u/electricalaphid

So I'd been practicing daily for about 2 years. Never touched a real set, had only played e-drums in my tiny apartment. When I say daily, I mean 7 days a week for 30-60 minutes each session. And when I say e-drums, I mean pretty much the cheapest set one could possibly buy -- the Donner DED-80.

After purchasing a proper crash, ride, and hi-hat, I booked some time at a practice space. My biggest fear was cracking someone else's cymbals, so I was patient to find deals locally. But I digress. Anyway, and for months leading up, I expected my hurdles to come two-fold:

1: I'd heard that the transition from cheap e-kick (meaning, not an actual kick pedal but a pedal that just hits a button) to actual kick pedal was the most off-putting difference between e-drums and real drums. I dreaded this part the most.

2: I expected the placement of drums to demand a lot of trial and error, placing drums and cymbals around until finding a comfortable spot.

What I found was that neither of these mattered. In those respects, my playing was essentially the same. Listening back to my recording of the session confirmed this.

What was difficult, and my only real takeaway, was the hitting of cymbals. Particularly the ride. I had no idea how varied the sound could be depending on what inch-specific sector I hit on the damn thing. It's like a whole instrument in and of itself. And then the separation between the hi-hats. I could've spent a whole hour just figuring out what the right sound was for an open hit. And it's not like my cymbals are bottom-barrel quality. I got a Custom A crash and ride, and Sabian AA hi-hats. Not great, but not bad. All to say, this problem is operator error rather than the equipment.

Kick drum and snare proved almost no difference. Could've been my style, could've been the kit I worked with compared to my cheap-ass e-drum. All of this is to say it's the cymbals. Nothing shows how little a drummer knows about the world than those things.

Anyway, thought somebody would like to read my experience, as I think it may be unique. I know two years is a long time for a practicing drummer, especially one who had never played all-natural.

So we all know the stigmata thing and how it makes no sense. That's not what this is about. That's a mistake where I have no idea how anybody involved in production overlooked, and it's truly bizarre. This is something else I noticed upon my dozenth rewatch. (I love this movie.)

So to set up how the time travel works: We know that the blackouts aren't portals to where Evan can travel back to as his future self. It's the opposite. The blackouts were caused by the instances of his future self going back to change something. That's all well and good, but it makes me question one of the final scenes of the film.

When Even realizes that he can never be with Kayleigh, he cuts off their relationship at the moment he met her. Then in the future, we have a sort of montage where him and Lenny burn all of his journals, tapes, etc. so that he never has the urge to go back and change anything. He's essentially cutting himself off from making any other alterations to the life he has - an okay, tolerable life.

But none of the burning matters because he wouldn't have gone back anyway. It's already established that the events of his blackouts were caused by the time travel itself. So what difference does it make if he burns it? It's not gonna happen. The blackouts were already... well... blacked out. It's not like he can create a new one. All those blackouts from his childhood were the times he already went back.

I hope this makes sense. Anyway, great film.

I've decided to record an entire alt rock album by my lonesome, where I perform guitars/vocals/bass/keyboard/drums all by yours truly. So I purchased all the necessary gear: audio interfaces/condenser mics/dynamic mics/monitors/stands/pop filters/ even a new acoustic guitar just for this project. Turns out the major roadblock financially came when I realized I needed to buy cymbals.

I never knew that in order to get a decent crash/hi-hat/ride, I'd have to double my budget. So here I am now, scouring used cymbals from pawnshops and marketplaces just to move forward with this project. I had planned on using the drumsets included in my local practice studio, but my biggest fear is cracking one of their most expensive units; I need my own.

What a barrier for entry drums are. And I feel like an idiot having played live in front of one for all these years with my comparatively cheap-as-hell guitar and amp. When it comes to musicians, drummers are literally the most invested in their craft.

Edit* Most all of my practice drumming has been done with a basic electric kit I've had for ages.

I've had the Moto G Power 2020 since... well.. 2020. Only within the past month or so have I found any problems with it. Random glitches here and there. The thing is amazing and I'm still on the fence toward upgrading.

My reservations comes two-fold: 1, I'm frugal as hell. 2, I don't need a phone that does more than basic web browsing and basic communication. I'm all in with Moto G Power for the incredible battery life and (from what I've dealt with thus far) its 6-year durability.

So my question is: Is the 2025 version going to last me longer than the 2024 version fresh out of the box? Is it worth the extra $50-$100? I've heard the 2025 one is a downgrade, but all I care about is how long it'll last without glitches and whatnot.

Thanks.

Was chilling with friends after grilling some dogs in the backyard, decided to put on Jackass as something "passive." Turned out, the film's got America written all over it. I couldn't have picked anything better.

Flags galore, rockets, fireworks, rodeos... it was perfect.

Something I noticed today when clicking through the series. All the PS2, PSP, and PS3 games have been featured. I found it odd. Maybe the Wikipedia team happen to be fans?