ATA box type cases vs. regular cases?

[late8]

Been looking into ATA box type cases for the kit but not quite sure how practical the boxes are compared to regular cases. I'm not going on a world tour but I can see how having everything in its own compartment could help.
I'd really appreciate some of your feedback. Thanks in advance~

ATA type box:

Pro: Everything has its own compartment



Con: Difficult to transport and store backstage. Heavy



Cases:

Pro: Easy to stash in small areas



Con: Hard to consolidate:

[Northern Redneck]

Unless you have a truck or trailer with ramps and you are playing places without stairs Id stick to regular cases.

[xsabers]

Not to mention a healthy bank account!

[crispycritters]

Unless you have a truck or trailer with ramps and you are playing places without stairs Id stick to regular cases.

+1

Regular good quality cases will protect your equipment AND will you can still use a regular vehicle.

[drummer5359]

I have ATA cases for combo amplifiers and amp heads that can still be easily carried or stashed in a van. I've owned ATA drum cases in the past and found them not to be practical. Today's hard shell case give a high level of protection and are practical to load in your van, pickup or station wagon.

I've done regional tours where you can still run into steps on occasion, then it is a bad day if you have enormous ATA cases.

[kay-gee]

Unless you have a crew of roadies, stick with what is most practical and simple. I can't see those large cases solving any logistics problems at all, in fact, will probably only create them.

all the best...

[SpazApproved]

Agreed... my band looked into ATA cases and we were all excited to try it... till we met another band who came to play with us who did have them. Those guys struggled everywhere to get them in the building (couple steps) and back stage moving them around was a hassle. We then said nope, the way we do it now is just fine. I have SKB Hardcases and stack them inside themselves when not using them and stack them up like snowmen when I am.

[Bish]

Think of it this way. If you can't move it yourself under every situation, it's not for you.

Looks cool and might be a good way to store sets while at home and not in use but for transporting to and from gigs, not so much.

If you are looking to lighten the wallet, you would be better served with SKB hard cases for each drum. They are easily transportable and inter-lock when stacked. (no shifting during the transporting portion.)

[dangermoney]

I agree that the ATA cases may not be practical due to their size and weight ...

I use the Humes and Berg Enduro hard cases for my drums and hardware. The drum cases are stackable just like the SKBs and the hardware cases have casters at the bottom so that I can roll them to where I want them. They are lightweight, sturdy, and I haven't had any problem transporting or loading them out/in for gigs ...

[EddieV]

Go with Molded Cases.


I have everything I own inside of 10 ATA cases. From drums to cables, pedals, electrical cables to lighting, cymbals, to a box full of odds and ends. Almost everything the band uses.

I use a separate case for my cymbal stands that's not ATA case but very durable. I don't store PA Speakers or subs in them as I use their heavy duty cloth covers.

Everything is stored in a cargo trailer that I own. I don't put any gear inside my vehicle ever. (this is the key!)

Pros

1. They hold a lot of gear - all but one or two cases have casters on them - so when we unload we can stack a few and usually only need to take 4 or 5 trips with everything in and out. Nothing is too overly heavy and we rarely deal with steps.

2. They protect everything very well. Back in the late 90's my bands truck hit some black ice on New Years Day and rolled over two and half times. I had ZERO damage to my kit (my cage however was destroyed).

3. We can use them to set our board on, elevate monitors if we have a smaller stage, and even use them to prop up an amp if we need to.


CONS.

1. They're heavy and difficult to load/unload by yourself. It can be done....but it's a back breaker. We don't have a ramp on our cargo trailer. But if we were using a box truck with a ramp it wold be much easier. As long as you have someone to help lift in the trailer.....you're fine.

On a side note....one of the reasons we don't use a band "truck" is simply because of maintenance costs. Trucks require maintenance and also can (and will at the worst moment) break down, and when your truck is down, your band is "down" unless you want to rent another truck - which is never only $29.95 a day!". Everyone in my group has a vehicle with a trailer hitch, so if for some reason I break down towing the "band trailer", someone can come and get the trailer and off we go.


2. Storage. If you are not gigging a lot - (we work 3/5 nights a week) and are using the same kit to gig with as you practice in your home with. These cases take up a lot of space. You can't collapse them down, or store them inside each other. This might not be an issue with some that own a home or have storage space. I took two years off from playing ten years ago, and had my gig kit stored in the garage. It took up a lot of space in the corner of our one car - now no car garage and my wife hated it.

3. Only practical as long as you have something to easily load them in. Pick up trucks, vans, even commercial vans and of course regular cars are not easy to load in.

4. If you are transporting even a couple ATA Cases inside your vehicle. They will tear up the inside of it eventually. I scuffed up the inside of a Dodge Caravan I had ten years ago and marked up the window tint with a few cases that we stacked up. It doesn't take much at all.

5. Storage at the gig. Sometimes you don't have anywhere to put them at the gig. If your playing a tighter venue where there's no room for storage - you'll have to wheel the empty cases back out into the band trailer adding time to your load in and load up. ( I will have to do this tonight at our NYE gig and am not looking forward to it.)

6. Did I mention they're not cheap?



One of the reasons I still have these ATA cases is because I spent a lot of money for them years ago. In fact I had a few of them custom made for my kit when I was playing and traveling in the 80's and 90's and my kit was transported and set up by other people. The other reason is of course I still gig a lot and can use them in a trailer.

But if I was like most here - I would use soft cases if your gigging once or twice a month and using your personal vehicle where you store them inside your car/suv. Or harder "Molded" cases if you are transporting your gear in a van or truck.. You don't want to mess up the interior of your vehicle with ATA cases or even larger molded cases.

(my 2¢)

[Bish]

Great post, EV!!

[late8]

Wow...fantastic responses from everybody! I agree with all that was posted. I'll stick to mold cases. Thank-you very much!!