Coady Combo – A new wave of drop-clutches
(mtebaldi | Posted 2011-02-23)
And so the old saying goes, necessity gives way to invention. Needs strike, and trigger creativity in one’s mind, and when that occurs, old ideas can be re-invented and new development takes place. From rocks, to arrows, to swords, to machineguns, it is the very nature of the human’s mind, to recreate creation for better serving of its own existence. This process of development can be found everywhere around the world and in almost any industry, and why it should be any different when we examine the drum kit’s development history?
From the comprised sets of the 60’s, to the more elaborated kits from the 70’s, to the gigantic monster kits of the rockin’ 80’s. Because of this constant change, concepts have always been revisited and redesigned (something for better, sometimes for worse). Keith Moon played with a double kick drum, but had to abandon the usage of a hi hat. Modern metal drummers first solved the problem by adding a second hi hat so still could somehow take advantage of the complex sound dynamics offered by this essential part of a drum kit. Later the drop clutch was invented. An ingenious type of hi hat clutch that allows drummers to arm it when playing without the second kick pedal, or disarm it when doing double bass work, having the top hat just laying closed on the bottom hat, which happened to deprive the instrument of it’s characteristic sizzling sound. Forever a compromise, this lack of sizzling caused by the regular drop clutches, added to their noise generating, non-automatic functionality (a stick stroke is required to disarm the clutch). And it was this compromise that sparkled the development-driven, creative spirit of Canadian-based company Billdidit. The Coady Combo (comprised of Coady Clutch, Coady Wash Control and Coady Trip Arm) arrived on the market with the sole purpose of revolutionizing, refining, and redefining the very existence of its predecessors’ drop clutches.
From the very first glance I took of the Coady, passion for innovation was what the phrase that crossed my mind. A recipe containing mechanics, magnetism, physics and obvious imagination, this three-piece apparatus displays uniqueness with its look while smoothing out many of the problems found on regular drop clutches. The Coady Wash Control provides plenty of customizable sizzling control over the hit hat when the drop crutch is disengaged. This simple and clever piece can be even purchased separately and can prevent any drop clutch from creating lifeless hi hat sound when the top cymbal is dropped. A heavy-duty screw system allows the player to carefully and precisely choose top and bottom hats contact and better serve their taste, style, cymbal weight, and their own dynamic performance. The screw is mounted on top of a heavy-duty spring that absorbs the chock of the cymbals, smoothing the transition between engaged/disengaged clutch positions. The Wash Control is a smart invention that will probably lead other drop clutch manufactures to envy Billdidit, with a feeling of “why didn’t WE think about this before?”
The Coady Clutch itself is another great idea that it works as well in practice as it does in theory. Here, a traditional hi hat clutch design is enhanced by the technologically advanced disk-drop-clutch device. Made of a heavy-duty plastic material, the disk holds the clutch by use of magnets. Simply hit the disk and the clutch will drop. Step on the hi-hat pedal and the magnets engage the clutch once again. The disk features six slots for magnet placement so one can better calibrate the drop clutch sensitivity regarding cymbal’s weight and playing technique. Although the Coady Clutch and the Coady Wash Control already represent a step beyond all other drop-clutch designs and functionalities on the market, the Coady Trip Arm is what brings all these innovative concepts together making this three-piece mechanism the first automatic drop-clutch ever. Why should a drummer have to hit the clutch for the cymbal to drop? Why not make it so that every time you step out of the hi-hat pedal and into the double bass pedals, the clutch drop by itself? That’s exactly what the Trip Arm does. The Trip Arm might turn a few heads when someone first sees it, wondering what that strange device might do, but as strange as it might look, it works, and who knows, it could become the norm and one might eventually wonder why a double bass drummer does not have one on his hi-hat.
The Coady Combo installation is quite simple. You can intuitively figure out how the system works. The Trip Arm might take a little extra time to perfectly optimized it with your hi hat stand and playing style, but once you find that sweet spot you have no more worries. The Trip Arm not only can be disengaged mid-play, in case you want to use the Coaby Clutch as a traditional drop clutch, but also is easily removable, so you have it ready to go gig after gig in matter of seconds. Once every main device of the combo is perfectly calibrated to your musical taste and style, this revolutionary drop-clutch works terrifically, and it quickly becomes a piece of your drum kit that you don’t even have to think about, yet another thing that sets it apart from traditional drop-clutches. It’s like it is not even there, you go back and forth between pedals and the combo does its job, you’ve got your sizzling hi hat cymbals while playing double bass, you have a controlled and dynamic hi-hat when you groove with the single bass drum pedal.
Ideas come and go. When ideas are well executed, chances are they will create a mark in history. The unique and innovative ideas put on the Coady Combo already are great ones. Double kick drummers worldwide will ultimately decide if this product will make its dent, but in my case, this combo is now a full-time member of my own drum kit.
The Coady Combo retails for $89.98. You can also purchase the pieces separately, The Coady Clutch costs $49.98, The Coady Wash Control $12.98 and the Coady Trip Arm $34.98.
For more information please visit www.billdidit.ca
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