I also played a Gretsch kit with a 20" kick that shook the whole venue and a mid-tier Pearl that sounded fat. Renowns are great kits, but I didn't care for the sound of that particular kit, though it was still fun to play. I HAVE backlined several kits, the highest-quality being a Gretsch Renown owned by the drummer of a well-known Texas country artist. If presented with the option, I'd bring my own kit. At least that's what I've always known.Īnyways, I've never used a "house kit" at any show. A "house kit" is the kit that the venue has for everybody. If you’ve never heard a great old Ludwig kit in a room like The Motor Museum’s stone room, you’re in for a treat.įor more info on the backline and other equipment in The Motor Museum, have a look at the equipment list.Maybe I'm different,but to me, a "backline kit" is the kit that the opening band's drummer owns and since you're opening, that's what you're using. Everybody loves it and we choose it regularly. I own a 1968 Ludwig Super Classic that lives permanently at The Motor Museum. Whilst not as roadworthy, older drums just sound better in front of microphones. They also tend to have thicker shells with more ply’s, robbing them of tone and sensitivity. Newer drums tend to be longer in an effort to get deeper bass, but this reduces the attack. In eleven years of recording them I haven’t found a modern drum that sounds better than a sixties Ludwig or Gretsch. The controls interact with each other so that even extreme settings sound musical, and you can really stretch the sounds out of them.ĭrums are the odd ones out. What I really like about both of these amps is that you can’t really get a bad sound out of them. I like to layer them both, and use the balance of each amp to create the overall tone of the guitar. Think rich, thick, and chime-y with a slightly scooped midrange blends really well with the Dr Z. It’s an evolution of the Matchless circuit, which itself is a more refined Vox AC30. I have a Dr Z that is very bright and punchy, that I use whenever I want the sound of a great old Fender Deluxe. A good example is my collection of guitar amps. The other consideration is whether pieces of gear compliment each other. So the two qualities I look for in great backline are sound and reliability. This means I’ve got a reference of where we had the tuning and can compare and retune between sessions. I’ve learnt to record drum samples as soon as I’ve dialled in a sound that I’m happy with. This can be a major pain when you’re re-writing parts mid-way through a production, and can be really difficult to match the tones you’ve already tracked.Ĭertain old drum kits are particular prone to going out of tune overnight when the temperature drops too. You turn it on and it sounds one way, an hour passes and it’s got less gain, two hours pass and it gets duller etc. I’ve come across pieces of gear (retro valve guitar amps spring to mind) whose sound changes throughout the day. So sounding great is one thing, but sounding great every day is another challenge entirely. Other than the player it is the most important part of getting a great sound. If the instrument doesn’t sound good then not even the most expensive recording gear will improve it. When I say backline I mean amps, drums, pedals, cabinets, keyboards – anything that creates the sound that gets recorded.Įverything starts with good backline – its the primary colour palette of the recording studio. I wanted to talk a little bit about the backline we have at The Motor Museum. The Bottom Line On Backline Why is backline important?
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