Drum Riser Ideas?

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TapeOpLarry
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Drum Riser Ideas?

Post by TapeOpLarry » Wed Feb 28, 2007 5:16 pm

I need to build a 10' x 7' drum riser in our studio. What ideas do y'all have for height, and what kind of construction methods have people employeed? Thanks!
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Post by burnmore » Wed Feb 28, 2007 6:04 pm

:shock:

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Post by RefD » Wed Feb 28, 2007 8:50 pm

my first inclination is to make it 18" tall (high enough to get the outside kick head away from the floor but still low enough that you can easily step up onto it) and leave the sides open so it doesn't become a resonator.

also find some way to decouple it from the floor.

gah, sorry i can't come up with more, my brain barely keeping my skull from caving in right now.
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Post by blunderfonics » Thu Mar 01, 2007 11:03 am

RefD wrote:...also find some way to decouple it from the floor....
Auralex makes some stuff called PlatFoam for this purpose.
Image

This thread suggests using tires underneath the riser as a means of decoupling.

I have no idea how either method works, my drum riser consists of a carpet.

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Post by mikeyc » Thu Mar 01, 2007 11:23 am

I've had good luck with small risers/iso-boxes using hockey pucks. I read an interview with some dude in Canada who floated his whole studio floor with his hockey puck collection.
I don't know how cost effective that would be on a riser of that size, but...

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Post by redear » Thu Mar 01, 2007 2:49 pm

Why not build it like it was a "floated floor" with a little insulation? Doesnt even need to be 18 inches.

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Post by cgarges » Fri Mar 02, 2007 12:58 pm

Hey Larry, what purpose do you want the riser to serve?

Chris Garges
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Post by RefD » Fri Mar 02, 2007 1:06 pm

redear wrote:Why not build it like it was a "floated floor" with a little insulation? Doesnt even need to be 18 inches.


agreed, i was recommending the height as a way to get the kit away from the floor and minimise reflections that could introduce weird phase crap...

but, to do the same thing, all you really need are some area rugs! :oops:
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Post by Aj » Fri Mar 02, 2007 9:14 pm

Larry, I built a drum riser for my place using several layers of Owens Corning 705 rigid fiberglass and high density MDF (plus carpet and pad).

When I built my riser a couple years ago, I considered those PlatFoam things - but figured there had to be a DIY way to go. Folks at the John Sayer site helped me realize a design; you can find the thread documenting my progress here .

Anyway, I've attached a picture below. Since I track in a one room environment, I was very concerned with stopping resonances and minimizing bleed. I feel it's helped a great deal with that.

Feel free to ask any questions if this is what you're after.

Best,
Adam Druckman
drawingroom.org

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Latest single from Druckman Bros. here

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Post by dokushoka » Fri Mar 02, 2007 9:53 pm

Neopreen pipewrap that you get at home depot makes a great decoupler...

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Post by JWL » Fri Mar 02, 2007 11:58 pm

OK. There are some things you need to decide.

First, do you want the riser to alter the tone of the drums? Some drum risers resonate audibly, the question then becomes does it resonate in a way the helps your drum sounds. This will mean one building methodology (probably the insulation filled framing with MDF/Plywood on top), you will have to figure out resonance frequencies.

If not, then you want the riser to be dead. Probably going sand-filled, with a few layers of plywood or MDF on top is the way to go.

Or you can go somewhere in between.

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Post by leftofthedial » Sat Mar 03, 2007 1:53 pm

Not to sound too retarded, but what is the purpose of a drum riser anyway?
They mostly come at night..... Mostly.

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Post by dokushoka » Sat Mar 03, 2007 3:01 pm

leftofthedial wrote:Not to sound too retarded, but what is the purpose of a drum riser anyway?
Decoupling the drums from the floor/walls.

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Post by leftofthedial » Sat Mar 03, 2007 3:53 pm

To help with?
They mostly come at night..... Mostly.

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Post by JWL » Sat Mar 03, 2007 4:58 pm

It helps the sound of the drums, if they are truly decoupled from the floor/walls. It's a purer drum tone, less colored by outside resonance sources. Plus, the height seems to help, the reflections coming up from the floor seem to sound different on a good drum riser.

The problem is, a lot of people build drum risers that have a resonance frequency well within the audio spectrum, usually somewhere under a couple hundred Hz. This can be a good or a bad thing, depending on whether or not you like the sound of the resonance.

The key to build a solid drum riser is to get the resonance frequency below 20Hz, which is very difficult to do with wood framing. Filling the frames with sand is about the closest you can get.

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