Desperate setup help needed

[NoiseInMotion]

I'm really having a hard time getting a comfortable setup. Not only is it annoying when I'm playing at home, but my band is going to be doing gigs soon and I need a working solid working setup before I start moving it around. So here are my many issues.

1) I keep my toms offset for better access. The problem is that I can't get them centered over the bass drum without the bottom hoop of the mid tom hitting the finish of the drum. I can't raise the toms up because then they're at a very uncomfortable angle.

2) I can't get my floor tom in a good position. Whenever I go to hit it, my right arm sort of c.o.c.k.s out to the right to hit it as opposed to my arm going straight down.

3) I always wind up too focussed on the left side of my kit. Because of the offset toms being...well, too offset, I become centered on the left side of my kit. So when I go to play on my ride or second crash or floor tom, my body instinctively turns to the right. This upsets my positioning because my left knee ends up hitting the snare and I don't feel centered.

There's one reason behind all this: my height. I'm 5 foot 6. Because of this cruel twist of fate, I can't get any of my stuff positioned where it's all comfortable and nothing is in danger of hitting anything else. I've been trying different things almost every day for about a week now and I'm at my wits end. I'm using a Yamaha Stage Custom Advantage Fusion kit in the following sizes:

-10x9 tom
-12x10 tom
-14x12 tom
-22x18 kick

And in lieu of a real picture of my kit, here's a crude mockup I made with some software I have (minus cymbals). I can never get a good birds eye view of my kit, so this should have to do.

[Northern Redneck]

try raising your stool a bit higher. as for turning your body thats just something you'll have to get used to.

[NoiseInMotion]

try raising your stool a bit higher. as for turning your body thats just something you'll have to get used to.

I forgot to mention that I've got my seat placed where it's comfortable, My thighs are parallel with the floor, which is what's comfortable for me.

[Northern Redneck]

Sometimes we just have to learn to work with the body God gave us.

[chafey]

try putting your toms directly behind your snare,centered with you. and put the bass drum on an angle to the right, as if you have two of them. i have the same problem. also try putting your snare right in front of you ,centered as well

[kay-gee]

It's the price you pay for the "cool" factor. I gave up on that years ago for the same ergonomic reasons. I go for smaller drums and less of them. I have them set up in a way that I can reach anything on the set with no body movement at all. I play with my wrists in front of me at all times, and from there, with only slight angles to left or right, I can hit anything on the set. It also increases endurance because the body is more comfortable.

all the best...

[kaosotis]

When I had my Tour Customs I had them over the kick. Now I'm tall (6'3"), but it's just a matter of tilting them. They aren't particularly deep toms, but I had kids 5" tall play the kit just fine Here's a 6th grader at my kit:



If your toms are that angle, you should be fine. It's not a particularly steep angle, maybe 30 degrees. Seems like that's your only option if you don't like reaching in the offset setup.

[VIbes]

As looking at your drum diagram, If you angle your bass drum a little more to the right you can pull your floor tom over closer to you. Straddle your snare with the toms in front of you. That's how I set mine up when useing that configuration and it is very comfortable for me.

[NoiseInMotion]

I go for smaller drums and less of them.

That's why I bought a fusion kit. I was holding out for smaller toms and a 20 inch kick, but it wasn't meant to be.

[Constinator25]

Try putting one tom in the kick and the other on a stand. That way it's still offset but not too much. You might just have to raise the tom up a bit to make it over the kick. Your hi-hat will also be closer.

[NoiseInMotion]

Try putting one tom in the kick and the other on a stand. That way it's still offset but not too much. Your hi-hat will also be closer.

I tried that. Didn't work.

I noticed that my seat was in a different position than I thought. I got a new Tama throne for Christmas yesterday. Got it set up yesterday, but it turns out that I had it lower than I thought. I raised it up to raise the toms and I've got it set pretty well for now. I'm gonna give it a good test drive tomorrow to know for sure.

[yohin]

The real question here is what kind of "fusion" kit comes with 10x9 and 12x10 toms?

But anyways....I'm also 5'6" and I sometimes have trouble placing stuff in comfortable positions, but the way I solved things was to raise my throne height. My thighs are at an angle compared to the ground. But I'm used to sitting this way, so it may not work for you unless you can get used to it. It's worth a shot though...just raise your throne a little for a while and see if you can get used to the new height.

[NoiseInMotion]

The real question here is what kind of "fusion" kit comes with 10x9 and 12x10 toms?

That's diameter by depth in case that's where the confusion is. Why, are those weird sizes?

But anyways....I'm also 5'6" and I sometimes have trouble placing stuff in comfortable positions, but the way I solved things was to raise my throne height. My thighs are at an angle compared to the ground. But I'm used to sitting this way, so it may not work for you unless you can get used to it. It's worth a shot though...just raise your throne a little for a while and see if you can get used to the new height.

That's what I'm trying for now. Like I said, I'm gonna give it a proper test drive tomorrow afternoon. I'm really hoping that does it.

[Locky305]

6 foot ftw

[areFish]

NIM, I'm 5' 6" and my drum kit dimensions are almost identical to yours. The differences being my kick is 20" and it has a 14 x 14 FT.

I've done a lot of experimentation in the past year with kit configurations. I documented most of them here:

The Evolution of My Configuration in Pics

I found pros and cons with each configuration. After all the experimentation I'm back to a standard 2 up, 1 down with the rack toms mounted on the kick drum.

[NoiseInMotion]

6 foot ftw

Thanks, that's helpful -.-

NIM, I'm 5' 6" and my drum kit dimensions are almost identical to yours. The differences being my kick is 20" and it has a 14 x 14 FT.

I've done a lot of experimentation in the past year with kit configurations. I documented most of them here:

The Evolution of My Configuration in Pics

I found pros and cons with each configuration. After all the experimentation I'm back to a standard 2 up, 1 down with the rack toms mounted on the kick drum.

Thanks for the pics. I think this definitely confirms my thoughts that a smaller kick would fix things. But that isn't an option due to my kit model being discontinued and the cost of either special ordering it from Yamaha or buying a used one and having it shipped. So I'm being VERY hopeful that I'll have good news to report back with tomorrow after I try it out with the seat raised. I mean, I just bought the kit a week ago. I hate having these issues with a new toy. And an expensive toy at that.

[yohin]

That's diameter by depth in case that's where the confusion is. Why, are those weird sizes?

When I think of a fusion kit I usually think of standard depths (10x8, 12x9) or "traditional" sizes (10x7, 12x8). Nothing wrong with your sizes, I was just kind of surprised to see that kind of depth on a fusion kit.

[oaklandrichie]

NIM, I'm 5' 6" and my drum kit dimensions are almost identical to yours. The differences being my kick is 20" and it has a 14 x 14 FT.

I'm 5'6 as well, my bass drum is 24 with deep toms. I just raise them up and angle them toward me.
Don't raise your throne so high that you're off balance. Seems like it would be easier to angle the toms.

[wolvie56]

Looking at your diagram, it looks like you could move your snare back and to the right next to your pedal so that the snare isn't over the bass drum. That would allow you to set your toms to the left and right of your snare. The leading edge of the 12" tom could be angled towards you so that it misses your bass drum. The 10" would have to be at an angle also. With your giant bass drum, I don't think that you can get away with not angling your toms anyway. You should still be able to reach your pedal. And your tom mounting bracket should still work hopefully depending on what your using. Plus everything is within easy reach. Hardly any effort to reach everything. Good luck.

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[buck20]

Set them up so they look cool and learn how to play them! It takes work.

[IfSabianWasCheap]

offset toms are great for awhile but after sometime i've noticed they make me much more lazier then a regular setup, my fills seem more generic and doesnt give a nice flow when reaching the floortom, my advice is to start with a regular setup, and then slowly changning it too your liking instead of doing it all directly, the perfect setup takes time ;D

[SladeGT40]

FWIW i had a similar problem with even the jazz sizes (shallow) on my kit. I ended up setting up as if i only had a 4-piece kit.

I went from this:




to this.





Its a 4-pice setup with two extra toms if that makes sense. I find there are a lot of inconsistencies with the floorspace at the places I play so its nice to have a home bass of the 4piece and if space allows bring an extra tom or two.

hope this helps.

[Pearl MCX Man]

Looking at your diagram, it looks like you could move your snare back and to the right next to your pedal so that the snare isn't over the bass drum. That would allow you to set your toms to the left and right of your snare. The leading edge of the 12" tom could be angled towards you so that it misses your bass drum. The 10" would have to be at an angle also. With your giant bass drum, I don't think that you can get away with not angling your toms anyway. You should still be able to reach your pedal. And your tom mounting bracket should still work hopefully depending on what your using. Plus everything is within easy reach. Hardly any effort to reach everything. Good luck.

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This set up is ok but I think the toms should be moved more towards the front of the bass and the floor tom closer to the snare that way you right leg just fits in between the floor tom and the snare almost like the setup of SladeGT40.

[jafo]

Just from looking at your diagram, I would move the up-toms forward the center of the bass drum and the snare forward alittle to match the toms being moved and then move your floor tom in towards the footpedal. Try to bring the snare forward paralell with the floor tom.

If not move your toms back over the bass drum and slide your floor tom in closer.

[rabidpenguin45]

Something like this could help. Have your bass drum at an angle and it opens up the space for your tom mount, and your positioning. You could also "invert" your toms and play the 12 inch on the left and the 10 inch on the right so you have less depth over the kick drum, could help.

Or if that isn't quite working, this could work. The rack toms are a little extreme in this, but can be positioned very low and flat.