Need head suggestions for a 24" Birch Kick

Hey All,

This is my first post, and I am looking for some advice on kick drum tuning. I just got my first acoustic kit ( which is a used PDP 805 series in great shape), and am a bit of a newb so any help is appreciated.

I am changing out all the heads this week but am trying to find a good one for the bass. The kit has a nice big 24" Kick which has a great boom too it. However I worry about the volume of it getting away from me , and overpowering, when i play with people.

The sound I am looking for is a good low punch, and less of a long sustained boom. Currently there is a small pillow inside it which makes it sound too muffled. The heads are also standard and I want to change them out.

Any recommendations on which heads I should be looking for? Is there a better way to muffle the sound that will not degrade a good punch? Anything I should be sensitive of when i tune?

I looked at those Remo Powersonics with the extra muffler...are those any good?

I play mainly rock, but not heavy rock, and would want the kit to be versatile despite the larger kick size.

Thanks for the help!

I used to run an Aquarian Superkick on my Tama Superstar (birch), and it was perfect for that drum. I played that kit for over 20 years, tried every head out there, and the SK was the one.

There is a pinned thread in the drum forum with tips on bass drum tuning and head selection that you might want to check out.

I also highly recommend checking out Bob Gatzen's bass drum tuning videos (which you can find on YouTube) because he has some great advice on tuning and getting good sounds out of your drums.

I'm most familiar with Evans bass drum heads, so I'd recommend an EQ3 reso with an EQ3 batter. That combo should give you plenty of punch and low end without a lot of boom.

i would recommend the remo powerstroke 3 (pretty much the same as an evans eq3). paired with an aquarian regulator outer bass head. i use that combo and it sounds great. i use no muffling besides what the heads already have. i have the batter head tuned just a smidge above getting the wrinkles out and the reso head tuned up about a major 3rd or perfect 4th higher. when i hit the bass it has this great attack with just a little sustain. not overwhelming when i play with others, as i do every sunday, and it doesn't resonate for a long time. hardly at all. but i would recommend using some muffling if you are gonna be miced because it will prob have a little too much boom for rock. you will want a little more sustain if playing un-miced so that your drums can cut through the mix.

i also use a falam slam.

my bass drum has ridiculous low end punch.

or at least i think so.

Thanks for the tips!

I'll Probably try a few out and let you know how it goes.

Hey harryconway :With the Ambassador reso do you use, does it have a port hole in it?

Scareodactyl said:

Hey harryconway :With the Ambassador reso do you use, does it have a port hole in it?

Click to expand...

Actually, I have both a ported, and a non-ported Ambassador reso. The port, besides allowing for mic placement inside the kick, also allows ease of access of any type of towel, pillow, etc. for adjustment.

if you want a short burst of power with plenty of low tones , this is the way to go:

batter side: 2ply head with some tipe of dampening system(depending of your personal taste)
reso side : 1ply mufle head

if you don't use muffle heads your bass drum will sound more open , and you will have more high frecuencies , that's why I recommend also a muffled reso.

but before you buy any head listen as much as you can and watch the video of bob gatzen and read the drum tunning bible