In this ongoing series, I’m documenting the changes to my busking drumkit. It’s been about 4 years since the last update, and some important things have changed. Let’s start with a photo:

The kit includes an 18″ pancake bass drum, a 14″ steel snare, 14″ New Beat hats, 14″ Paiste fast crash, and a 16″ Byzance dark crash.

Since the last update, I decided that the trash can bass drum idea was strictly worse than using an actual drum. You get much better resonance with a clean bearing edge and a round, sturdy shell. Pancake bass drums can get a great sound, as long as you are careful to deliver clean strikes with the beater. I also decided that mini-snares (such as the 10″ M80) are not for me. You need a full-sized snare if you want clear stick shots, full-sounding shuffles and commanding rim shots.

Moving to cymbals, the 16″ Byzance dark is still here. Given the constraint of cymbals that fit inside of an 18″ bass drum, the 16″ Byzance is dry enough to ride on and comes with expressive crash and bell sounds. The goofy splash hats from last time also had to go, because the sizzles and barks from full-sized hats sound much better. I’m also keeping the 14″ fast crash from last time, except now it has it’s own mount which means it’s bright, clear bell is now accessible.

Final thoughts on portability – the hardware, throne and snare drum all fit in the luggage, and the bass drum doubles as a cymbal case. It’s pretty easy to sneak in and out with this setup, and always in one trip.

See you next time!