Drum kit positioning

[drgnmstr44]

Alright I've looked and haven't found a thread on this so sorry if I duplicated it.

My issue with the drum kit is the positioning. I believe I have the pads at the right height for me but the kick pedal is what is bothering me. where I have the kit set in relation to my chair, it feels like the pedal should be a little further away from me to be a natural position. if I leave it where it is currently on the closest hook point over the closest bar, I find on some songs with a lot of bass beats that my calf gets tired. If I push the kit a little further away from me I feel like I'm reaching to hit the pads.

I know I'm not the greatest drummer out there but I do have fun playing drums and it's the main reason I got the game. I'm hoping that someone here might be able to help me figure this out.

[Apples]

I don't use the pedal on the pre-selected hooks that it suggests. I let it sit out free so I can adjust it as needed. Try that if you have a good carpet/surface.

[sambao21]

sorry to hijack this thread, but you say you have the height right, do you mind letting me know how to determine the correct height? i run into the problem when i'm drumming that i'll miss the pad and hit the plastic rim. it still registers, but sounds bad

[davidshek]

sorry to hijack this thread, but you say you have the height right, do you mind letting me know how to determine the correct height? i run into the problem when i'm drumming that i'll miss the pad and hit the plastic rim. it still registers, but sounds bad

Your seat height is correct when your knee is at a 90 degree angle.

The drum height is correct when you're hitting all the pads when you try to, without hitting the rims. That one is going to be a personal adjustment different for everyone. There is no one "correct" height for the drum pads themselves. Some people prefer it higher, some prefer it lower.

[tombrady]

I play with mine basically as high as they will go...but like he said, depends on your height and height of your chair and preference etc.

I'm about 6'2 and I like the drums high...pretty much perfect height for me.

I use the closest hook to the pedal for the bass drum and i have it off to the right.

[Black_Heaven]

If you want to move the kick pedal farther forward, take out the pipe closest to you. It's what I did and it's worked great for me since. Doesn't affect the sturdiness at all.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v728/CountMonteCarlo/Rock%20Band/100_6878.jpg

[drgnmstr44]

I don't use the pedal on the pre-selected hooks that it suggests. I let it sit out free so I can adjust it as needed. Try that if you have a good carpet/surface.

That sounds like a good options to try out tonight.

[Xero314]

My issue with the drum kit is the positioning. I believe I have the pads at the right height for me but the kick pedal is what is bothering me. where I have the kit set in relation to my chair, it feels like the pedal should be a little further away from me to be a natural position. if I leave it where it is currently on the closest hook point over the closest bar, I find on some songs with a lot of bass beats that my calf gets tired. If I push the kit a little further away from me I feel like I'm reaching to hit the pads.

If you are finding that your calf is hurting it's more of an issue with how you are playing not where the pedal is. To play correctly your heal should not be resting on the pedal, and most of the force for playing should actually come from your thigh by lifting and dropping your entire leg. Your calf will only come into play on very fast rhythms where you need to pump once with your leg and once with your ankle to get a fast enough beat.

So the positioning would be to have your leg at a perfect 90 degree angle and your pedal under your foot at that position. this will actually put the kit much closer to you, as it should be. Also be sure that you use good posture, sit up straight, not slouched.

Search the web for drum techniques and tutorials (as well as these forums) to find out more.

[Kriterian]

Here is what you should do:

Chair/Throne Height: When you're sitting with your foot on the pedal, your thigh should be straight and parallel to the floor.

Location in front of you: The left/right position of the pedal shouldn't matter, although if you have a rug where it won't move, it sometimes helps me to turn it outwards or inwards instead of straight.

If your calf is getting tired, don't bounce your foot up and down. You don't get penalized for holding down the bass pedal. Strike the orange line note and keep it held down and when another note comes up raise your foot slightly and strike again. This will conserve movement.

[drgnmstr44]

If your calf is getting tired, don't bounce your foot up and down. You don't get penalized for holding down the bass pedal. Strike the orange line note and keep it held down and when another note comes up raise your foot slightly and strike again. This will conserve movement.

This seems to work for me a lot on the slower songs or ones with not many bass beats. but on songs like "The Hand That Feeds" – Nine Inch Nails and "Green Grass and High Tides" – The Outlaws where I'm hitting every beat, it's fast or both of those that's when I seem to get tired and then end up failing out since I can't keep up on the kick pedal.

[Oblong]

Great info here. Can't wait to go home and try these techniques.

Oddly I hear everyone complain about their calves hurting when I am feeling it in the shin area. Can't seem to go more than about 3 songs without pain so I must be doing something majorly wrong.

[Nate Finch]

You don't get penalized for holding down the bass pedal. Strike the orange line note and keep it held down and when another note comes up raise your foot slightly and strike again. This will conserve movement.

Wanted to repeat this, since it was an amazing difference to me. You can leave the pedal down all the time and just do an up-down motion when you want to hit a note.... it's soooo much more comfortable than trying to hover your foot over the pedal the whole time.

[davidshek]

Great info here. Can't wait to go home and try these techniques.

Oddly I hear everyone complain about their calves hurting when I am feeling it in the shin area. Can't seem to go more than about 3 songs without pain so I must be doing something majorly wrong.

It's not anything you're doing majorly wrong. Your body/muscles just aren't used to doing that kind of movement yet. Most people who play this game who are also real drummers won't have this problem because we've already built up the muscles necessary for that movement.

You haven't yet. Keep at it, it'll hurt less and less as you keep playing! :)

It's kinda like the first few times you go to the gym, ya know? You're sore as HELL the next day after working out, but as you keep at it, you're less sore each time.

[Frederf]

I've found a lot of people set the drum kit too high (including myself) at first which causes your sticks to be almost parallel with the surface upon striking it. Needless to say this makes the drum kit very picky about hitting the pads perfectly. Lowering the pads (for me at least) made the surface-stick geometry better and made the drums a lot more error tolerant.

[likwidomg]

If you want to move the kick pedal farther forward, take out the pipe closest to you. It's what I did and it's worked great for me since. Doesn't affect the sturdiness at all.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v728/CountMonteCarlo/Rock%20Band/100_6878.jpg

That's a good idea. I wanted the pedal to go back further, I don't know what I didn't think of that! :O

p.s. Why do you live in a movie store? :P

[Xero314]

I just want to reiterate that playing fast bass rhythms in the "Heel Down" position is a very bad thing, you will hurt yourself. There is a reason that professional drummers us the "Heel Up" position (Toe is on the pedal, normally not the very tip, with the heel suspended in the air) and this is how any music school or instructor would teach you to play. This is much like the difference between playing a guitar with your wrist rather than with your arm, it is possible but it will cause injury.

If you watch videos of people being succesfull playing RB drums on Expert you will see they all use the "Heel up" position. My only warning is that you might want to reinforce you kick pedal or place your toe closer to the middle if you don't want to break your pedal.

[Zeus974]

Here is what you should do:

Chair/Throne Height: When you're sitting with your foot on the pedal, your thigh should be straight and parallel to the floor.

Location in front of you: The left/right position of the pedal shouldn't matter, although if you have a rug where it won't move, it sometimes helps me to turn it outwards or inwards instead of straight.

If your calf is getting tired, don't bounce your foot up and down. You don't get penalized for holding down the bass pedal. Strike the orange line note and keep it held down and when another note comes up raise your foot slightly and strike again. This will conserve movement.

That's what I do, and I find that I can play better drums because of this

[WiredRacing]

I just want to reiterate that playing fast bass rhythms in the "Heel Down" position is a very bad thing, you will hurt yourself. There is a reason that professional drummers us the "Heel Up" position (Toe is on the pedal, normally not the very tip, with the heel suspended in the air) and this is how any music school or instructor would teach you to play. This is much like the difference between playing a guitar with your wrist rather than with your arm, it is possible but it will cause injury.

Yeah that's not entirely correct. While it is a method that's taught, it's not the only method. (Do some searches.) I personally play heel down and I'm on the last tier for hard (avg low-mid 90% and improving daily), can play for hours and not walk away sore. (That said, I'm a runner)

That also said, I have found myself inadvertantly raising my heel when I first sit down to play. It's fine for a while but I don't feel I have the same accuracy and I can certainly feel the pedal flex when I play it that way.

BTW, there are other threads on this forum about bass pedal technique and methods are seem to be split down the middle.

[Quyrean]

I just want to reiterate that playing fast bass rhythms in the "Heel Down" position is a very bad thing, you will hurt yourself. There is a reason that professional drummers us the "Heel Up" position (Toe is on the pedal, normally not the very tip, with the heel suspended in the air) and this is how any music school or instructor would teach you to play.

I dont get the "heal up" thing. Doesnt your leg get more tired holding your heal up? or is the chair supposed to be so high that your heal dangles?

[Xero314]

Yeah that's not entirely correct. While it is a method that's taught, it's not the only method. (Do some searches.) I personally play heel down and I'm on the last tier for hard (avg low-mid 90% and improving daily), can play for hours and not walk away sore. (That said, I'm a runner)

That also said, I have found myself inadvertantly raising my heel when I first sit down to play. It's fine for a while but I don't feel I have the same accuracy and I can certainly feel the pedal flex when I play it that way.

BTW, there are other threads on this forum about bass pedal technique and methods are seem to be split down the middle.

Correct there are other techniques, including Heel-Toe techniques which will break your RB pedal in a heart beat. I'm not even saying that there is not a place for both techniques, but for easy of play, better rhythm control and longevity Heel up is the better option. I think if you were able to separate the experienced drummers from then new players you would see that there would be a heavier balance toward Heel up coming from the experienced drummers while playing RB.

Playing the faster rhythms on expert are going to kill you ankle. Just try tapping your foot as fast as you can with you heel on the ground and raising your toe high enough to trigger the switch. Then try the same thing with your heel up. and for a final speed test learn to do one hit with your leg pushing down and another by pushing down with your toe as your leg comes back up, you will end up producing two kicks where you would previously only had one (this takes some practice but well worth it).

The only valid reason not to use heel up when playing RB is that it takes more time to learn and more leg strength, plus the pedal does not have enough resistance to support a leg in heel up position so you have to either keep the pedal down (which in a real drum would change the sound being produced) or hold your leg up, which again takes some strength.

I'm was a drummer 15 years and though I would never have considered myself to be very good at it, I do have the experience and am just trying to help. I would love to hear from someone with more recent experience if they can either correct me or add to the detail to help other players out.

[Xero314]

I dont get the "heal up" thing. Doesnt your leg get more tired holding your heal up? or is the chair supposed to be so high that your heal dangles?

Yes your leg gets tired, but it won't hurt. On a real pedal there is usually enough initial resistance so you can rest your toe slightly on the pedal. You can simulate this by pushing more toward the middle of the RB pedal. But even though it does get tiering your thighs tend to have more strength than your ankles/calves. You play heel up by keeping your foot flat and pressing the pedal with your leg movement, so you leg will still need to reach the ground level. As you get more advanced you can move your ankle and leg and get two beats as fast as you can do one using either Heel down or just your leg.

Or you can keep the pedal in the down position as is suggested and not at all uncommon among drummers. Sorry if my previous post implied this was a wrong way to play. With a real kit this would depend on the pedal you have and the the sound you want out of your drum (long carries or solid hits). Again it's been 15 years since I played a kit so I'm certainly not a definitive resource, just giving suggestions.

[terRize]

I dont get the "heal up" thing. Doesnt your leg get more tired holding your heal up? or is the chair supposed to be so high that your heal dangles?

I'm by no means a drummer, and I originally started with heel down method but found I was not very good at hitting the quick double bass. I switched to heel up and felt I was quicker, more accurate, and actually felt better. The only song I've had trouble with is GG&HT at about the 8 minute mark my leg will get a bit tired but again I've only been doing it this way for a week now so I'm sure my leg will get stronger.

And your knee should be at a 90 degree angle when you play.