Muckster
Platinum Member
What part of "I never liked the cure" is 'slamming' The Cure?
Sure, it wasn't the most constructive post, but I was expressing myself in a non-offensive manner....
Fair enough mate! XXXXXXXXXXXXX
What part of "I never liked the cure" is 'slamming' The Cure?
Sure, it wasn't the most constructive post, but I was expressing myself in a non-offensive manner....
Berumuda,
How often do you change your heads? Do you start all live shows on brand new heads or do you only change heads when you start to notice they worn past where you like themto be?
On tour, I change my Evans tom & snare batters every 4-6 shows, which is the range in which they start choking (I'm a hard hitter.) In town, where I play more moderately, batters will last 20 gigs or more.
I should mention that durability was never an issue for me with Remo, rather it was the chronic inconsistency of their Pinstripes and Emperors that caused me to terminate my 16-year Remo endorsement and never use a Remo head again. Only when I could hand-pick Remo heads did I have a chance at getting my 3 toms to sound good. Conversely, the QC at Evans is excellent, I never have to worry about testing a head before mounting it, and I've never had an Evans head that didn't sound like it was supposed to.
Props to Aquarian too, I tried their heads as well in 2000 when it was clear I had to make a change from Remo. I chose Evans because of the better selection for what I was playing.
Bermuda
Bermuda,
Do you think the QC may have improved at Remo since your troubles?
I had wondered about that too a year or two ago, so I went to my local Sam Ash, pulled as many Pinstripes and Emperors as they had available and did tap tests. I forget the exact percentage, but I remember it jived with my personal findings in the past, and I'll be generous to Remo and say that 25% of those heads were completely dead/flappy when tested. I also looked on the underside of the heads, and discovered that for the most part, the bad heads had noticeable ripples or waves on the bottom layer, while the outer layer layed flat. The result is that the 2 layers will tune at different rates and not vibrate well together (or at all depending on the severity of the ripples.) I also learned that I could have simply looked at the heads and made a pretty accurate determination as to how they would sound.
So my answer is, no, as of about 2 years ago, I don't think there's been an improvement.
Regarding quality control, I don't have a problem with a company making a bad head now and then... just don't let them out of the factory. Further, Remo denied there were any QC issues with the 2-ply heads, even when I explained the problems I had been encountering and pointed out the irony in drummers having to hand select heads at stores, they were adamant that there were no issues.
I knew it was time to go.
Bermuda
No problems here but I am going to Evans on the toms as I like the EC series and staying with Remo for my snares.
His one-word evaluation of Evans heads was that they were 'shite', which was obviously very helpful...
Regarding quality control, I don't have a problem with a company making a bad head now and then... just don't let them out of the factory. Further, Remo denied there were any QC issues with the 2-ply heads, even when I explained the problems I had been encountering and pointed out the irony in drummers having to hand select heads at stores, they were adamant that there were no issues.
I knew it was time to go.
Bermuda
I have been thinking of getting all new tom batters and resos (from remo), but now this is making me worry.
Has anyone ever had a problem with clear Powerstroke 3 (on the toms), and clear ambassadors?
I believe they're both 1 ply heads, but I just wanted to make sure.
What do you think of that combination?
It sounds to me from Bermuda's commentary that Remo's quality control issues mainly occur with their 2-ply heads, and not single-ply ambassadors. Has anyone had any bad luck with ambassadors or Remo's FiberSkyn 3 heads?
I just ordered a whole lot of FiberSkyns for batters and clear ambassadors for resonant heads today. I hope I'm not in trouble; I haven't had issues with Remo in the past, but you guys have a habit of making a guy worry.
I'll tell you the results of my "tap tests" as well as how that compares to how they sound tuned onto the drums after they arrive.
My son used that combo for a while.. They were ok but didn't sound there "best" until they were tuned medium high. Anything below that and the muffle ring under the head would wrinkle and make an annoying sound. If you try them, get the ones with the clear dot. The dot will make them last a lot longer. If you could be interested in Aquarian, try Super 2's on top and Classic Clears on the bottoms. That's a nice combo.
Dot? I didn't know they had them with dots. They look kind of cheesy to me. I've tried ps3's on my friends kit and they sounded magnificent. I think he had a pearl masters though
I'm not sure what resos he was using.
Dots look cheesy to me...
Would the aquarians make a similar sound?
Yeah, they come with no dot, white dot and clear dot. Most people don't know that because most stores just get the basic ones which of course are clear.
The Super 2's will have a lot of bottom to them.. if you like a low or medium low sound, they would work well for you. They aren't dead. I'd say loud and round. Here is the description off of Aquarian's site.
Super-2™ Drumheads "A New Kind Of Two Ply Head"
They have great attack, projection and depth unlike any other drumheads. The patented Safe-T-Loc hoop prevents the head from slipping and the Sound Curve collar design provides "Responsive Tuning". With Responsive Tuning, one turn of the drum key and Super-2™ heads react. A free tuning sheet is enclosed with each Super-2 drumhead.
CLEAR: Wet attack, lot's of bottom end and depth.
COATED: Mellow, warm full sound.
CLEAR WITH POWER DOT: Focused, deep and solid.
CLEAR WITH STUDIO-X RING: Focused, warm and punchy.
SUPER-2 DRUMHEADS
"A New Kind of Two Ply Head"
In the past, two ply heads had either attack with little or no depth or they had depth with little or no attack. SUPER-2 drumheads have great attack, a rich mid-range and a powerful bottom end and depth. SUPER-2 drumheads sound louder, fuller and more powerful than conventional two ply heads. The patented Safe-T-Loc hoop prevents the head from slipping and the "Sound Curve" collar design provides "Responsive Tuning". With Responsive Tuning, one small turn of the drum key and the SUPER-2 heads react. A free tuning sheet is enclosed with each SUPER-2 drumhead. Attack with bottom end, projection with power and "Responsive Tuning" are what SUPER-2's are all about.
Application: For any drummer looking for more tone, more power and projection for today's music.
*pictured are the clear SUPER-2's and the clear SUPER-2 with Studio-X ring. They are also available coated or clear with a Power Dot.