Drummers: Looking for a throbbing BumChum?

It's only September, but we feel pretty confident that the El Reg 2010 Product Name of the Year will be awarded to the spectacularly-titled BumChum - a silent bass drum monitoring system which promises lively "bottom-end thump". Yes indeed, for just £1199, you too can have a BumChum of your very own, which "which turns the …

[davefb]

But will this BumChum

help with the RimShot ?

[Hegghogg]

Maybe not a joke

At first I was going to react with something along the lines of "don't be silly - it must be a subtle joke that's got The Reg completely taken in". I thought a sort of September April Fool.

And then I read the linked 'What Is It' page, found this...

"It is rock solid: No need to be nervous about dickhead airport handlers or dodgy gear loads in the back of a Transit."

... and figured, no, it really is just a company trying to be funny and cool.

Or whatever the kids are saying for "cool" these days.

(Have we still not got a 'meh' icon?)

[Code Monkey]

RSI

You'd get a very specialised form of RSI from that thing pounding your arse night after night on tour.

[Tigra 07]

Close

RSI is from stretching, so you couldn't get it from this thing.

Although you can get it from a real bumchum stretching your arse

Thumb, because it's the biggest finger to use

[Anonymous Coward]

lol

Wonder if this humour is funny outside of blighty :)

[Adam Nealis]

My Aussie colleague found it amusing.

"Wonder if this humour is funny outside of blighty :)"

My Aussie colleague found it amusing.

[stuart Thompson]

(untitled)

These have been around for years at a fraction of the price.

http://www.thomann.de/gb/fischer_amps_buttkicker_concert.htm

Screws on to pretty much any drum stool.

Even considering the amp you would need to buy it still comes in at well under half the price.

If I'd known you could charge £500 quid for a silly name I'd have been on this ages ago.

[Arctic fox]

@Stuart Thompson

I was so tempted to say "yes, but I am afraid that XXXXX-corp got there before you". However their fans get so upset when one teases them that I, ehem, thought better of it.

[Semihere]

XXXXX-corp?

You're talking about Linux, right? ;p

[Arctic fox]

@Semihere

Naturally. Of course. How could you imagine for one moment I could have meant anybody else, It should be obv.........oh the hell with it!

:-)

[Anonymous Coward]

And from now on we can be sure ...

that all bum notes come from the drummer.

Better go now, otherwise I'll be all behind.

[ledmil]

A bit expensive, perhaps a rental market??

Firstly this one did require a 1st April check.

Imagine if they introduce the option of renting from 'specialist' suppliers, imagine the call: "Hi, can I please hire a Bum Chum tonight?"

Still its got everyone in our office talking about them.

[Anonymous Coward]

Ewwww

Sharing a BumChum? No thanks, I'll have my own please. Some things are too private to share.

[Tim Croydon]

All sounds a bit PC

I'm sure these have been around for years, but used to be called 'anal exciters'.

[tom 24]

So, it's like the buttkicker?

This looks like a knockoff of the buttkicker drum throne adapter (http://www.thebuttkicker.com/musicians/accessories/dtm.htm), which has been around for quite some time. It adds the bass directly to any number of standard off-the-shelf drum thrones. The buttkicker has the advantage that you can use the possibly very expensive drum throne that suits your backside.

I suppose this bumchum thing is nice if you want a turnkey product, but in general my reaction is "meh. this is ancient history" :)

(DIscliamer: I just love buttkicker products, and have nothing to do with the company.)

[Devon_Custard]

Does it...

move your stools?

[Anonymous Coward]

Actually...

This is of course so drummers can actually hear the bass drum when gigging with guitarists equipped with overpowered amps. The alternative method uses a screwdriver, a soldering iron and a hefty resistor, and involves breaking in to the offending amp when the guitarist is distracted and making a permanent db reduction and then blaming it on their deteriorating hearing.

Standing up for fellow drummers who are always the butt of everyone else’s jokes.

[Anonymous Coward]

Back in the day..

I always found that a suitably applied soldering iron worked wonders when persuading guitarists to turn their amps down a notch or two.

Handle first, so they burned their hands trying to extract it, natch....

There is a reason drummers are the butt of all those jokes though.

[shay mclachlan]

Zappa

I think Frank Zappa write a song called 'Bobby Brown' which contained the immortal line 'I can take about an hour on the tower of power.

[Adam Nealis]

Bobby Brown Goes Down.

And don't forget to "Keep it greasy/ So it go down easy."

"Make way for the Iron Sausage."

[Fuzz]

Been around for years

I remember the Megadeth drummer saying he was using a similar system years ago. Couldn't say for sure which of Megadeth's drummers that was but I think we're talking around 2000

[Anonymous Coward]

No, in *your* end-o

Better still, SG4, the web designers behind the Bumchum site list among their featured projects the corporate redesign for Cockridden Farm. Clearly their accounts manager is a 14 year old schoolboy. Expect to see shop fascias for Gaylord & Sons Ltd or a logo redesign for OMG Boobs! Inc coming soon...

[Anonymous Coward]

Could i get parliament to rent it for me?

For relaxing after my gruelling public duties? I don't suppose it has much of a view on foreign policy, does it? Certainly it could perform secretarial duties, like offering me a seat when i need one, or maybe as a chauffeur it could simply drive my ass around.

[Smokey Joe]

That's

...Fabulous!

[Anonymous Coward]

drum throne?

Had to look it up;

"throne ([θrəʊn)

n.

1. A chair occupied by an exalted personage, such as a sovereign or bishop, on state or ceremonial occasions, often situated on a dais and sometimes having a canopy and ornate decoration.

2. The drum "throne" is a three or four-legged stool the drummer sits on while playing. Thrones may be shaped like round cushions or in a saddle design. Throne heights may be adjusted to accommodate the drummer"

Not can sure to be rate uprate nomenclature, in general.

[Gordon 10]

But why?

Will some drummer explain why?

[lpopman]

titular thingy

Well, speaking as a heavy bassist, I can see the need for drummers to have feedback from their bass drums because people like me drown them out.

Obligatory druumer joke:

How many drummers does it take to change a light bulb?

Only one, but you have to shout slowly at him 'cos he can't see to read your lips...

Beer, a peace offering to all pot beaters who frequent here

[kwikbreaks]

Yeah right...

I'm still mystified....

If the drummer is sat half a foot from the thing and can't hear it then the audience certainly won't either so why does it matter when he wallops the damned thing or indeed if he does at all?

The "can't hear it" thing is just an excuse for getting some mechanical anal stimulation IMO.

[Anon1981]

yeah, but...

Your'e right. When you play your drum set in your bedroom you hear it. When you play your drum set with your band in the garage you hear it. When you play your drum set live on stage in front of...10 people, you hear it. But when you play in front of 150 people, it gets a little difficult. And when you play in front of 1000+ it sounds like 'flicking a Barbie doll's arse' (love that description).

I'd definitely have one, if not in support of my wild fantasies of playing in front of 60,000 people. But more in support of lending it to my girlfriend when she's not in the mood

[Anonymous Coward]

It's all about projection...

>>"If the drummer is sat half a foot from the thing and can't hear it then the audience certainly won't either so why does it matter when he wallops the damned thing or indeed if he does at all?"

Drums are generally designed to project the sound. That is, project the sound away from the drummer. Not a great situation for a drummer on a stage surrounded by other musicians. ;)

Also, when you're sat behind an acoustic kit amongst the general swirling mush of white noise that makes up pretty much all you can hear of the mix of over-the-top guitar amps, bass, keyboards, vocals et al and of course your own playing it's nigh on impossible to discern any kind of definition in the low end frequencies. At most you're likely to hear your hi-hats, snare and cymbals so actually getting some form of feedback from the kick can be important to know you're on the pulse with your right (or left if you're a leftie, or both if you're a metal drummer) foot.

What makes the kick different to the other drums/cymbals is that you're not playing against it with a stick in your hand, but rather with a beater (possibly soft felt) attached to a sprung pedal, and the bass drum head has a lot more 'give' due to its size and lower tuning, so it's that bit harder to discern the actual impact of the beater and/or velocity of the strike. By playing the kick pedal in different ways you can change the character of the resultant note - if you let the pedal rebound quickly from the head you create a much longer more resonant tone, but if you 'bury the beater' (ie: stomp on it with your foot and press it into the head, holding it there after the strike) you can create a much more muffled dry tone, and the harder you bury the beater, the higher the pitch of that tone. If you're playing your kick dynamically like that it helps to have some kind of monitoring.

But then, as a drummer I wouldn't expect anyone to understand the musical nuances of the percussive area of the stage, apart from my rhythmical brother on the bass there :D

But I'll leave you with another 'drummer joke'...

Why are so many drummer jokes one liners?

So that the guitarist can understand them!

[Bernie Cavanagh]

Fantastic

Thanks chaps, just the article to brighten an otherwise crappy day.

[Anonymous Coward]

brilliance

I gotta be honest, the people who responded may, or may not be drummers. But speaking personally, unless your'e on the road a great deal, or have any experience of the difficulties associated with a live setup, you will not see the true potential, and brilliance of this product. It's true, there have been fore-bearers who produced similar products, but lets be honest, they didnt contain a spec. even close to the BumChum. Yeah yeah, it may be pricey too, but put a price on ease of set up and a rekindling of romance between you, your kit and your playing. If your'e serious about playing (LIVE) this is the only way to go.

Get me one! And I'll have a tea shirt too!

[Rattus Rattus]

Heard about the band that was two hours late getting on stage?

The lead singer had locked his keys in the car and it took them that long to get the drummer out.

[Steven Raith]

Obvious thought

I think I'll have to look at getting one of these, and a Best Of Slayer, for the missus. Aught to make for entertaining evenings.

*awaits slap from Ms Bee*

Steven R

Paris, because, well if you can't work it out...

[Anonymous Coward]

The old ones are the old ones...

How can you tell if the drummer's stool is level

He drools out of both sides of his mouth

[Christopher Blackmore]

Another old one

What's the difference between a drummer and a drum machine?

You only have to punch the rhythm into a drum machine once.

[Richard Porter]

@steve harris

No, that's a banjo player joke (How can you tell if the stage is level etc.).

[Robert McCracken]

what do you call...

.... a bloke that goes around with musicians.......

a drummer .

yes yes... mine is the one with the accordion in the pocket.

[Tigra 07]

Bravo

"I’ve been touring extensively with my BumChum, and it is FANTASTIC."

Bravo, me and my bumchum just go to the cinema once a week, and shopping

[Sam Therapy]

How do you get two drummers to play in time together?

Shoot one.

Mine's the one with the overpowered amp in the pocket.

[Anonymous Coward]

how do you know if there's a singer at the front door?

they haven't got the key and can't come in

[Graham Bartlett]

Keeping in time

The problem for most drummers isn't hearing their kit, or even the other instruments. The problem is keeping time. With the honourable exception of Charlie Watts, most drummers suck at sticking to a tempo. Our drummer plays with a metronome wired to headphones, so he's got a click track at the right tempo. Maybe he'll drift off the beat occasionally, but he's got the click there to get back to. These things are just a bigger version of it.

[Juan Inamillion]

Oh dear

"One of the men behind the BumChum..."

Is there a cue?

/tour jacket