Monday 27 June 2011

Types Of Drumsticks

The Wood

There are 3 main types of wood used to make sticks.

  • There is Maple, which is a lighter weight wood that has excellent flexibility. Maple is great for energy absorption, meaning you will fell less of the hit in your hands.
  • There is Hickory, which is the most common wood with decent energy absorption and flex. Hickory is a well rounded wood.
  • Lastly, there is Oak, which is the densest of wood. Oak sticks will not break as much, but you will feel the vibrations a lot more due to poor energy absorption. If the stick doesn’t state what wood it is, back away. This usually means it is a blended wood and is not made up to standard.

 

The Tip

There are 2 types of tips to choose from

  • Most common is the wood tip. This is a solid choice for most applications. The only real downside to wood tips is the fact that they may chip after extensive use. Wood tips can splinter and severely damage your drum pads!
  • Nylon tips are great for bringing out your cymbals and getting better rebound from your stick. They are great for studio work when you want to really make your cymbals shine. The problem with nylon tips is they sometimes fall off your stick, which can be a real problem in the middle of a show! If you are playing on an electric drum set, you want to use nylon tips.

The Size

There are three main stick categories.

  • 7a. This is a thinner, lighter feeling stick meant for a softer sound on you drums. These work great for jazz drumming, or younger drummers.
  • 5a. This is the most common stick. Medium thickness allows for both loud and softer play. Great for rock drumming!
  • 2b/5b. These are thicker than average. They allow for louder sounding drums, and are ideal for heavy rock.

See the full article at http://www.rockdrummingsystem.com/underground/drum-articles/choosing-the-right-drumsticks.php

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