[equipment] We Can Rebuild Him

Okay, so I never really considered the green Signia kit to be a "him," per se, the chance to use an ancient TV quote seems to have sealed the deal.

It took two weeks and six or seven different stores, but I've replaced everything that was stolen from my car a few weeks ago. Premier hardware is getting harder and harder to find, and I'm not even sure they make the same tom stand I was using anymore, but when I recorded the Lindsie stuff a few years ago I realized that their fastball tom arms fit in Yamaha hardware.

So the hardware side is almost entirely Yamaha now, except for a Pearl throne -- I still had the top of my old one, so I now I can switch from the round seat to the bike seat -- and Pearl double bass drum pedal, which was cheaper than the Yamaha and tends to get better reviews. So far it looks like I can get pretty close to the old layout. I still may try to convert the mounted floor tom to a more traditional floor tom, but getting the necessary parts may be a pain.

For cymbals, things aren't that different.

• 20" K. Custom Medium Ride (replaces same)
• 18" K. Custom Session Crash (replaces K. Custom Dark)
• 16" A. Custom Crash (replaces A. Medium Thin)
• 8" A. Splash (replaces same)
• 14" Sabian Paragon Hi-Hats (replaces 14" Zildjian Quick Beats)

I had a bug up my butt about K. hats, but the Paragons sound really good. I still may try to track down a pair of 13" K. Mastersounds for the eventual second batch of cymbals.

Proof of concept will be this weekend on two Diver gigs. I still have to manage the memory locks and how to best tear everything down, but that shouldn't be too much trouble.

I do have to say that the final expedition on this quest, to Guitar Center in Arlington Heights on Tuesday of this week, was far and away the best shopping experience I had the whole time. Good service, pretty decent selection (even if they didn't have the K. Mastersounds) and good prices without me having to haggle. Other legs of the relay were somewhat more difficult, although part of that was exacerbated by shopping on weekends, when things tend to be busier and it's harder to get a salesperson's attention. That doesn't totally let some of these other stores off the hook, though.