Yamaha DTXpress/DTXplorer/DTXtreme

--- In DTXpress@yahoogroups.com, "quarlofx" <quarlo@e...> wrote:
> 
> --- In DTXpress@yahoogroups.com, "drumsonly2002" <dan@n...> wrote:
> > With Moller or Gladstone techniques you will not only get rid of 
any
> > issues with your wrists, but drum longer, harder, faster with less
> > effort.
> 
> You make an excellent point (as always!) but I offer a tiny caveat
> that YMMV.  As an old (very old and getting older by the 
nanosecond -
> soon to be 56 ... YIKES!) drummer who has been playing for 35+ 
years I
> have to say that individual biomechanics and joint disease may make
> any "cure" less than complete.  Having fought both arthritis and
> carpal tunnel problems for the last decade, I find that even those
> techniques are unable to completely eliminate my difficulties.  That
> said, you are right on when you make a case for instruction in 
proper
> mechanics.  I thought I would never play again until I got lessons 
in
> just those methods and was able to mitigate the discomfort
> significantly as a result.  I cannot argue strongly enough for 
exactly
> the path you recommend and those pariticular techniques 
specifically.
> 
> One other thing that has helped me more than any single change I 
have
> ever tried (again, I've read posts to the contrary and (insert
> Universal Disclaimer ...) YMMV), but my DTXtreme IIS is the most
> forgiving kit I have *ever* played - bar none.  I have been playing
> for up to 3-4 hours straight on weekends and I have yet to require 
any
> pain meds afterward.  This was impossible on my acoustic kit as
> recently as a year ago.  An hour and I'd be an aching mess (as 
opposed
> to my standard non-aching mess ;-)).  I went back to the acoustic 
kit
> (thank you, kind and forgiving neighbors!) as a litmus test and was
> hurting pretty badly after half that time.
> 
> As always, this is my own personal experience and no two of us are
> identical, but I offer it in hopes it may help.

Since we're making a daisy chain of commonality, agreement, and a 
little more to add, as a drummer of forty years or so, I'd like to 
second FX (and third drumslonly) that proper technique will help to 
reduce the severity of any existing problems, as well as the 
likelihood of problems occurring in the first place. That said, as FX 
wrote, if you already have arthritis or a similar ailment, then 
management becomes key. In addition to proper technique, playing on a 
surface that softens the blows can only be of benefit. The DTXtreme 
IIS kit (which I don't own) improves significantly on every other gum 
rubber option in the short history of e-drums. So does mesh, though 
some woven heads are better than others at approximating the feel of 
mylar. The DTXTIIS rubber cymbals constitute another advantage, at 
least in this respect. Acoustic cymbals and their new metal 
approximations from companies like Smartrigger and Hart, and even the 
acrylic Visulites, as close as they may be to their acoustic 
counterparts, don't absorb shock as well as well as the Yamahas (when 
played without excessive force). 

I have a question for you fellow oldtimers who resort to pain 
medication from time to time. How are you coping with the new 
information about Celebrex, Vioxx, and even naproxen? Has it inclined 
you to alternatives like acetomenophen, or have you thrown caution to 
the wind? 

Ed