House of Drumming.com

With looking for options when going light it's also time I just got around to putting together a rack. It'll keep my mind occupied and have me ready for something more practical at those times I want to bring everything and the kitchen sink.

I don't know if there's any reason to choose one brand over the other except Gibraltar being slightly less expensive.

If going Gibraltar I guess this would be where I'd start. http://www.gibraltarhardware.com/product/gcs-450c/

The DW site is a bit easier to navigate.

It'll be pretty basic. 2-3 racks. Floor toms and main snare on the floor. More or less like Vince's typical setup. Two splashes up front, two crashes on the right. Left side filled with all sorts of stuff.

My buddy and I bought a Gibralter cage and he had the top half anf I had the bottom half - cheaper than buying two racks, by a way. I have to say though, I used it less and less and then got rid of it completely a couple of years back. Even for complicated setups with x-hats etc, it's easier to set a kit up on stands. I can imagine there being value in having one permanently set up at home, but if it's a kit you're planning on putting up at gigs I really wouldn't recommend a rack, from experience.

It was more of a when bringing everything to a gig thing. Keeping the hardware case a bit lighter and smaller.

In the shed I'll always use stands, but they're heavy. This is why I'm looking into some lightweight stands for what is mostly low volume jazz and then something more practical when bringing everything.

I have the Gibraltar rack at home with DW booms and a couple stands to augment, kind of like Weckl does. It was ~$100 savings over the DW rack. Rarely on a gig would it be practical to drag all that out unless I a) needed a big kit for the music (often not the case) and b) had the load in time to mess with it (again often not the case). At home though it simplifies things when I experiment with setups and reduces the hardware footprint in terms of floor space in my studio, which becomes an issue when mic stands get involved.

I’m a fan of the DW 6000 lightweight stuff and have a hat stand, two boom stands and a snare stand. Works for most gigs for me, and although I wouldn’t try to hang a tom off of one, the boom stand supports a 22 ride no problem. I avoid using the heavier stands on gigs and they usually stay at home. I keep the lightweight stuff in the trap case on standby for most stuff.

It will be for when bringing everything. When the amount of regular hardware crosses into insanity and a rack makes more sense.

I haven't gotten the light hardware yet. Still thinking and also wondering if the regular 6000 might be a better choice than the UL version.