My Entire Jazz Vibraphone Mallet Collection

[@rwadman1]

Thank you for the demo. Great sound and nice collection. I actually only play on Albright mallets. I have several sets of 4. Mine were all made by Susan Albright. I have been using them all for over 20 years and they all still look and sound like new. Also have two pair of Albright milt Jackson model made by Susan as well. I have never babied these mallets. And your right, you can’t get them any. Very cool. Rick

[@IRACEMABABU]

Thanks for this video. I discovered some i was in need for. I love the Toni Miceli signature mallets. Mike Balter 46R. Nice balanced tone. And the Christos Rafalides ones, Mike Balter 50R. Nice clear tone, and they cut trough a band with drummer. And, yes the David Friedman ones are a must.

[@MrSteveHobbs]

My Innovative 251s have served me well firc20 years or so. Most of my Innovative mail it don’t stay wrapped that long but I just really like the sound of Innovative. You know because I endorse them they always give me a custom shaft I like the 10 mm shafts, so yeah, I like the 251. There’s another red, Innovative Mallet I use a lot and I can’t think of it at the moment and I’m too lazy to go downstairs to tell you, maybe it’ll come up in your film if I continue to watch it….i always enjoy watching your films. Thanks Tim!

[@TimCollinsVibes]

Thanks man! I use the 301s also. Still digging the 251 model. I’ve been through several sets.

[@4marimbas968]

All those mallets together are more expensive than my xylophone. Literally.

[@c_farther5208]

Good lord, you play fantastic. Interesting to hear about these mallets. Again, very talented gentleman.

[@ericcutler7664]

My school doesn't have a good pair of vibes mallets and so I was playing with the pair we had, and playing pretty loud so I could be heard. One of the mallet heads flew off and hits someone so it'll be great to get my own pair.

[@sueriffe1046]

Great video and just what I needed!

[@phillake3802]

Tim you should have your own signature mallets with mike balter or Vic firth! I have had a set of 4 Gary Burton signature mallets made by the Good Vibes company back in the 70's, which sadly is out of business.. These mallets have lasted over 40 years! Now granted I don't play as much as you but nevertheless that's a long time and they still sound great. No fraying yarn either. Wish I could get another set.

[@JeremieCarrier]

Nice man! Such an amazing tone from those original Albrights! I also had those A.Putnams and the head broke off as i was trying o get more sound out of it. thanks for sharing!

[@playing_jazz]

Cool shit. I dream about one day switching from piano to vibes or marimba. They have always been my favorite sound.

[@pascaldeshayes5459]

Thanks for making this - very useful!

[@elmono8894]

"Im playing with bands that have drummers" 😂😂😂 one of my favourite mallets are the gary burton ones, they are really durable and have grate sound

[@alskyfajardo7361]

If I recall, the Balter 15R is actually a marimba mallet

[@TimCollinsVibes]

You might be right- I think I bought them at a music store off the shelf.. they were the token ‘non-drumsticks’ in the percussion section

[@Abmin7]

The new malletech stefon harris Albrights are REALLY good. I had to cut down the shafts to 12in because they come a little too long but I would def recommend them.

[@TimCollinsVibes]

Yeah- I have some old ones that fell apart immediately, but I think I’ll have to get some new ones and try them out.

[@daltoneast5251]

Did anyone else feel so uncomfortable when he dropped them on the vibe 😅😅

[@tranos833]

Holy sheet you're right! I felt soo uncomfortable

[@abelmank]

I have the Mike Balter AL2’s, same zebra stringing as the 52R’s you have Though they are medium hard, nice retan and has a nice bounciness, you should check them out!

[@sneakyvarmint]

A. Putnam- Amy Putnam, my percussion professor at University of Puget Sound. Taught me to make my own mallets (at University) and does amazing work- as a percussionist and mallet maker! :)

[@sneakyvarmint]

And, thanks for this thorough review- haven't purchased new mallets in ages and it's good to know the full range of what's out there. :)

[@TimCollinsVibes]

Ahhh thank you! I probably need to update this video soon anyway.

[@noahgormanmusic1843]

My favorite set of vibe mallets are the Mike Balter 46R (renamed as TM) mallets - the artist series Tony Miceli mallets

[@TimCollinsVibes]

I’ve heard good things about those, but haven’t seen them myself.

[@portley777]

Thank you Tim. Very informative as those mallets are expensive and it's a little hard to try them all without going broke. Are you able to share any tips on how to fix/repair mallets (loose threads) and also straighten bent shafts etc? Thank you and happy ny ;)

[@ivanbertolo245]

You should try the Resta Jay Jeffrey Davis mallets!! Mallets with extra quality and a perfect sound!! ;)

[@xemeryxwuvx]

I am the 2nd person asking this, but are you a rubber duck fan? My husband is a vibraphone player and I was with him and saw the duck and got a little excited because I thought you were a fan too...anyways, we love your cd album! 🎉

[@TimCollinsVibes]

Haha the rubber duck was just something I had as a cat toy lying around and it made it into a couple videos.

[@kvblum2007]

I like the Friedman DF30 and the Innovative RS251 mallets

[@tedallenwolff]

tim, I have a set of the original good vibes burton mallets (made by Bill Marimba in the mid 1970s). The rattan is in excellent shape, still very straight and the beautiful dark blue wrapping has had only minimal wear. I'm retired now and the mallets are just sitting around my house. If you'd like to have them I'd be happy to ship them to you if you could cover the mailing costs. Let me know.

[@zhichen6790]

If he doesn’t respond, am I able to get ahold of them? 😅 I’ll pay for the shipping of course, I’m a vibes player looking for some nicer sounding mallets than the hard ones I have currently

[@MrSteveHobbs]

Hi Tim. Liked both pairs of Albright's the best. Ratan did not look good buck liked the sound of both. So did my wife.

[@TimCollinsVibes]

Thanks! Those sets are both probably around 15 years old. I use them sparingly because I know they won’t last forever.

[@eddieg4320]

Yes my favorite mallets are Yamaha 3040, regular model

[@ditschnluis1]

I've ordered the new Mallettech Albright Series, just tryed them out yet, think i'll add them to my mallet collection which i use for gigs, like their sound very much!

[@TimCollinsVibes]

I just ordered some as well - so I'll put up a review around the holidays ;)

[@ditschnluis1]

hehe, perfect! ;) they need to be played a bit, as we'd say "einspielen", but then i think they should develop a very nice sound!

[@bby6551]

You are a total beast playing man 😡

[@zacharywilliams2]

You can see its sped up when he plays in this video, but yeah he's pretty great.

[@TimCollinsVibes]

Actually everything in the video is live, not that it matters anyway..

[@zacharywilliams2]

@@TimCollinsVibes sorry for assuming it was sped up, it's just the way you moved your hands at times seemed unnatural as if it were sped up. Please forgive me.

[@TimCollinsVibes]

@@zacharywilliams2 It's OK :) I think I drank a lot of coffee before making that video too

[@dvgit]

What is your opinion on the gary burton mallets? I have heard of them but have never seen a review. Great work on the video.

[@TimCollinsVibes]

I have some older ones back home in NY, and my memory is that I found them to be too soft for my taste. They are quality mallets though, if you like a softer attack you might like them.

[@mikeszwedo193]

If you ever get a chance to try some Malletech Manieri MM17 mallets, I would be interested in your thoughts. I have two sets of Good Vibes mallets from the old days. i wouldn't trade or sell them for anything. I wish I could find some more old Burton Good Vibes mallets.

[@ringmasterblaze]

Tim, have you ever tried Rusty Burge mallets? What do you think of them if you have?

[@TimCollinsVibes]

I haven’t tried them yet sadly!

[@marcpocola6292]

No gary burton mallets.. :(

[@TimCollinsVibes]

I have some back in New York.. I'll do another video when I go home for the holidays ;)

[@juana.velazquez9286]

Hi, I have that problem, loosening the head of the mallet. I use e-6000 glue, I fixed it.

[@jacobbritton7359]

Had a pair of Mendozas. The head came flying off for me too! Had to super glue it back on. Also, too hard.

[@TimCollinsVibes]

I never trust the super glue.. I stop using them once it has happened. For the audience safety :)

[@jacobbritton7359]

@@TimCollinsVibes Fair enough. I completely stopped using them after I got the Stefon Harris mallets from Vic Firth

[@TimCollinsVibes]

I just got some of those too. Will probably have a video up soon :)

[@jacobbritton7359]

@@TimCollinsVibes Awesome! Cant wait

[@somefreelog]

Hey Tim, I was wondering, what exactly is hardness? Is it the head hardness or the shaft hardness? Thank you!!

[@TimCollinsVibes]

That refers to the head of the mallet.

[@somefreelog]

@@TimCollinsVibes Thanks!

[@danby.]

Have you ever used the Gary Burton signatures? They're the only pair of vibes mallets I own currently, curious what you think of them.

[@TimCollinsVibes]

I honestly can't remember - I think over the years there have been several different Burton 'Signature' models, some of which I've tried and thought they were too soft for my taste.. But I definitely haven't tried to latest version of them, so I probably should.

[@M3000-p1j]

Why don’t you have any Kolberg Mallets?

[@TimCollinsVibes]

Actually- after looking them up I realized I’ve checked them out before. But they are only for marimba- I have a large collection of marimba mallets too, but unless a mallet is specifically designed for both vibes and marimba, you shouldn’t use them on vibes (they will get destroyed).

[@emilymagee326]

What kind of gig bag do you store/carry you mallets in! looking for something reasonably priced but i'd love to hear what you use

[@TimCollinsVibes]

Well - my answer will probably disappoint you ;) I usually only take 3 or 4 pairs of mallets with me to a gig, and I just throw them in the suitcase that has the vibraphone bars wrapped up in blankets... I do have some old pro-mark drumstick bags but I never use them. They are good though.

[@emilymagee326]

@@TimCollinsVibes ah thanks for replying! yeah i probably carry too many sticks for my own good but i will stay on the look out thanks man!

[@markelperez886]

You should try musser good vibe m235, they sound cool

[@TimCollinsVibes]

I have some of those back in NY - they sound really good, but the attack gets washed away by the drummer's ride cymbal. They are really durable though, and sound great for piano/vibes duo.

[@MrPatrrricio]

AAAAAAAALBRIGHTTTTTTTTTTTT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@hezekiahdaggett2179]

“YOU CANT SAY YOU HAVE A PLETHORA WHEN YOU DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT A PLETHORA IS!

[@TimCollinsVibes]

Finally! Someone got the joke. You win a free beer.

[@hezekiahdaggett2179]

One of my favorites !

[@tepoztlan-osbornemusic6658]

I bought several pair of the rs251 innovative percussion and was very disappointed. They are too soft and lack definition.i bought these based on your recommendation.what a bummer.

[@TimCollinsVibes]

Sorry to hear that- I still like mine. I tend to hit harder than most players though.

[@mattildahubbardo]

Cant you re yarn them?

[@TimCollinsVibes]

I’ve tried and the yarn always falls apart, either because I suck at it or the material I used was bad.

[@mattildahubbardo]

Tim Collins ok, im gonna try to make my own from scratch

[@TimCollinsVibes]

@@mattildahubbardo Let me know how it goes!

[@mattildahubbardo]

Tim Collins will do

[@neilrohan]

Can you do a giveaway? I know I'm in need of some new mallets but my band teacher does not seem to want to buy me any. I only get 1 pair and I use them a lot and the yarn just ends up getting destroyed.

[@TimCollinsVibes]

If you buy the Friedman mallets the yarn will never get destroyed, promised!

[@regsYTobsession]

Why is there a duck? I’m new and so confused.

[@TimCollinsVibes]

Eh, no reason. Somehow I now have two ducks.

[@christianpate7786]

Why am i watching this. I play trumpet?

[@BrianCole]

No good vibes?

[@TimCollinsVibes]

I had those years ago and don’t use them anymore.. too light and soft for my taste. I think I still have some somewhere. I’ll dig them up for the next video about mallets.

[@melissasmith2940]

Awesome stuff, but I can’t help but cringe every single time he touches the mallet head with his fingers. I was taught to avoid touching them, as the oils in your hands can deteriorate the yarn quicker, perhaps why a lot of his are falling apart. 🤷🏻‍♀️

[@TimCollinsVibes]

Maybe for marimba mallets but definitely not vibe mallets.

[@Sasha-tm8qy]

Damn I can't stop touching my soft mallets when I don't play 😭 but as they cost me 60€ I'll try not to lol

[@JardinsVerts]

The Friedman Innovative version model is completely different compared to Malletech and, to tell the truth, I definitely prefer Malletech. As for Balter 23R the sound is great but the cord is complete shit - playing gliss a couple of times is enough for it to start tearing.