Drums Too Loud? Five Options for Less Volume

By Jon Nicol

Are your drums too loud? Here's five or six options.

Learn to play to the room. I know, easier said than done. But spend $20 and get a dB meter from RadioShack to truly get some concrete feedback. Use it during rehearsals. Repeat a song to see if you can bring down the level, but keep the intensity.

The problem with playing quieter? It starts to sound more like jazz drumming than the pop/rock sound of modern worship drumming.

Use different sticks, like a lighter weight stick, or the Hot Rod bundle sticks (plastic or wood), or a pair of plastic Fisher-Price sticks. If you’re really loud, you may want the Fisher-Price drumset too. Just a suggestion...

Get electronic drums. I know, they just don’t sound right. But for some rooms, they’re the only thing that works. Shy of using a...

Full enclosure shield. Not just the acrylic panels, but a full surround with a lid and acoustic absorption. If you can’t afford it all at once, buy or make some absorption panels and see how much that cuts down. Some churches have even built semi-permanent drum rooms on their stages. The materials used to do that are likely less expensive than a full Clearsonic or similar shield.

Get rid of the drums. I didn't say all these options were great. But maybe your band and church would do better with a cajon or djembe and other aux percussion instruments. And this can be a good interim step when you're in the process of moving a traditional church to a modern sound.

Of all these options, only the last three are going to completely solve the drum volume issue in most worship centers. The sound system just can't compete with the drums (at least at a level our ears can handle).

With with all of these options, you as a drummer are going to have to die to self in some way. Whether you're caged in Plexi, using electronic drums or forced to go with Hot Rods, you'll have to realize that you're serving something greater than your own preferences.

And that brings us to the last option - which really isn't an option if we're serving the King:

Check your heart. That might actually be the issue – sometimes being repeatedly told to play quieter starts to wear on a person. There might be some passive-aggressive pounding going on.

What are some ways your keep your drum volume in check? I'd love to hear some more suggestions and ideas.

Portions of this post are taken from 52 Tweaks to a Stronger Team ebook. It's available for free on the homepage.