1st Gig in many years - equip questions

[boslaw]

If there's a sticky on this or an existing thread please let me know. I searched but didn't find anything.

I haven't gigged in about 30 yrs but I'll be playing with a 15 piece dance band on New Year's Eve and I want to make sure I have everything equip-wise. I can/will ask the bandleader some of these questions too (esp about mics/mixer) but I'm interested in what drummers have to say about it.

1. cases - does everyone generally use hard cases for their kit? Recommended brands? I have a fairly new Gretsch Renown 5 piece and I'd like to keep it looking as new as possible
2. hardware cases - any recommendations? I considered just putting my stands in a hockey bag but that's gonna get really heavy
3. I use Shure wired in-ears at practice and I have a behringer P1. I assume I'll just plug a feed from the board into that?
4. They want me to fully mic the kit, including overheads. I have SM-57's. Does the house or sound guy usually run cords to my mics or do I bring my own cords? No idea if the cords I have will be long enough - I've only used them in my basement running to an interface for recording.
5. Do I need a sub-mixer or do people generally run drum mics directly to the main board? I'm reluctant to introduce a lot of electronics between me and the main board in case something goes wrong. They tell me they have a 32 input mixer for the show so that should be enough inputs for me and the band if I take up 7 myself.
6. I'll probably have an iPad on a stand to keep track of set list, song notes, BPM, but I don't know if I'll actually use it. Any recommended apps?
7. Any thing else I'm not thinking of? Any new tech/gear I should consider? I plan to start gigging regularly so I'm prepared to spend a little $$

Thanks much for any advice!

 

[flatwins]

I don’t do a bunch of gigging and when I do it’s mostly local spots. For this I prefer soft cases. They “Russian Doll” well and I usually store them in the vehicle between setup and tear down. I’m also a huge fan of Yamaha’s Crosstown hardware though some make a bunch of racket about its appearance. Who cares?- it’s super light and stable.

I know next to nothing about mics/sound so hopefully others will chime in concerning that topic.

Have fun and welcome back to the gigging!

 

[Whitten]

I use Protection Racket soft cases.
As to the sound, you'd have to ask if the venue provides mics and PA, or whether you are expected to.

 

[bpaluzzi]

If you’re carrying stuff in your own vehicle, I’d recommend soft cases. If you have a heavy snare drum, you might want to get a hard case just for it, but I always use soft cases (Beato or Ahead Armor) for cymbals, toms, and kicks, unless I’m doing a van or truck tour.

For hardware, I use a Hardcase 40” case for my “heavy” hardware set (which is still single-braced bottoms), and Beato bags for my other sets. Rolling bags for most, and a small non-roller for my lightest set (DW Ultralight).

You should be able to use the P1, but I’d check with the sound guy ahead of time. Most digital mixers will have an extra out available (and usually a way to mix it from a phone / tablet app), but if it’s an older / analog mixer it can be more complicated.

If there’s a sound guy, they’ll generally provide everything for mic’ing the drums (mics, stands/clips, and cables). While 57s will work for everything, they’re not ideal for kick or overhead.

Drums to the main board, unless there’s a specific reason to submix (you’re doing live looping, or you’re doing non-standard effects treatments on the drums). I’ve also seen submixers used if there’s not enough channels on the main desk, but that’s often the case of people mic’ing drums that don’t need to be mic’ed. in small rooms you very rarely need to mic overheads or snare. Even toms don’t always need mics.

I use ForScore for my performance app. It does pdf import with setlist and markup/note taking, and has a built-in metronome that you can set for each song. If you have more advanced needs, you can also send off MIDI cc/pc messages per song. It’s a ridiculously powerful app under the hood.

For other stuff - bring an extra snare and pedal. I usually bring a toolbox with some common tools, and a few extras for me (cymbal felts/washers/wingnuts, hihat clutch, earplugs, etc) and other band mates (guitar picks, strings, cables, 9v and AA batteries, etc). It’s probably overkill, but it’s saved enough gigs that I bring it every time now.

 

[boslaw]

Great tips everyone, thanks much!

 

[Shovel&Pale]

If you're going to be gigging regularly I have 3 words for you; single braced hardware. Seriously, I don't know what happened through the 80's and 90's with companies manufacturing and seriously advertising that even us little guys needed this massive, over engineered stuff.

I've been gigging with the same Gibraltar flat based stands for almost 20 years now and have never had a problem. I recently added a Gibraltar Pro Lite hi-hat stand, highly recommended.

 

[CherryClassic]

I pack and hall all my own stuff.

Ahead soft cases have worked for years protecting my drums. I use speaker stand cases for the two tom/cymbal stands I use. If you are using a trailer I recommend hard cases, with good tie downs. The Ahead 32" (?) roller case cries the Hi-Hat, Tom legs, snare stand and Throne. Another hand carry double peddle case for one peddle and accessories.

I like my own monitor that I can control volume and tone for the vocals; the Mackie SM-150 is small, sets on a stand. I found a small case with wheels and extend handle at Goodwill to protect it. I can hear the instruments from the bigger monitors which are controlled at the main. I make sure the bass players amp is next to me on my left side. I gotta hear that bass.

Recently ordered a 7-piece AKG drum mic set. Bass, snare, 3 toms and two overheads (I only use one o/h) all controlled at the main. Think I paid like 350.00 on Amazon and it comes with a case and mic clamps. Good quality products. I supply the mic cords and two stands. That way I take good care of them, I place them so others don't have to walk on them and I plug then in and unplug and roll them after the gig. I don't like having to rely on other people to supply my needs. I know some gigs don't need mic's but I have them when needed. When you do, you may not need more than three mic's but when they are needed I have them ready. Now there are times, depending on the band there may be a sound man that supplies everything. In my situation the main band I play with I supply it.

I also use a R-12 Rock N Roll four wheel cart to carry everything in and out. All of this fits in a short bed F150 Ford truck with a cover.

OH, and don't forget a small fan to circulate the air on the back side of the stage. LOL

sherm

 

[Skyrm]

I also use a R-12 Rock N Roll four wheel cart to carry everything in and out.

If you are going to start gigging often - THIS.

 

[CherryClassic]

If you are going to start gigging often - THIS.

Yep, The R-12 is a life savor for sure.

sherm

 

[Artimas]

I stopped gigging a year ago, but I also use soft cases for the drums and cymbals. I have a hard SKB rolling case for my stands, and a soft rolling Protection Racket case for my BD pedal, mics, cords, cowbell, stick bag and accessories.

I also recommend the Roc-n-roller folding cart. It's really been indispensable. I can load everything on it and only make 1 trip from the car.

Do you need to bring a drum rug? Check on that, too.

I also have a plastic tool box with fix up stuff like snare cords, gaffer tape, cymbal washers and felts, extra tuning keys, moon gel, a multi-tool, and tons of other stuff I'm not thinking of off the top of my head.

Make a gig checklist so you don't leave anything behind. This has saved me more than once. I almost left without my cymbals one time.



Have fun.

 

[Tony_H]

If there's a sticky on this or an existing thread please let me know. I searched but didn't find anything.

I haven't gigged in about 30 yrs but I'll be playing with a 15 piece dance band on New Year's Eve and I want to make sure I have everything equip-wise. I can/will ask the bandleader some of these questions too (esp about mics/mixer) but I'm interested in what drummers have to say about it.

1. cases - does everyone generally use hard cases for their kit? Recommended brands? I have a fairly new Gretsch Renown 5 piece and I'd like to keep it looking as new as possible
2. hardware cases - any recommendations? I considered just putting my stands in a hockey bag but that's gonna get really heavy
3. I use Shure wired in-ears at practice and I have a behringer P1. I assume I'll just plug a feed from the board into that?
4. They want me to fully mic the kit, including overheads. I have SM-57's. Does the house or sound guy usually run cords to my mics or do I bring my own cords? No idea if the cords I have will be long enough - I've only used them in my basement running to an interface for recording.
5. Do I need a sub-mixer or do people generally run drum mics directly to the main board? I'm reluctant to introduce a lot of electronics between me and the main board in case something goes wrong. They tell me they have a 32 input mixer for the show so that should be enough inputs for me and the band if I take up 7 myself.
6. I'll probably have an iPad on a stand to keep track of set list, song notes, BPM, but I don't know if I'll actually use it. Any recommended apps?
7. Any thing else I'm not thinking of? Any new tech/gear I should consider? I plan to start gigging regularly so I'm prepared to spend a little $$

Thanks much for any advice!

While my musical performances are much different than yours, I'll drop my 411 down in case it helps.

1. I use SKB hard cases for all my drums. It may be overkill for mostly local shows. But my truck has plenty of room, and I love my drums, so roughly 12 years later, they still look as good as the day they were bought. Plus they stack really well on the On-Stage cart I have (similar to that Rock-n-rolla cart), so it's super easy to move them from point A to B without any worries that the cases will sag as they are stacked (like soft cases can do from time to time)

2. Hardware/Cymbal Cases. You guessed it, SKB. I have the really long hardware case with wheels so I don't have to collapse any stands and I have plenty of room for all the extra random stuff that has made its way on to my set over the years.

3. That setup will work just fine.

4. This really is situational. You will probably need to ask the BL about this. We have our own equipment and sound guy, so all the cables are owned by us. But if we do hire an outside sound guy for larger shows, I expect him to have all of that stuff sorted including the mics. But I honestly have no issue using my own mics and setting them up, but most sound guys will just push that offer to the side so there is no mix up in equipment at the end of the night...no biggie.

5. Let the sound people worry about that. I use 7 mics also, but we run directly to the XAir32 mixer.

6. Sorry, I use an old cell phone that has the XAir monitor app on it so I can do my own IEM mix, I don't use anything else in my modern rock cover band.
7. The one thing I found that made my life easier is convert any and all "things" that I need to transport into some sort of hard case. You can even consolidate multiple items into one case. Using that previously mentioned On-stage cart, everything loads better when it doesn't sag, or have weird angles (seat of my Roc-N-Soc throne).

Now #7 is really because I like playing a large kit, so everything from drums/hardware/cymbals down to my IEM electronics, mics, cables, etc... are just easier to transport in cases. I think I bought the knock-off Pelican cases from Harbour Freight. Everything has it's place, and it stays packed up during the week in between shows ready to load.