Question:

Hello Simon,
I was wondering what kind of tama iron cobra pedals you are using, the power glides, or rolling glide?
Thanks!
Frank Hoedl

Question:

Hi Simon,
I want to buy a Tama Starclassic (maple) also in the color British Racing Green. Your setsounds so great! The sizes I want to have 22x18, 10x8, 12x9 and 14x12. I also like to have one of your signature snare drums.

Now my question is: Which of the 3 snares (6.5x14, 5.5x14 or 5x12) do you think is the best for this set?

I really hope you will answer my question.
I wish you all the best!!
Greetings,
Justin Gernaat, The Netherlands

Question:

was wonder what device and if availible to me, the light system used inside simons kickdrums . saw this on the toto concert in amsterdam dvd..2003? are they motion sensitive switched? thanks for any responce...
rusty reeves

Question:

Hi Simon Phillips!
I would like to know something about your electronic equipment. In the pictures at your website I can see a rack standing by your drumset. What is in the rack? Which mixer etc. And the most important, which groovebox or sampler are you using?
Thanks
Peter, Denmark

Question:

Just wanted to know which drums you were using on the MSG album "Armed and ready".
That was my first Tama kit back in 1980. It was a Fibrestar kit with Power Toms. 2 x 22" kicks - 4 x rack toms, 2 floor toms, Gong Drum and Octobans.
Love your playing
-Mike

Question:

Simon I've noticed a total lack of octobans in your setup lately.This makes them hard to play if they're not there! ;^) I have always loved the sound and the rythms that you got from them.
I haven't seen you in concert so I don't know if they're in you setup on stage, but the recent pictures I've seen of your kit, theyr'e not present.Any chance that you'll be bringing them back into your setup in the near future?
Love your playing
-Mike

Question:

Hello Simon,
I’ve got a question about your monitors. I know you use a Mackie mixer and Meyersound speakers for your monitors. But what other kind of equipment do you use for your monitor? And how do you set it up? Do you mix the complete band yourself or do you get some premixes from the monitor mixer? Ronald

Question:

Hello Simon.
I’ve got a question. What do think of Cymbal cleaners, like Zildjian Cymbal Cleaner or Paiste Cymbal Cleaner? The manufactures of course say it is save for your cymbal. But when I check the internet a lot of people say it will affect the sound of the cymbal. What do you think of this and how do you clean your Cymbals?
Ronald

Question:

Simon,
Just looking at the new ad pics for your Tama Monarch Snare. In the pictures, I thought I spotted a few small Octobans that matched your new Bubinga kit. Just curious to see if Tama made you some Bubinga Octos? Keep up the great playing!!!
P@

Question:

Hi,
I'd like to know which are the most used toms and bass drum mics during simon studio recording sessions thanks
Filippo

Question:

Hi Simon.
I'm gonna record in home studio soon and I'd like to know if it's better to use an open resonant head with mic inside (D112), or to use a closed head with mic inside (with shock mount) ? I really love your sound, especially the kick so I simply wanna get a great sound ;-)
See you soon on a road !!!

Question:

Hi there Simon,
Am looking to purchase an inside bass drum mic. Was looking at the shure beta 91and was wandering what you think of it and also what you recomend..? Many thanks for your time, Ben

Question:

Hi Simon!
In the first time i would like to say to you, you're my favourite drummer, I like so much how you play drums, your drum' sound very interseting! So, I was in the Brussel Concert, the 03/22/06, and I noticed that you changed your A custom cymbals against apparently Avedis Cymbals, why this change? If I made a mistake, what do you think about the Avedis Cymbals?
Thank you very much, to offer us so much pleasure with Toto and with your solo album!
Hello from Lea and Etienne from Nancy France!
Vivien Logie

Question:

My question is concerning the mounting for the bass drum mics. You said you designed a system that works well with all the touring you do. Could you please send a little sketch how you did it? I'd be happy if I didn't have to open the bass drums all the time for correcting the position after each transport... And by the way - you have an amazing sound. This goes to both of you: the drum kit and yourself:-)
Best regards,
Witold Zglinski

Question:

Hi Simon,
I am looking for a setup similar to yours. Can you please tell me which order your crashes go in and what make they are. Sorry i couldnt see this on your website. Maybe if you could annotate a picture please.
Thanks for your help
All the best for the future
Ollie

Question:

Others have commented and similarly I would love to hear how you would incorporate small cymbals - bells, small splashes, cup chimes. . .any moves in that direction?

Question:

Simon,
I have found that after setting up for a gig, my drums sound great, but when the mics are attached to the toms, the sound becomes deadened and also creates some unwanted overtones. Do you have a cure for this? I would appreciate any advice you can offer!
Thanks,
Jim Florez, Kansas City, Kansas

Question:

First of all I was wondering which ear monitors you use on tour and if it's permanently ? I recently got Shure E5 and think they sound very great. Concerning your cymbals, I've seen on Toto website that you switched your A Custom crashes and hi-hat to prototypes. Are they from a new serie or had Zildjian made special cymbals for you ? By the way, where is your Signature Snare Drum on the Toto FIB tour ?? The new one sounds very rock !! See you soon on the road

Question:

First of all, really fun to see you rockin all over again, the concert in Helsinki was GREAT!!! My questions: to me it seemed like you have angeld your ride cymbal somewhat less now, if so, why? And I also noticed that the crash cymbal that use to be "behind" you, now was next to the crash cymbals infront of you. Why this change?
Thank you so much for all the inspiration!!! God bless //Mathias

Question:

Dear Simon,
I was watching a Toto concert from Amsterdam and I was curious about the permanently mounted bass drum microphones you use in your Tama kit. I attended the Boston Conservatory and Berklee College of Music in the 70's and perform in drums in my own band band. Most of the time I use a Sennheiser microphone for my 2 kits. Could you please let me know how your bass drum mics were done.
Thank you,
Ilene Corvini

Question:

Simon,
I have a small problem with my Octaban setup (Low Pitch). I have had a terrible time choosing drum heads for them. I know that you use clear ambassadors on yours. I have tried them and have had very mixed results. While the following is not true for all of the Octabans in my setup, if I tune some of them up(I tend to tune them very low to get the throaty character of the drum) enough to get any tonality out of them, then they become very ringy with alot of overtones. If tuned down then they are just flat. I have been using pinstripes as of late, and while I can bring them away from the flappy sound just fine, this is still too dead. I have a feeling that I might have some misadjusted hardware or even a drum that could slightly need the edge cut. Anyway, I was wondering if you have ever run into this problem? Also, if you were going to try and adjust the bearing edge of an Octaban, do you know what the considerations are considering the makeup of the Octabans?

Question:

Hi Simon, I m Andres from Guatemala, and I own an Iron Cobra Double Pedal(Power Glide) and I am not too happy with the adjusting, also my bass drum is 16 x 20", so what tips could you give to adjust the Iron Cobra, they are so good that needs an adjust so near to perfection, and It is driving me nuts... so I will thank you if you can help me... I know that the rolling glide has a different feeling but I know that you know the answer for this question... thanks and keep making amazing music!!!
Andres

Question:

Hello Mr Phillips.You are my ultimate favorit drummer and i´m a huge fan of TOTO.I play drums in a rockband here in sweden where I live.I play on a new Tama Superstar kit(wich i love bytheway).My sizes are 12,13 and 16 inch toms,a 22 inch bassdrum and a 14 inch snaredrum.My problem is that i can´t the 12 inch tom and my snaredrum to sound good.My 12 inch tom is tuned very low but when i hit it it1s sounds dead.No ring or nothing.My other toms are tuned the same way but they resonate beautiful.It´s kind of the same problem with my snaredrum.It´s sing though but it´s not a nice sound.Just alot of bass and need more crack out of it.I use coated ambassadors on the toms and a tama head on my snare.Please help.Take care................Ludvig Schönborg

Question:

Hi Simon, How are you?
I have got some questions about your drum kit: I know, that you haven´t recorded the new Toto CD with your new Bubinga drum kit, because it reseives just after the recording session.
Which first recording session(s) did you with the new drum kit, actually? I´m curious, how do you enjoy of this new shell sound? Are these drum shells similar to your old Antique brown kit, like the depth, or are theresome differences /customised?
What about the new Omni- tune drum system? I know, you still are using ofthe regular starclassic lugs.
Do you still have of your old AB studio kit and that BRG one? Which one do you want to bring for the new Toto live shows? Thank you for you time, Simon! See you on the tour in 2006!
Richard, Germany

Question:

Hi Simon, I'm your big fan, and I have your yellow finished Tama Starclassic Maple.
I can't believe yet...
The sound is amazing (obviously) but I have a little problems with the bass drum tunning. Now I'm on tour with a Argentine singer, and I can't find the sound in my bass drum. I using a Remo Coated Ambassador, and the sound is very light, I need a more lower deep sound, can you help me with some tunning tips...
Thanks! The best for you...
Guido

Question:

Hello Simon! I have one question. Simon, which attachments do you use to fix your gong drum. Can you please give me the exact description, cause i need these clamps and attachments for my gong bass. The same please for your octobans.
Thanks a lot!
Greets, Martin

Question:

What was the decision behing using the new Superstar line during the Asian clinic tour, and what did you think of them as opposed to the maple shell of the Starclassics?

Question:

You spoke in some other e-mail questions about getting a relaxed playing style and kit set up so that whole body movements were minimized. Your kit certainly seems very comfortable that way, except for the 3 crash cymbals. They were not only mounted (apparently very) high but also horizontal. It seemed to me that in order to play them you were having to reach up and over almost forcing you to stand up. You also spoke slightly disparagingly about crash cymbals mounted low, however that was in response to a question about miking for recording. I've seen several respected drummers with their cymbals mounted low and others with them way up high like you and I wonder what influenced your choice to go high.

Question:

I am curious to know what model Hi Hat Stand that Simon uses.

Thank you,
Dana

Question:

What are the sizes of your Octobans? I am trying to duplicate your Octoban sound on your Protocol CD
I purchased a used Low-pitched set that was missing one drum. The sizes are 17.5" - 18.5" - 21" - and the missing one should be 23.5". (I believe these are the advertised standard Low-pitched set sizes) After purchasing them, I contacted Tama to order the missing 23.5" drum, only to find they are only sold in sets of four.
So.....I purchased another used Low-pitched set of four, but when they arrived, they measure 19.5" - 21.75" - 24" - 26.25" and the bottom (open side) bearing edges are flat, unlike the tapered bottom bearing edge on the set of three.
Both sets are Tama without a doubt. I'm guessing that perhaps the longer set may have been special ordered? Back to the question at hand, what size Octobans do you use?

Question:

Hi Simon!
I have a question about boundary mics inside the kicks. Did you use them anytime?How embarrassed with this, I used this and the result was aboom boom sound likea swing.
David

Question:

Hello Simon!
I`m very glad to hear that your "on your feet" again. My question: It seems to me like you are using in-ear monitors on the new Toto-dvd, is that correct?? If so, why did you start using them, instead of traditional speakers? And aren`t you using a Zildjian new-beat hi-hat instead of the A-custom you used to have!?!
God bless and Thank you for the music!!

Question:

Simon,
Are you back to your standard: 4 octobans to your left set-up? or are you still keeping the two on the floor and hitting the timbale to your left?

Question:

Simon...My name is Steve Sinatra and I wanted to know more about you china sound. In particular the sound you were getting back when you had first joined Toto. Not to be confused with the china sound you get now because I think it's changed. On the recent Toto DVD the chinas you had sounded much thicker and clangy than what you usually used to me. A really good example of the sound I'm talking about is the china that was on your right side while sitting at the drumkit in the Los Lobotomys DVD released from Ohne Filter. That china sounds great because its never over bearing and you can ride on it, like you did, with the tip of your stick and not have it be too tinny. I caught a peak of what the cymbal was while watching the DVD and it looked like a 22' A china high with a brilliant finnish. When I went to the local drum store and tried a couple out I was very disappointed to find that none of the chinas sounded even close to yours. Then I thought that the label on the cymbal was just for show and you might have had zildjian make that cymbal custom for you and had them make it thin to get that very wooshie cloud like airy sound. Could you just clear this up for me by maybe telling me weather I'm on the right track with my guess or if I'm totally wrong. I'd really like to get that china sound that you got but I can't seem to find the right cymbal. Maybe you could tell something about your chinas or chinas in general that might help me. Steve Sinatra

Question:

Hi Simon. I was wondering what kind of overhead you use. The equipment list of Toto says Shure KSM27, but in the equipment list on your website it's KSM32. And what would you say of the KSM44 as overhead?

Question:

Hi, Simon
First I'd like to thank you for answering my last question.
Now I have a few questions about Pro Tools plug-ins 'cause I've been learning how to record my drums with Pro Tools lately. What plug-ins do you use for kick, snare, toms and overhead tracks? And do you use separate tracks for reverb? When you hit your snare, how did you get constant sounds of your snare. I believe you hit snare rim and the centre at the same time. Because when I recorded my snare, I heard that I didn't hit it constantly. You know, sometimes I hit the rim too much, sometimes I hit it perfectly. Any advice? Thank you.
Sincerely, TG, San Francisco

Question:

Hi Simon,
why did you change the angle of your four rack-toms in front of you? Does it feel more comfortable to you? I also tried, but I felt it wasn't really comfortable. I couldn't do any fast fills the way I did before. Thanks.

Question:

Hi Simon, I've just received and watched my copy of the new DVD. It's fantastic. I am yet to see you guys in concert, except for the video of the band from Paris and now your DVD. Congratulationson the mix - I have a DTS system and it sounds just great. I was wondering if there are any plans in the works to return to Australia.The band haven't been down here since the Kingdom Of Desire tour and it would be great to see you live. Some friends of mine were in Europe recently and they said they caught one of your shows, so after hearing that and seeing the DVD I'm pretty keen to check the band out. What effects/triggers do you have on your gong bass drum on the right hand side of your kit? Whenever I hear it especially on a system with a good sub it sounds huge. I was wondering how you are achieving such a deep resonant sound. Thanks for your time. Jason Grimsted

Question:

I just got the Toto DVD yesterday, and have a few thoughts I'd like to know a bit about, just from the top of my head. On Girl Goodbye, it looks like you have a small tom (10 or 12") to the right of your 16" tom. is that correct, and if so, is this a supplement to your kit, or just for that song?

Question:

What was the setup of your drums you used on Big Country's 1993 album " The Buffalo Skinners "? Your drums on this record sounded very thunderous, I was wandering if they were still the Artstar's or the Starclassic! Thanks

Question:

Hello Mr. Simon Phillips
which snare drum do you used on the Out Of the Blue Cd? Was it a 14 x 5" or a 14 x 6"?
How can i make a big sound on recordings with a 20 x 16 BassDrum? I know it´s a small BassDrum but live she´s very good! The microphone (AKG D112) is inside, and the front Drum Head is closed.

Question:

My question is, which ride cymbals did you use on the albums "Sin after sin" (Judas Priest 1977) (beautiful overtones and bell) and "Back on the streets" (Gary Moore 1978) (sounds like an A 20" medium ride, beautiful clear). And was your drumkit the Ludwig Octa-plus kit on both recordings? I like the dry sound of it, but I guess I'm a seventies fan after all. Nowadays I find it hard to recognize a drummer on his sound an style. I hope you can remember those long timeago recordings!!!
Thanx in advance for you time, Frank

Question:

Hello Simon I'm a big fan of your timing and drumsound (live). Have you ever try-out a Rode NTK (tube mic) on overheads?.. or the beta 57a on snare?

Question:

What i want to ask you in general is about simon phillips bass drum mic mounting! I know he is using an internally mounted shure beta 52 in the bass drum, but i don´t know how it is mounted. Does he use the May Internal MIC system (www.maymicseurope.com), or something which was developed

Question:

Will there be any changes in your drumkit for the new TOTO record or in general? Thanx!

Question:

Hi Simon, I really like the sound of your drums. I have questions about your toms, O/H mics and EQ. The smallest tom you're using is 10", but it sounds like 8" size tom, especially in a TOTO song "Caught in the balance". Do you tune it really tight? Can you tell me how you tune the top and bottom heads of the tom? Did you boost high freq really high for the toms on EQ? And the last thing, how high do you put your O/H mics? I just got your DVD with Los Lobotomys, I love it!!!! Thank you very much.

Question:

I read in MD recently that you run your Meyer monitors in stereo. I had the opportunity recently while doing some big concerts, and the monitor engineer asked me if I was crazy; "why would I want to run my two EAW monitors in stereo?". I thought that it would be very cool, because it was a huge band, two drummers, a choir, two lead singers, horn section, keys, and three guitar players, and I wanted to get more "space" in my monitor mix, because I wanted to hear all or most of the performers on stage. And there also were some nice stereo guitar sounds that I'd like to hear. What benefits do you find in running your monitors in stereo vs.mono?

Question:

My name is Al, im a big fan of yours. Id like your personal opinion on something. I have a Tama Starclassic in british racing green like yours. I was wondering what you thought the pros and cons of using the starcast mounting system on a 16x16 floor tom versus floor tom legs. Its got the legs now, but I was thinking of rim mounting it, but it seems too heavy for that. Will it wobble too much? i want to mount it, but I was wondering if you’ve tried this before. I know your floor is on legs. Thanks so much.

Question:

I have a Tama Starclassic in british racing green like yours. I was wondering what you thought the pros and cons of using the starcast mounting system on a 16x16 floor tom versus floor tom legs. Its got the legs now, but I was thinking of rim mounting it, but it seems too heavy for that. Will it wobble too much? i want to mount it, but I was wondering if you've tried this before. I know your floor is on legs. Thanks so much!

Question:

Hi Simon,
I own an Octobans low pitch set on my drumkit and I'm very interested in miking technique in general, without pretending to be an sound engineer of course. After testing different tries with only one mic (always the same problem... number of mics available, number of tracks available...) it seems obvious that the best result will be acheived by putting one mic inside of each octoban..Most of the time I've seen octobans miked by SM57 (great mic... and cheap). I've tested the Sennheiser evolution E604 that is very similar in terms of acoustics performances on this kind of percussion and that has the advantage to be directly clipped inside the octoban by using the small tool supposed to fixe the mic wire. The mic is well centered but all the mics are even spaced from the bottom and not of the head.

The question now is. According to your experience I would like to known how do you place the mics inside the octobans ? Centered in the head ?
Even spaced from the head ? Do you experience phase problem if you put the mic forward or backward in the octoban ? Do you search for the better place ? Did you try different mics and eq settings ? Thanks.

Question:

I was wondering if you could explain drum stools I've seen that have what looks like speaker voice coils or some sort of driver unit attached to the bottom of the seat? My guess would be it is a pair of low frequency drivers for monitoring the Kick drums? Is that the common use? Do you or have you ever used one? I would imagine they are primarily useful in a Loud venue or setting where monitors for the drums are less effective, but I can't find anyone who knows for sure. If you Care to elaborate, I'm interested in hearing any input you have on Drum Throne Drivers. Thanks for all the great new music from Derek and Virgil you have contributed to and worked on! Looking forward to seeing you with TOTO Live!

Question:

Hello Simon
What is the best way of placing the mics, if you have few mikes and play jazz like you?
Thank you
Sincerely, David, Seattle

Question:

Great work on Through the looking Glass, especially all the cool modern percussion sounds and samples! My favourite tune is sunshine of your love! It's so f..... groovy!
Which tools did you use for that kind of sounds (eg. maiden voyage)?
And also, did you use your vantage point kit and an addional 18" kick in the backround on maiden voyage? Great groove, very dynamic!
What kind of material did you use on the other songs?

Question:

I saw in Modern Drummer that Simon used two large K Constantinoples. I have a 22" medium, but the overtones seem to overpower the stick definition. Does Simon do any muffling of his K's, or is 'overwash' even a problem for him? It seems like the only way I can get stick definition is to use a stick with an extremely small bead. It seems too, that my K Constantinople doesn't produce enough 'ping' to provide something the rest of the band can hear. Maybe this extreme wash is preferred. I don't know. Any wisdom or advice?

Question:

As usual,thanks for answering so kindly our questions. Well, I saw in the series of photographs of your drums (same photo session as in the Symbiosis CD booklet) you put a SM98a mike next to the SM57 on the snare drum.Same thing for the bassdrums where you put Neumann "The bottle" mikes in front. Could you tell me what you really do with these double takes? Is it a technique you often use?

Question:

Are the octobans played by remote pedals and where are these pedals situated? That's it!

Question:

What size drumsticks do you use, and what brand are they? I've been expiramenting with 5A, 2B, even 3S size sticks and I can't find the right kind for the tpe of music I play (combonation of progressive and jazz, kinda like Toto meets Brian Setzer). I would like to get a light pair, mostly for cymbal work.

Question:

I've noticed your innovation regarding to the octobans at your drumkit.
Would it be possible to fit the other octobans in the normal methode as well? I think this would be a great combination playing them the same time by hand and feet. In the old days you've used all 8 of them what made you change for only four?

Question:

What drum sizes and cymbal set-up do you use on your Doves Of Fire gigs?

I have seen some pictures on the net, and it very much looks like the same Fibes set-up Billy used in his Mahavishnu days, except of course different drums.

Question:

What difference in sound do you find with the shallower tom-tom sizes (12"x9", 13"x10" etc) on your Starclassic kit these days, as apposed to the deeper sizes (12"x10", 13"x11" etc.) which I believed you used before?

Question:

I've always loved your work with tama's "octobans". You are the main reason, I continue to include octos in any one of my large setups.
Here's my question: have you ever considered having tama make you maple octobans?
I know that they don't offer them but you are there top endorser, I'm sure they'd make them for you. Just curious to see if it ever came across your mind.

Question:

I love the loops and samples on Through The Looking Glass especially on Could You Be Loved and Maiden Voyage. Is there a certain kind of drum machine or sampler you used on that album that is available to us amatures? If not, are there any good loop machines you could recommend?

Question:

I'm going to purchase a Tama Starclassic kit and I really want to get a sound pretty like yours. As I play in many bands with different genres I'm not sure if I should go for a 24" bass drum.
The 22" would be a typical versatile one. What would you recommend? I'm not sure what depth I should choose to get a 22" sound like your 24" either. As for the toms, I'm interested in 10, 12, 14, 15 with the same depths as yours. I'm still a bit unsure if I should choose a 15 or 16 as the last tom. What would you prefer with 4 toms? I'm also wondering if you would change tom depths if scaling down to a 22 kick.

Question:

If I look at your Drums-equipment and I see the last photo (Mackie mixer) is there a Tama Rhythm Watch attached?

Do you use clicktrack and how do you use it? Just for the tempo to start off songs, or do you play 100% clicked?

Question:

Would you tell a little about what type of head phones you're using in the studio?
I have a probleme with most head phones. I can't deal with the sound that is coming from a speaker so close to the ear. Some head phones are solving this better than others. I'm always the problem guy in the studio haha...
But I would love to hear something about which head phones you prefer.

Question:

I know that you've been using Octobans for many years and have a lot of experience with them. I am having a set 'custom-made' out of Birch so that they will be stained & finished to match my kit, using the same Starclassic lugs, etc. I have wanted to use Octobans for QUITE some-time... but never found the right project or just never got around to buying them.

Now that they shall be arriving soon, I am curious to gather some of your feedback on the following:

a) Drumhead choices: In anticipation of their arrival, I have purchased 3-different types of 6" heads: Evansa G1 (sigle-ply) clear, Evansa Hydraulic (double-ply, oil-filled) clear and lastly Remo Pinstripes. Since these drums rely more on the 'throatiness' of the long shell, rather than resonance and sustain, it would seem to me that I 'might' want more 'attack' from the head rather than to try to increase resonance... so my gut-instinct is to go with a double-ply... but then again... I have no experience with this type of drum. Any feedback from you on the differences in head plies and thicknesses with Octobans...?

b) Miking technique: The rest of my kit is using the Maya Internal mic's... but for the Octobans... my (again) 'gut instinct' is that the entire character of those drums is derived from the 'hollowness' of the sound created by the excessive length of the shell. Hence, mic'ing the drumhead externally seems like it would defeat the purpose. What I am thinking of doing is placing an Audix D-1 in the bottom opening of each Octoban (they are the "Low" or longer sizes) but other than experimentation, what have you found for a decent positioning within the drum... right outside the edge...? An inch-or-so in...? 4-5 inches in...?

c) Tuning: I know you've mentioned before the 'oddities' of tuning Octobans due to them being such small diameter heads, only having 4-lugs and the fact that the shell length dictates most of the sound, but... have you found that each of the drums has a tonal 'sweet-spot' that works well with (in harmony with) the length of the shell...? Or is it just a matter of the drum sounding decent no matter what tuning-range you use...?

Question:

hello i am a big fan of yours. I loved to see you perform the Tommy tour with the Who. I just recently picked up the Who's DVD 30 Years of maximum R&B and at the end you played a few songs. I am wondering about your ride cymbal. Was your ride a 22" Projection Ride A Custom? And also I wanted to ask have you ever considered switching your drum heads to Evans or something like that?

Question:

I am 26 and have practiced hard over the years but have never felt very comfortable with the drumsticks I have used. I have tried many models and now realise that the real problem is my short fingers. I even struggle to get a good and secure grip on a 7A model, which is not adequate for the music I play anyway (rock). I love drumming and don´t want to give up because of this - have you any suggestions?

Question:

Don't you like small cymbals? Your ride is really big, your splash and chrashes and chinas are the largest models? I like smalls cymbals, particulary splashes. I have a 6" A Custom splash and that's my favorite cymbal.

It would be very interesting to know what cymbals you're using on the album "Vantage point".

Question:

You mentioned in a previous posting that you'd had the bearing edges on your drums modified. Can you explain exactly what you had modified and how it affected the sound? Did you have it done to all of the drums or just toms?

Question:

You just recorded drums on a friends album RYO OKUMOTO I was intrigued by the photo of your drum set up and in particular the mics you use as they seem to have 2 wires from each of the mics. Could you tell me the name of the MICROPHONES you use and the reason for the 2 cables

Question:

During the time you were using the D12 in your bassdrums, it was placed very close to the batter head.

When using the Beta52, you placed it quite near to the front head, attached to the spur holder screws with your special adapter. Why this change assuming you didn't change anything else than the mike?

Question:

Hi Simon...

I'm privileged to own an ex kit of yours, it's the Cordia Artstars you used on "Give Blood", with Dave Gilmour, and Pete Townshend ... I know that's going back a bit... :)

The kit is very special to me, I was however wondering if you could tell me what other projects and performances it was used for. I'm trying to start a studio for underprivileged kids, and I'd love to know more regarding the kits history.

Question:

First, let me express how COOL your drumsound is...beyond belief! I was wondering how often you change your reso and batter heads on kick, tom and snares and if mastercast hoops have a great influence to tuning and sound...?

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Hi! Just wondering:
Why are octoban's removed for "Through the Looking Glass" - tour??

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What cymbal-Setup have you played for the record of the Steve Lukather Album "Candyman"?
The sound of the cymbales is so very brilliant!

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You play on your gongtom a 22" Remo-Timpani-Head.What is this for a model?
Is it a "Standard", "Standard with Alu Insert Ring", "...Steel Insert" or a "Steel Low Profile Insert"?

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Simon,

I have had the joy of following your carrier for many years, first meeting you in La Habra in about 1980 for a clinic for Tama.

I read an article a few months ago about your project studio.

I am currently building a pro tools project studio with an equipment budget of about $25,000, I am unfamiliar with non-linear recording. I was hoping you might be able to share some of your favorite proTools plug-ins with me, and maybe a few other setup suggestions you might have.

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Is there a Set update except the Timbales replacing the Octabans

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Are you gonna take a kit with a new colour on the TOTO tour in fall! For example your brown one? That would be so cool!

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I was wondering if you've had a chance to "test drive" any of the StarClassic Exotix series with the Hawaiian Koa and Bubinga wood shells. If you have, I was just wondering what you thought.

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Simon - I have been a huge fan of yours and have played drums since 1979. When selecting sticks, I have always taken an armful of Pro-Mark 5Bs (and now, your signature stick), sat on the floor with a pad, tapping each stick until I find pairs of similar pitch. I then paired them together and made sure they weren't out-of round/warped by rolling them on a flat surface. Is there any benefit to having sticks of similar pitch when it comes to the sound they create on heads and the drumset in general? It seems I hear differing opinions on this.Thanks!
Jeff
Orange County, CA

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Hi Simon, I was wondering if you could tell me what crash cymbals you used on "Protocol"?

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Simon,
I've picked up your two videos. Very impressive playing, content and production!
Can you give the details of the kit that you used then? Also, could you address the sonic implications of going to drums with smaller lugs and presumably thinner shells. Did you change your technique at all going to the Starclassic system?
Cheers,
Andy Vermiglio

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I never saw you using a microphone on the bottom side of the snare drum. Could you tell me how you came to this choice?
Same thing for the Tama Starcast suspension for snare drum.

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Which china cymbal, on your right hand side, did you use during the 1994 Los Lobotomys tour? It looked like a 22" Platinum China Boy Low? Is that correct?

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A simple one this time. Why did you change your Ambassador CS snare head for a regular Ambassador?
Is it because you changed for a metal snaredrum and liked more overtones, or the Gladiator's overtones?
In one of your videos, you said you were using CS only for more durability. Didn't you like also the more focused sound of this type of head? Would you change back to CS head,if going back to a main wood snaredrum?

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How would you describe the difference between the Tama PB355 Bronze Snaredrum and your signature Snaredrum "The Gladiator" in aspects of sounding? They seem to be very similar.
I am just curious about it :)

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Hi Simon
I noticed on your pictures from the Acoustic Jazz Triple Bass Drum Kit, that the 18" Kicks are not directly on the floor with the hoop of the batterside. Do you use a 18" Bass Drum Riser, and if so what is that part called and where can I buy one?

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Hi Simon... Marshall Maxey here... 43 y/o professional drummer (double bass/large kit) living in Knoxville, TN. I started listening to your drumming back during the Toto-Tambu era so I'm catching up to a lot of yourfans. I recently found your web-site and I have to say that compared to other drummers FAQ posts on their sites, your fans are way more intelligent with their questions. I'm very impressed. Anyway, I had a couple of questions for you and when I went to your FAQs the first thing I noticed was the most recent posts were questions nearly the same as mine. So, let me try to hammer down farther to the nitty gritty. On "Dave's Gone Skiing" I was blown away by your part and couldn't figure out the time on the intro riff. Eventually I could play it in time with the melody (totally by feel) with my hands on a table top but I couldn't figure out the time subdivisions. Then it finally hit me that this part seems to be in pretty much straight time with a lot of syncopation. Am I right about this? Sorry about the long questions but I have one more. On the topic of keeping solid time/groove, I understand feeling subdivisions and the groove needing to be "in you", but I've found (for me) one of the key elements to good time is a strange combination of focus and relaxation. I personally have to really work on this. Especially when playing high energy parts. What's your opinion about this. Thanks for your time. Your one of the drummers that keep my excitement high about playing drums no matter how old I get. Keep it up!

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Hi, i'm my band in the small rehearsal room. I've got 3 mikes for myself and I play a 4 ply Pearl MMX. How can I setup the mikes the best way for my shells. and also how can I prevent guitar-sound leaking through my mikes, and drum sound throuch the rest of the mikes?? Thanx alot, keep up the amazing playing!
-- Victor

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You did mention earlier on these fantastic FAQ pages while answering a question of mine, that you sometimes have recorded your kit using only 4 mic's. Do you perhaps remember which tracks where you have used this recording technique? How do you go about mic placement in this situation, and what type of mic's, i.e. condensers or dynamics, do you prefer? And what do you think of this approach as opposed to close-miking each drum? And, have you also used 4 mic's in a live setting, perhaps in a small club?

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You mentioned that Pork Pie did some work to your Tamas.
What exactly? Just wondering.

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I love your drum sound. I want to know more about your toms. On the second cut of "Tambu" the toms are incredible. You say you tune your toms tight but you get so much bottom end, what's up with this? And do you tune the same for live verses studio? If you used a Drum Dial how much tension would it read on your toms, snare and kick?

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I really admire your miking technique, and I am aware of how particular you are about your sound, especially your bass drum (s). If you can spare the time and info, I'd appreciate some basic EQ suggestions I can give sound crew folks when they inevitably look at me strangely when I present them a bass drum resonant head without a hole. It seems to work fairly well about 6-10 inches from the head, dead centre, but I am wondering about compression and EQ. I understand you try to use as little EQ as possible? Most amateur sound men are perplexed by this. Especially in the studio!

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My question is, how do you tune and dampen your bass drum? On Mindfields and Another Lifetime, I notice you are able to get a nice high-end snap, very defined, along with great bottom-end.

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Are your bassdrum frontheads Ambassador ones for the moment (I know you've been using the "Staclassic logo" front heads at the beginning of the Starclassic production,wich were thinner ones). In both cases, can you tell me if you tune them to the same pitch as the batter heads, as you do on the toms, or to a specific pitch interval?

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What drum heads do you use on your snare??

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What is in your opinion the main difference in sound characteristics between a metal (steel/brass) snare and a wooden snare?

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Which snare did you use on "The High Price of Hate"? What about "Mad about you"?

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Hi Simon, I have a question about your Gong Tom. What kind of shell do you use? Is it the mapleshell from Starclassic or is it from the Artstar series. Can you tell me about the different sounds of both, I am asking because I like get me one.

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I think you have the most consistent bass drum sound on cd today. Through a high quality system, there is always a deep fundamental note you can feel. Listening to other recordings, especially older ones, this is usually absent. For example, John Bonham had a huge sound, but it is mostly due to harmonics as far as I can tell. The low end impact is just not there. How do you explain this? I have a feeling it has more to do with recording technology and equalization than equipment and tuning.

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I am curious how you pick your cymbals, I understand when you say that must match together as a group, but Zildjian makes sooooo many cymbals, how do you know there is no cymbal that sounds greater for a song or something. And when you pick your cymbals, is there anyone from Zildjian who helps you to choose one? And do you have a lot of spare cymbals? Do you change them often? If you choose to change something to your present set-up..what would be the first thing? And what would you never change?

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I am about to get a Starclassic Maple set and I was wondering how you go about miking your kick. I see that you have both heads on and no mic hole in the front head. How do you get the mic cord in your kick? And how do you mount your mic in it.

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How do you deal with your tension rods on your hi-hat? I've noticed that the rod barely peeks above your actual cymbals, giving your left hand access to the ride with out having to work around the tension rod sticking up in the air. Does Tama make shorter rods for open handed players or do you just cut it down yourself?

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Good day! I recently enjoyed seeing you perform at a clinic at Lemmon Percussion. Since then, I had played a show that was outdoors and I was not miked at all. My drums could not be heard beyond 15 feet from the stage. I want to invest in a great set of microphones for my kit. I know you play Shure microphones and instead of going the route of asking sales reps at music stores why Shure is better than "seller B", I wanted to actually hear what you like about them.

I also am planning on getting a mixer as you do and use the same process of getting a good EQ'd sound and only dealing with the volume in the end for each show. This brings up two questions. 1) Will the EQ levels pretty much stay the same whether it's an indoor show or an outdoor show? 2) Do you use the mixer when recording in the studio or do you run it through the main sound board?

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Did you ever sample your kit for using the sounds on a Ddrum4. If not, could you imagine to do that and to spread the sounds on the www.clavia.com site? I would really appreciate that.

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I have an issue when tuning my Starclassics where the frequency of the 10" tom when properly tuned causes the snares of the snare drum to vibrate to an unacceptable level. If I reduce the pitch of the 10" tom, the snare rattling problem is eliminated... but then the 10" tom itself will not be in an optimum state of tune. Or, I can change the tension of the snare heads also to avoid the common frequency clash, but then the snare will not be in optimum tune with itself. Just wondering if you have encountered this type problem, and if so, what is your approach to correcting it. I am ready to change the sizes of my toms just to get rid of this problem. When recording, I never gate the snare track or use snare triggers, so it is important to me to not have excessive snare rattle caused by toms, etc.
Thank you. -Dave

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Is the Splash Cymbal that you had set up over your hi-hat and to the left of your ride cymbal on the 1989 WHO tour, the same one that you use now, only moved? If yes, why did you move it?

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What are Octobans made of? It isn't wood, right? I saw in the picture gallery that you hade 8 octobans in the older days. Why are using just 4 now?

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I'm a drummer too and own a homestudio. I'm pretty satisfied with my sound but am always fighting unwanted snare rattle. I can get rid of it by tensioning the snares fairly tight, but the overheads always pick some snare rattle when I hit the 10"tom (tom sizes are 10,12,13,14 and 15). Futhermore I always end up needing gates because of mic leakage. I generally use the overheads to mic the complete kit. How do you mix the overheads? Do you roll of a fair amount to just "hear" the cymbals? For example on "I will remember", in the intro their is absolutely no snare rattle (of course, it's a TOTO production;-) ) and the toms sound like their is a fair amount of short reverb used. How was this song mixed?

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Why do you have your cymbals so high up in the air?

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I'm playing on a Starclassic maple drum set similar as yours (same shell sizes, same heads) and I always liked your way of tuning it. I've spent a lot of time checking the pitch intervals of your differents shells. After tuning the kit, it sounded wonderful until I put on the snares. Just this 13'' tom was generating heavy snare buzz. How can I solve this problem without changing the rest of the kit's tuning? Could it come from the snare bottom head tuning? By the way,I never read or heard anything from you about this chapter.

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