Changing volume from one gig to another.

Maybe it’s just me, but I have a hard time going from my really loud band to my really quiet band. I guess muscle memory kicks in and I just automatically start playing too hard. It doesn’t help that I’m using IEMs and I don’t realize how hard I’m hitting. The lower volume band has gone silent stage except the drums. They were complaining about the drum volume at the last gig. I had just played with my really loud band. I’m thinking of ditching the IEMs and going back to a monitor just so I can tell how loud I’m playing.

For your quiet band, use really thin jazz cymbals. Then when you hit them too hard and crack them you'll know you're playing too loud!

To combat this issue with an IEM, if you have your own mix, use an overhead, snare and kick mic and turn up the drum volume so you know when you are too loud. I find the overhead critical to get the right volume in my IEM. Like you, if I use an IEM system and if I can't hear the drums well I will hit too hard thinking I am not loud enough.

For the quiet gig bite the bullet and use an electric kit. Stops all the arguments straight away and you get a more consistent sound perfect for IEMs.

When I'm doing a quiet gig I use my 18" bop kit with single ply heads (evens 56), light weight dark cymbals and thin jazz sticks. It not only encourages me to play at a lower volume but even if I get carried away it's not that loud. A PDP new yorker kit would definitely do the job.

For big stages, I use IEMs. For small gigs, I use no IEMs, and a lot of the times, I don't even have a wedge. I also use my Vic Firth AJ5 sticks. Here's a clip of a small gig I played last weekend. I will have to state that smaller drums and cymbals don't necessarily mean a quieter kit. My most mellowed-out kit is my Radio Kings with a 26" kick in the video below. I played my big, thin Heartbeat cymbals in addition to my Pork Pie Walnut/Cherry snare.


I have a couple of litmus tests I use when I'm playing smaller stages. I watch to make sure that people at the tables are able to talk without having to lean in to hear each other. In addition, if I can not hear every word the lead singer sings, I'm too loud...even if I don't have a wedge.

In addition, as a band, y'all need to make sure you are playing the right music for the right venue. If the music fits the venue well, the volume will sometimes fix itself.

Same issue for me, except that it'll be the same band and the same songs, I have reaaaally hard time to quieten down without losing dynamics.

Practice playing quieter, but with equal intensity as when playing loud. Repetition is key.

I've gotten many more gigs by being able to quietly than I ever did playing loudly, with tons of chops, etc.

or muffled drums need to be hit harder if the set is open unmuffled; you decide how much effort/pressure/ to apply

I understand your point about IEMS but if you pay attention to your body you should be able to feel when you’re hitting hard. We all know the pop of a gentle rim shot vs the Moeller whip of a slamming backbeat. Also turn down your IEMS because they’re probably giving you a false sense of how loud the rest of the band is.

Roland vad506! i love it for rehearsals and quiet Gigs. Looks just like a wood kit but has thousands of customizable sounds and mesh pads.There are used kits online.

Duck Tape said:

I understand your point about IEMS but if you pay attention to your body you should be able to feel when you’re hitting hard. We all know the pop of a gentle rim shot vs the Moeller whip of a slamming backbeat. Also turn down your IEMS because they’re probably giving you a false sense of how loud the rest of the band is.

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This, plus make sure you can hear your own drums. Add a microphone near the front of your bass drum that also captures your snare. You will definitely have a better sense of where your drums are volume-wise compares to everyone else.

I bounce back and fourth. I used to find playing quietly challenging. I will sometimes use blaststicks if im not warmed up. I use “o rings”, made from old snare- ft heads cut to differing widths. I usually have 1/2”-3”. I played a room the other night that even tho was treated acoustically, was still very live, even with a full house. I used a 6.5 eucalyptus snare with 3” ring and got that old school sound. To not take the intensity of bass away, i put my cymbal bag in front. Still had punch and carried well. A lot of times just cutting back on attack can make a huge difference

Practice. The more control you have, the better you can manage the volume. Drums have a huge dynamic range. We should be able to use all of it, from whisper to thunder. And smaller, maple sticks help, like VF SD-4s. My starting point for every gig in terms of my volume is whether I can hear everyone else in the band. If I can't I have to play quieter until I can.

I always play quietly because most of my playing is in a small church. I play a little bit louder in my other band but not much. Peace and goodwill.

Rockdrill said:

When I'm doing a quiet gig I use my 18" bop kit with single ply heads (evens 56), light weight dark cymbals and thin jazz sticks. It not only encourages me to play at a lower volume but even if I get carried away it's not that loud. A PDP new yorker kit would definitely do the job.

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This is pretty much what I do... Bringing a smaller kit and thinner/darker cymbals already puts me in that playing softer mindset.

This is why stage volume is so important to getting a great sound. Forget the front of house sound until you get a perfect stage mix... which is usually a close approximation to your sound in your practice space.. everyone should be able to hear everyone else perfectly.
Once you get the sound balanced on stage then bring up the FOH and let the sound guy tweak that and project your stage mix to the back of the room.

If we are doing our own sound.. I bring a snake with 5 mics - close mic all the drums. I use a splitter for the 2 high toms - so I only use 4 inputs. I used zip ties to wrap my cables together - so much easier to wrap up one big cable that doesn't tangle - than winding 4 cables. I also use mic clips for all, so no mic stands other then a small kick mic stand. I do this even for small bar gigs as it just sounds better overall in the mix and projects the kit over the heads of the people and dancers that are usually crowding around in front of me absorbing all the sound.. by close micing it removes a lot of ambient noise and ensures your signal will make it to the back of the room, balanced with the overall mix. I don't use OH mics in general as my cymbals are high quality Paiste signatures (including 15" sound edge hats) and will cut through the mix just fine and also will get picked up in the overall mix from the vocal mics in any case (just enough). Plus I don't want to lug an extra mic stand and deal with all that overhead stuff - I leave that for bigger gigs where the sound guy can do all that. Generally I can setup my fully mic'd kit and tear it down in about 15-20 minutes.

Sure you can get there if everyone is using IEMs.. but for me - I prefer using my ears. IEMs are great for big stages where the band is far apart. Monitors can work in those situations too but can be difficult unless you have a really good sound tech.

But apart from playing too loud or quiet.. it's a judgement thing. I play for the room.. but usually my volume is pretty consistent.. the FOH speakers do the rest of the work. If you are playing in a loud thrash metal band.. the same principles apply - but get custom molded earplugs.
IF you are playing a gig where playing quietly is required.. finger control is magical!

there have been a few weekends in my past where I did community orchestra on Friday from 7pm-9pm, then to punk/metal gig from 11pm-1am, and then jazz band the next afternoon at a wedding....honestly, my training in marching band and school bands - both college and high school - trained me to be able to control many different dynamic levels, touches and feels.

so I physically know what a mp, p or pp stroke feels like, as well as mf, f or ff stroke and then I let my ears and knowledge of style/genre select the dynamic feel. Because of marching band, I know how to combine loud and soft strokes in the same pattern and in the same hand.

I rarely change sticks to create volume...I use 3A's in all of my stage band settings: metal; punk; jazz; country; rockabilly. I just change touch. I do change to hot rods or brushes for stylistic things....I always do train beats with hot rods because, to my ears, it has that distinct "choo choo" kind of sound. Obviously will use brushes for swing stuff, and gain that consistent "staticy" scratch sound of the brush. But I don't go to brushes for soft dynamics. We have a few pretty raucous versions of Cottontail, Topsy, Impressions...and others where we get pretty loud, and I use brushes in those songs

I don't choose cymbals because they are "quieter". I choose them to fit the texture of the music. I can make my 16" Zildjian A Rock Crash as quiet as my 17" K Custom Dark Crash, and can lay into the K crash like my rock Crash...(I don't do that though becasue I don't use it for those applications...mostly because of it's construction)

the coolest thign about what we do is the "art" side of it. We each have our own brushes and colors, and that creates our distinct sound/picture!!!

DrumDoug said:

I’m using IEMs and I don’t realize how hard I’m hitting.

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This is the problem with IEMs that users continue to deny.
I have played gigs in bands with most members on monitors and only a couple using IEMs, they tend to play too loud, almost living in a bubble. They are hard to communicate with. I think it's a lack of touring experience more than the product itself?
I did a tour last year using IEMs for the first time. I mostly had click track and lead vocals in my ears. The monitor engineer said I had the quietest IEMs he'd ever known in 25 years. I think it's too easy to set up a CD quality mix and just get lost in it.
I'm not sure what the answer is for the OP. Before I used IEMs I had audiologist fitted ear protection. That reduced everything to an other worldly quiet level. It wasn't much fun on a rock gig, but kept me playing when I already had tinnitus.
I learned to feel the different levels of soft to loud playing. I could play soft by feel and loud by feel. While it was actually hard to hear the difference.