The Unconventional Hybrid

“I love playing both acoustic and electronic drums,” says Vince McGee when asked about the choices he made when designing this month’s unique setup. “This hybrid set represents the best of both worlds.” Looking at his kit, with its seven Yamaha electronic DTX drum pads, thirteen Zildjian cymbals, Yamaha DTXtreme brain, and Yamaha and DW hardware, it’s hard not to appreciate its custom appeal.

McGee’s Zildjian cymbals include a mix of As and Ks, with a heavy emphasis on smaller splashes and effects cymbals, along with his favorite 20″ K ride. “The cymbals’ tonal range is exquisite,” he says.

McGee goes on to explain how he mounted his cymbals to achieve space and tonality. Looking at the kit from left to right, the four cymbal stacks go from small to large, with larger cymbals on the bottom of each stack. “All stacked cymbals have felt between them,” he says. “And each can be played separately without being choked by the other cymbal.” In addition, A Custom and K Custom splashes are mounted low and near the toms.

Although McGee prefers the default DTXtreme Maple Custom Absolute preset for his electronic drum sounds, he varies the kit as well. “The versatility of the DTXtreme brain is without end,” he explains. “I make additional sound adjustments for different toms and diverse attack on each voice. And I do swap the snare pad out for an acoustic Yamaha maple snare when appropriate.”

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