.
And like I said earlier,
the rods have proved to be the best solution overall for us.
But our hope for this video
is that you'll be able to better decide
what can work best for you.
Quick tip for getting the rods to last longer,
wrap some electrical tape, either in increments,
down the stick or all the way up it
to hold them together better.
Just be sure to wrap it tightly.
And depending on how much you use it
can change the sound a bit.
Just experiment with it and see what works best for you.
For us, the rods give optimal volume
that also sounds full and powerful.
At their price point,
I definitely recommend giving them a shot.
I would also recommend letting your drummer have at least
a few sessions to get used to them
before they determined that they hate them.
That applies to any of these sticks.
They're all going to require your drummer to adjust a bit,
but they can do it.
We all know those drummers don't like to change,
but encourage them to give it a shot.
On that topic,
if you want some tips on communicating with drummers,
whether you're a worship leader or a sound tech,
check out this video right here.
On another note,
each of these sticks are going to require
some gain adjustment.
If you don't have a complete grasp on gain,
then be sure to check out this video right here.
But hey, if you enjoyed this video,
give it a like and subscribe to see future videos like this.
And we'll see you next time.
On another note,
if each of these sticks are going to require.
Darn flabbit.