[Lukeykookey]

Hi all,

Still class myself as a beginner. I have been toying with the idea of getting a metronome, BUT

It sounds silly but I have excellent timekeeping, always have (bighead!) One of these people that cringes when someone is singing and doesn't quite leave enough of a gap at the end of the chorus into the verse. Horrible!

Anyway, enough of me talking crap. My problem is that when I am playing along to myself, I do a riff, do a fill and then get lost at the end of the fill coming back in to start again. Its only a split second difference but makes everything just sound awful, everything falls apart, I stop and start beating myself up. Just ruins the moment, especially when I'm having a proper groove.

This doesn't seem happen when I am playing along to music.

Is this because I am playing too fast for myself, or do you think I could benefit from a metronome.

My personal feeling is that its because I am playing too fast and doing too complex fills for myself.

And further to the last I have seen some online metronomes like this one
METRONOME ONLINE - free!

Are they just the same, is it worth me going to the expense of buying one? I saw a yamaha one today with a flashing red LED, I can see a little tick being drowned out.
My kit is in my house, never moves, I am not in a band.

[Der Trommler]

Many pro drummers use a click track or metronome as they play live or are recording, and well, they are pros. If you look closely at videos of concerts or drummers in studios you will see that a great many pros have an earpiece in one ear, that is for the click track. I think it is a good thing to use one personally and I believe there are quite a few here that would agree.

As drummers we are the time keepers and if we hesitate or change tempo even for a split second the rest of the music is effected. I say go for it, use it till your ears bleed if needed, it can only help you be a better drummer. As for which one, well that will be a personal choice. If you are on a budget and already have an iPod or the like then use the online metronome and record your click track to that.

[Tainojim]

If ya can't afford a metronome, you can tape a mechanical watch to your ear.

[butter]

Originally Posted by Tainojim

If ya can't afford a metronome, you can tape a mechanical watch to your ear.

haha ya thatll do it

[Lukeykookey]

Thanks for the replies fellas!

[Tainojim]

Seriously that is a cool find on line. My so uses a metronome in every song that he starts. I've never used one but I'm not knocking them either. The last time I saw an old fashion one was at music class in mid school. guess riding the subways in the city most of my like has given me an inside the head metronome. kadoon-kadoon on the train tracks can sometimes drive you nuts too.

[SaxMachine]

That's like asking if water keeps you hydrated! Yes, it's a huge help!

[chezm]

yes, they're a big help.

eventhough my timing is 99.9% of the time dead on, i still use a ticker for recording JUST IN CASE. When growing up, I neglected to use one in the studio for recording...playback proved me wrong.

[Tainojim]

Remember that Timing isn't everything.

Ya got ta have Rhythm, baby....

Cause if ya aint got Rhythm, ya aint got the Blues. Or do ya?

[slingerland59]

Hey Lukeykookey, thanks for the link to the computer metronome...that's neat. In terms of developing better timing, the best method I've found is playing along to the cheesy but fun prerecorded rhythm tracks in cheap electronic keyboards. They aren't hard to find at bargain shops. You set it to funk rock -- the one I have has variable speeds -- and there you go, just like playing a duet with Neil Peart or Travis Barker! And you can get your kid to play keyboard riffs at the same time.

Forget the metronome with the red light. I have one and it drove me nuts. I found myself waiting and looking for the light, rather than building confidence in my own internal clock. The metronome I have does have an earphone attachment to counter the problem of loud drums, but it's still tres boring compared to an electronic keyboard.

I'm guessing your problem coming out of fills on time has more to do with the fills themselves rather than your metre. Are you sure you're hitting the right number of beats -- e.g. a full bar of 4/4 or maybe two bars if you are "trading 2's" (2 bars of a beat followed by 2 bars of a fill)? Slow it down or better yet write it down to make sure you've got it right, before you practice going fast.