RVC
Well-known Member
This drum, along with a pair of Paiste 602 14" Medium Hi Hats, was the final part of a large, drawn out multi-piece trade with my local shop. These last two instruments conclude a decades-long, excruciatingly circuitous journey of experimentation with gear. I'm talking probably 100+ drum sets, 250+ snare drums, 750+ cymbals (all conservative estimates). A lot of those were pure GAS acquisitions, a few of them were dream or grail purchases that I just "had" to have, but most were simply curiosity acquisitions. I have long enjoyed getting my hands and sticks on different instruments and figuring out what they can (and can't) do. It has been a truly fun ride, and I feel very fortunate to have played my music with many of the finest percussion instruments made.
That season of experimentation, which lasted about 35 years, has now given way to a season of contentment. Many factors are at play in this transition. Lack of money, lack of desire to experiment anymore, but mainly an overall sense of happiness with what I have and enough experience now to know that nothing else is gonna sound different enough to get excited about. Snare drums are gonna snare drum, toms are gonna tom, bass drums are gonna bass drum, with little difference in brand or model, especially given my old, tired, ears.
I have a couple of nice wood snare drums that I've been using exclusively for many months now. I wanted a great metal snare drum, though, especially knowing I'll be curtailing further purchases/trades/etc,... My season of experimentation revealed to me that I don't get on well with snare drums deeper than 5.5", so I knew I wanted to stay in the 5" or 5.5" range. After much deliberation, experience with the OG version of the drum, and some fantastic detailed feedback from fellow forumite @TheJarvis, I settled on the DW True Sonic 5x14 COB drum. It's a blatant knockoff of the esteemed Rogers Dynasonic. I've heard it referred to as the "Don-asonic" in reference to Don Lombardi, his reverence for the Dynasonic, and this being one of his pet projects.
To be honest, it sounds just like a quality snare drum to me. As mentioned before, my ears are old and tired. What sets it apart, of course, is the snare assembly. The frame that pre-tensions the snare wires does its job well. The sensitivity is next level, and can be achieved with barely any tension on the throw off. Crisp and dry are how I would characterize the sound, and the 5pt butt plate does a good job of switching that sensitivity between almost choked and almost rattly. Somehow, though, it never loses that crispy dry sound. Looking forward to getting in the music. I've got four gigs starting tomorrow so I'll get plenty of opportunity to dive in with it.
I'm including a review video that @TheJarvis did on it a couple of years ago, which demonstrates its qualities far better than anything I could put together. I was able to achieve all the sounds he demonstrates in the video with ease. Accepting muffling is a deal maker or breaker for me, and this drum takes to muffling quite well. It's just a necessity of my gig, so any drum that doesn't take muffling well is an automatic no-go for me.
Here's Richie's video:
And here are a couple of pics of my drum:
That season of experimentation, which lasted about 35 years, has now given way to a season of contentment. Many factors are at play in this transition. Lack of money, lack of desire to experiment anymore, but mainly an overall sense of happiness with what I have and enough experience now to know that nothing else is gonna sound different enough to get excited about. Snare drums are gonna snare drum, toms are gonna tom, bass drums are gonna bass drum, with little difference in brand or model, especially given my old, tired, ears.
I have a couple of nice wood snare drums that I've been using exclusively for many months now. I wanted a great metal snare drum, though, especially knowing I'll be curtailing further purchases/trades/etc,... My season of experimentation revealed to me that I don't get on well with snare drums deeper than 5.5", so I knew I wanted to stay in the 5" or 5.5" range. After much deliberation, experience with the OG version of the drum, and some fantastic detailed feedback from fellow forumite @TheJarvis, I settled on the DW True Sonic 5x14 COB drum. It's a blatant knockoff of the esteemed Rogers Dynasonic. I've heard it referred to as the "Don-asonic" in reference to Don Lombardi, his reverence for the Dynasonic, and this being one of his pet projects.
To be honest, it sounds just like a quality snare drum to me. As mentioned before, my ears are old and tired. What sets it apart, of course, is the snare assembly. The frame that pre-tensions the snare wires does its job well. The sensitivity is next level, and can be achieved with barely any tension on the throw off. Crisp and dry are how I would characterize the sound, and the 5pt butt plate does a good job of switching that sensitivity between almost choked and almost rattly. Somehow, though, it never loses that crispy dry sound. Looking forward to getting in the music. I've got four gigs starting tomorrow so I'll get plenty of opportunity to dive in with it.
I'm including a review video that @TheJarvis did on it a couple of years ago, which demonstrates its qualities far better than anything I could put together. I was able to achieve all the sounds he demonstrates in the video with ease. Accepting muffling is a deal maker or breaker for me, and this drum takes to muffling quite well. It's just a necessity of my gig, so any drum that doesn't take muffling well is an automatic no-go for me.
Here's Richie's video:
And here are a couple of pics of my drum:
