THE DRUM MAIL FEATURE IS NO LONGER AVAILABLE. ALL PREVIOUS DRUM-MAIL IS ARCHIVED FOR VIEWING.
Hi There Frankie,
I am wanting to know about the Maple shells Ludwig used around 1993 or so... I bought a kit recently and the shells are stamped "693" and the floor tom is "893". A local music store rep told me the shells are maple and poplar. Is there any truth to this? If so, how do they compare with their current shells of all 9 ply maple?
Thanks Alot,
Howard
Hi Howard,
Your question depends on which shells your drums are. If they are the Classic Maple model shells then they are all maple. If they happen to be the Rocker series, they could be laminated ply's that could include various combination of maple, poplar, birch, Italian poplar, etc. The key is in which shells.
Now, to the question of all maple versus the male poplar combination, my personal preference has always been for the Ludwig 3 ply Maple/Poplar/Maple combination which most of my vintage Ludwig kits are. The only exception are for some of the old WFL and Ludwig & Ludwig shells that can sometimes be found of Mahoganny cosntruction which I like as well. Having said that, I also love the sound of my comtemporary Ludwig shells in the all maple configuration.
Best regards,
Frankie
Hey Frankie, hope you are doing better these days. I
hope you can help with a little problem I have. I own
a 6x1/2 by 14 supraphonic and a 5x14 black beauty
among many other Ludwig snares I've collected over 30
years of playing. These two are my workhorses but
being different depths it's apain to switch in between
songs as you vcan imagine. I love the depth of the
supra but I can't get it to have enough "crack". The
black beauty has a lot of "crack" which is great for
backbeats but not real deep. I favor the supra for its
size, depth and feel and familiarity over the years
but I just wish I could get a higher more cutting
sound out of it because it tends to get lost
(especially when we do real loud outdoor shows). I
think perhaps I'm not tuning it correctly or
something. I'm using an emperor head on top and
ambassador snare side. Should I tune the bottom head
tighter, use a different combination, etc. As usual,
any suggestions you give me as in the past,will be
greatly appreciated. Thanks and God Bless, Julio
Hi Julio,
Nice choice of Ludwig snare drums!
OK, there should be no reason why you are not getting the "crack" out of the 6.5" Supraphonic as they are famous for it. I suggest two things, one, try using a coated Ambassador on top instead of the Emperor. The Emperor head being thicker can be slightly on the dull side by comparison to the coated Emperor unless you really hit hard. Two, definitely tune the bottom head up a third from your batter head tuning.
Almost the opposite applies to the 5" Black Beauty. This drum is a brass shell and normally has less crack and more bottom end than the Supraphonic. Try the coated Emperor on top and equal tuning on the bottom head.
I hope these suggestions help a little.
Good luck and best regards,
Frankie B.
Hey Frankie,
Youve been a great inspiration and helped me start out drumming back in 82. Thank you.
I was wondering, I recently got my hands on a 1976 vistalite ludwigs, 22,13,16,
Do you know of any artist or group that has used these drums recorded in the studio not live, ofcourse Bonso used the amber visties. I wanted to hear something in the studio of these drums that I could hear today from yesteryear or today.
How do you find these drums in the studio to record with? Any experience on this particular question? Micing? Front bass drum head, hole or no hole? I notice you use a little muffling inside your amber vistalites with looks like a small hole in front.
What kind of heads do you recommend?
Do's, dont's?
Ive been searching the internet and have really gotten no answers.
Hope you can help.
Cheers!
Chuck
Chuck,
Congratulations on your "new" Vistalite set!
I don't know of any artists that recorded with a Vistalite set in the studio past or present, so I'm afraid that I can't help you there. My understanding is that John Bonham only used wood shell sets to record in the studio. I recorded some demos in the studio with my Amber Vistalite set and the reason for the hole in the front head and the towel dampening that you see in the picture was at the request of the engineer at the beginning of the session. I'm not a fan of the ported bass drum or muffled bass drum technique, so shortly after I heard the results I pulled the towel out and replaced the front head with a un-ported head much to the chagrin of the engineer, LOL!
My mic choices don't vary from set to set but vary from room to room depending on the size and height of the "live" room. As to the drum heads that I use for my Vistalite sets for recording, again it depends more on the room than the shell material. It varies for the batter side from clear Ludwig Silver Dot, clear Remo CS or clear Remo Ambassador. For the bottom I use either clear Medium Ludwig Weathermaster or clear Remo Ambassador.
I actually really like the result of recording the Vistalite set. Where one would expect them to be too bright due to the reflective surface of the acrylic shells, I found them to have a very good even bottom end to them. They also have less of the ring overtone factor which is easier to record. As with anything though, tuning is the key to keep unwanted and unsympathetic overtones from drum to drum.
These are just my observations and only opinions based on my own experiences. I hope this helps a little.
Good luck in drumming and all things!
Frankie
Hello once again!
I’d like to thank you once again for giving your fans a way to ask you questions. I enjoy your playing. I especially enjoy the 24/7/365 CD. I noticed that Doug Aldrich is on it. I met him a few times in the late eighties when he was with Lion. A friend of mine owned Artisan Sound Recorders in Hollywood. This is where Doug and I first met.
If you don’t mind, I have a few questions about the Ludwig kits that you have had revamped.
When having your drums restored do you leave the mufflers on the drums and if not, do you have the holes plugged before the shells are rewrapped?
I noticed on the black oyster, black diamond and red sparkle kits you have the rack toms on a snare stand, do these drums have any tom mounts attached to them or were the holes plugged? If the tom mounts are still intact are you going to install a rail consolette on the bass drums of these kits, or do you like the tom on the snare stand better?
Is your 1975 black oyster “Ringo Bonham” kit the ‘60’s or ‘70’s style wrap?
What happened to your late ‘60’s thermogloss kit shown in the “Then & Now” photo?
Thanks again,
Mike
Hi Mike,
I'm glad to hear that a fellow drummer enjoyed my Led Zeppelin tribute CD. Doug is great and one of the nicest guys in the business.
I generally do not have the mufflers re-installed on the drums when they are being restored and I do have the holes plugged. From a purist point of view I could have them put back on but I never used them in the first place and they tend to rattle which is a problem when recording.
The Black Oyster Pearl had a center tom mount now plugged. The Red Sparkle and the Black Diamond Pearl never had tom mounts. I have a number of 60's and 70's Ludwig rail consolette mounts that I've toyed with the idea of mounting on a few of these sets. While I love the look and the feel of the rail mounted toms, the rail itself eventually damages the bass drum finish no matter how careful you are. This is why I opt for the snare drum mounted tom which looks great to me just the same. When I need my rail consolette fix, I break out the Green Sparkle set or the original Yellow Vistalite set.
The "Ringo Bonham" set has the 70's style BOP wrap since the set is a 1975 vintage.
As to my original 60's Maple set, I have no idea where that might be although I remember that the 14 X 26 bass drum shell was beginning to become out of round and I really don't expect those drums to have survived as a set. I was young and no matter how hard I tried to keep them in good condition, they were already back them becoming "well used" due to the wood finish offering little cosmetic protection to the shells. It was a wonderful sounding drum set at one time.
Best regards,
Frankie
Hello,
I purchased recently a 1993 Ludwig Maple Classic kit. 14x22, 8x12, 9x13 and 14x14. I was told that Ludwig used not only Maple, but poplar during this time in their classic maple kits. I cannot find this subject matter (short of calling Monroe) and wondered if you could help.
Thanks for your time,
Howard Teague
Howard,
Depending on the Ludwig shell manufacturing process timeline, there were various varieties of ply construction. Up until around 1967/68 the common ply combination was mahogany/poplar/mahogany. This was changed sometime around 1978 to the maple/poplar/maple ply configuration which lasted through the 70's. The early 80's brought about the four ply shells and in 1994 with the Classic line they began the cross laminating process with a inner maple ply which likely also included the poplar inclusion. I think the all maple classics began around 1998 and these shells were nine all maple ply.
Personally I am a fan of the three ply maple/poplar/maple shell configuration and I am happy to say that the new Ludwig "Legacy Classic" series brings back this shell construction including the maple reinforcement rings.
I hope this helps a little.
Best,
Frankie
Hi Frankie,
Just a quick question regarding warmups. I always took it a habit to slowly warmup prior to personal and band practise, thing is I have never found the right kind of warmup. Sometimes I just spend a little time soloing and my hands and feet feel ready for action, other times I still feel rigid. Would you give me a couple of ideas that I might try out which could help me out please?
Thanks and best regards
Matthew
Matthew,
Hi! I wish I had some words of "wisdom" or helpful hints about warming up but other than doing a sound-check which sometimes you don't get especially if you are not the headliner on a multi act tour, I seldom warm up. I just try to clear my mind just before going on stage and then just treat every show, yes even the hole in the wall clubs, as if I were stepping on the stage at Madison Square Garden. That is really about it. If you find that you tense up or cramp up, just relax the grip and find the natural flow of your playing. Sorry for not being able to offer any other suggestions.
Best,
Frankie
Frankie,
I must admit I've watched you close since Kevin's death. I've been a fan since the 80's and have seen Quiet Riot several times. I have many friends that are in big name 80's bands. I have much respect for you now as a person. Your comments and actions on Kevin's passing have been made with compassion and for this I thank your parents for raising you with the knowledge of what is right and wrong in society. Today's youth should look to you as a role model. I will continue to support what you do in the future by purchasing your product. In a day where money drives decisions I'm proud of you for "Doing the right thing." Quiet Riot will ALWAYS be Kevin up front.... He's the voice of the band and I'm sure he's telling God, "Just wait until my buddies get here!"
I'm in L.A. often and if I ever see you at the Rainbow I'll be sending you a pizza! My treat!
Thank you Frankie!!
Les
Hi Les,
Thank you for the very kind and encouraging words which are appreciated. I don't see myself as a role model because there are so many people in the world that do so many wonderful and selfless acts that benefit others. I just try to do what I think is best. The hardest decisions to make are often times the most rewarding ones simply by having the conviction to do so. I fully understand the financial implications of not continuing QUIET RIOT, but it was and is the right thing to do. I just wouldn't feel right doing it and it could never be the same without Kevin who I shared the stage with for half of my life. Thank you for your continued support and time will tell if I will have a reason to continue in music. It has been a truly adventurous ride so far.
Thanks for the Rainbow pizza offer, best pie in town!
Sincerely,
Frankie
Dear Frankie,
First of all I wanted to sorry for the loss of your dear freind. Great
singer. I have listened to Quiet Riot since the beginning. I still love
listening to Mental Health and Condition Critical, my 2 favorites. I was
hoping to meet you at NAMM this year. I was there working for my
brother(the Drumnetics Company) I wanted to introduce you this new type of
bass drum pedal. My question is what type of pedal do you currently use and
have you heard of this new type of pedal. If so what do you think of it.
Your insight as a drummer would be greatly appreciated. Any way hope to see
you with a new type of band and to see you tour, you are a great drummer.
Thanks for the music memories.
My regards,
Mark VanDyk
Hi Mark,
Thank you for writing and for the kind words about Kevin. I'm sorry we didn't get a chance to meet at NAMM. I don't know anything about the Drumnetics pedal but did check out your Website and it looks like a interesting concept and it is a beautiful and sleek bass drum pedal design physically. Not having personally seen or played the pedal I can offer no opinions. I am currently playing either my Ludwig LM815FPR model or my DW 5000 model single pedals.
Thank you for your very nice compliment and for your continued support.
Wishing you and your brother success with your innovative pedal.
Sincerely,
Frankie
My question regards heads for a 16 X 32 Ludwig Concert Bass (60's-70's?) that is being used as a kick drum. Right now it has Ludwig heavy single ply heads (probably the originals) and I am looking for some more oomph to the sound. I'm looking for that heavy BonhamNali sound like the Rockline tracks from Rehab. (It's like sweet butter) I'm considering using Remo heads and have been looking at either a Powerstroke 3 or a 2-ply Emperor for the batter and an Ebony Ambassador for the resonant. I refrain from putting pillows inside the kick because I love the boom of an open drum. The style of music being played on it is best described as Rawk.
I'm open to any head and brand suggestions. Your sound is one that I've always chased after. It's open, loud and natural. Thanks for the help.
Best wishes,
Andrew Fisher (AKA Freddie Cadillac of Machine Gun Joe)
OshVegas, WI
Hi Andrew,
Man, I don't even know where to begin with a bass drum of that size! LOL! The problem with a drum that large is the amount of air that needs to be moved when it's hit because it's such a large chamber. I have no experience with a drum of this size so my comments are purely theoretical. I would suggest to keep a medium weight head on the front side, either a Remo smooth or coated Ambassador weight. I would try a coated Remo Emperor on the batter side. The lighter weight head on the front should give you that open ambient sound while the heavier batter head should give you the low end which is my desired effect. If you find that you have too much "rumble" then add a felt strip to the inside of the front head about six inches from the center bottom of the head. This is something that I also do on some of my sets. I hope that this helps a little.
Best,
Frankie
Hi again,
Sorry to keep pestering you about your favorite green sparkle kit.
I am curious if these drum are maple/poplar/maple or mahogany/poplar/mahogany. Most reference guides that I find say if the shell interior is painted white they should be the mahogany shells, but they also state that they went to the maple shells in 1967. And your's are from early '69 with a white interiors. Which material do you feel that these shells on your kit are, mahogany or maple?
Thanks again,
Mike
Mike,
Hi! My green sparkle set has the maple/poplar/maple shells which is clearly evident when I look at the ply construction on the bare bearing edges.
Best,
Frankie
Hello Frankie,
I would like your thoughts on Ludwig's Accent Zep Set drumkit. I'm considering this set for my next purchase due to the 26" kick. I have wanted that big kick for sometime. To go along with that what is your opinion of hole placement in the front of the kick as in where would you put it and maybe what size of hole. I'm not sure what the shells are made of at the moment and I do know this set isn't considered a "top line" maple kit but I'm just looking for more bang for my buck. Would it be a wise buy with all the hardware that is included. I also would like to add the ride attachment like you have on most of your kits. What exactly is that bracket called and could you give me advice on where it should be mounted. Should it be in the center of the shell or more to the front or back?
Frankie, thank you for your time. You've answered all of my previous questions and I appreciate it. Take care in 2008 and look forward to seeing where it takes you. I hope to find you playing on new stuff very soon..
James
Hi James,
The Ludwig Accent Zep Set is from their affordable but still professional drum sets with very good construction and quality. I can say this because I have actually performed live with QUIET RIOT on two different concerts with one of these sets that was provided by the promoter for my use.
The main difference is in the shell material. My own personal sets are maple shells, whereas this line uses Juniper and Mahogany shell construction. The sound is really very good but different from a maple set. As to the hardware, it's the same as I use on my own sets being the 700 Series double brace hardware which are solid. Besides offering the set in the "Natural" finish which is beautiful, they also offer this set up in five vintage wrap finishes. You get a lot of value for the money.
As to the shell mounted ride cymbal, this is model L1372. I mount it dead center of the four lugs immediately to the right of the top center four lugs. I hope that makes sense but pretty easy to see where I mount mine if you go by the pictures on my Ludwig Drum page on my site.
As to the hole in the front head, I don't do it unless I am required to for a session and even then I disagree with the option. If you have seen pictures of me live with a hole in the front head, it was a rental kit and not by choice. If you decide to "port" the front bass drum head, smaller is better than bigger, perhaps just two inches larger than the microphone that you plan to put in the port and I recommend the positioning at about "8 o'clock" and four inches from the edge.
I hope my opinions help.
Good luck,
Frankie
Hi Frankie,
I am learning about using Ghost Notes (soft snare hit) followed by a normal snare hit in my drum lessons. I was wondering if you ever use these at all, or if there is a Quiet Riot song which you use any Ghost Notes in a drum pattern, so I can hear how you do it, your the best!
Thanks,
Jeff
Hi Jeff,
Ghost snare notes have always been a part of my style be it pre downbeat or post downbeat strokes on my snare work. That is just something that I picked up early on listening to a lot of R&B and Jazz when I was younger. Having said that, I can't remember if you can hear it on any of the recordings I've done. This is due to a number of reasons such as the snare drum mic being set at a quieter recording level for the volume of my attack on single hits and does not pick up the quieter less audible ghost notes. Then when you account for the hi-hat being in the same relative frequencies as created by the snare ghost notes and add the loud dirty wash of electric guitars, you get the picture. You have to listen very hard, but if you go to my MP3 Sessions/Covers page you can barely hear it on a track titled Mr. Foolish on the verses for a session that I did for the group Milkweed. Good question on your part!
Best,
Frankie
dear frankie,
cum on feel the noize was one of the first songs I ever learned how to play on the drums. I still to this day listen mostly to the hard rock of the 80's. you guys are the ones who started the great revolution as far as I am concerned. my question is this…was there ever a time that when practicing that you got so frusterated with yourself and your playing abilities that you just wanted to quit and throw away the drum kit? I mean watching your drum solos it looks like you could play forever and you never screw up. how do you do it? did you have drum lessons or did you teach yourself all through the years? take care and keep banging your head.
Ryan Bersing
Hello Ryan,
Thanks for writing and for the generous compliments which are appreciated. The thing about drumming for me is that I never stop learning and believe me, I make mistakes when playing as often as everyone else does but you just have to keep at it even when it gets to be frustrating. That is part of the learning process. I never want to throw my drums away, I love them too much! Just keep at it, we all make mistakes! I took lessons for about a year when I was younger and then went off in my own direction because my teachers heart was not into it and because I just wanted to get in the race as soon as possible. Looking back it was a worthwhile experience because it did teach me a certain amount of discipline.
Wishing you all good things in drumming and live.
Frankie
would like to say hello. been a big fan since the beginning!
about a year and a half ago, my wife bought me a kit from a friend for
fathers day. it is a "ludwig coliseum". sizes are 6,8,10,12 toms-18,20
floor toms and a 26 bass.
was wondering if you could shed any light on this kit? i am finding that
some say they were made in late 70s-early 80's and im finding some in
the 90s????? also wondering if these were originally concert toms that
were drilled out for the bottom heads or were there different options at
the time?
i am in the process of getting the kit back to the way it was. i have
been fortunate that one of the area music stores has some of the older
hardware that i need.
great to talk to you,
rick dumas
schenectady, new york
Hi Rick,
Thanks for writing and for the kind mention.
While I know a little something about Ludwig drums, I am by no means an expert on the subject. I've never heard of a Ludwig "Coliseum" set, although I know of the Coliseum snare drum, but that doesn't mean it didn't exist. I do know that Ludwig has always named some of their sets such as Octa-Plus, Quadra Plus, Mach 4, Mach 5, Power Factory, Sound Projector series, Overdrive, Rock Power, etc., all of these from the 1970's and 1980's. What I find interesting about your set are a couple of features. The 26" bass drum which would likely have been custom ordered, then the 18 and 20 floor toms with considerably smaller toms 6, 8, 10, and 12 is also unusual. If the set is all matching then it may have been a custom set to the original owner's specs. Without knowing the type/size badges and serial numbers it is impossible for me to say the vintage with any certainty. If the bottom of the shells on the toms are flat and not beveled, then they were originally concert toms providing someone didn't first redo the edges. The size of the tom lugs might also give you a clue. Without seeing the set and further information I'm afraid I can't offer any additional opinion on your set. Nice of your wife to buy you the set. Give her another kiss!
By the way, great pie, and I mean pizza, in Schenectady!
Best,
Frankie
Frankie,
Let me start off by saying that I am sorry for the loss of your friend/band mate Kevin. He will truly be missed.
I have a few questions about your favorite green sparkle kit. What are the approximate dates of manufacture and are the interiors, white or clear maple? Does this kit sound much different than your later kits in identical sizes with the granitone interiors?
All my best,
Mike
PS. Although Jason did an admirable job...I think that you would have been a more appropriate fit.
Mike,
Thank you for keeping Kevin's memory alive. He is truly missed.
As you may or may not know, Ludwig was not exactly consistent in their selection of badges, so it's rare to find a sequentially matching set of badges on any of their drum sets. They literally grabbed badges from a bin and often times a new batch of badges were dumped on top of the current stock of badges. Having said that, my Ludwig Green Sparkle set dates from early 1969 according to the relative number of the badges of all the drums. The interiors are white. I also have a set from 1969 with the blue/olive badges and clear maple interiors. I only have one set with the "Granitone" interior which is the Black Diamond Pearl blue/olive badge set. The white interior set is a little warmer in the mid's to it's overall sound. The Granitone set is a little brighter overall. I hope that this helps.
By the way, thank you for the Jason comment which is way too kind but I really appreciate your vote of confidence. Jason is an excellent drummer and his father would have been proud of him. Jason is living the dream and good for him!
Sincerely,
Frankie
Hello Frankie,
My question is: What are the advantages/disadvantages of clear vs. coated drumheads? I'm going to rehead my kit using Remo Pinstripes and I was just wondering what the difference might be. Actually, the question concens the snare beater. I can't decide whether to go with the clear or coated snare head, (tom heads will be clear).
Thanks and have a Merry Christmas.
Perry Hess
Perry,
Depending on what type of music you are playing and how hard a hitter you are, I would recommend coated heads for your snare drum over clear. The coated heads have a lot more "body" when hit while still retaining their "top end" crack with a nice complimentary ring. The clear tend to have more of the unwanted overtones and less body. I am speaking about same type heads in both coated and clear versions. I would say use coated Remo Ambassador heads or the coated Emperor heads if you are a heavier hitter.
Good luck,
Frankie
|
|
