Bass - Ripped Reso Head and General Recommendations

Qanda

Junior Member
Having some trouble getting the right sound out of my used Tama Swingstar 22" bass drum. I am thinking of replacing both heads; the reso head in particular has two issues:

- It came ported with a 5 or 6" hole that was hidden in the picture when I bought it (online).
- It has a 4" J-shaped tear at the top-center of the head near the hoop. It is not a gaping hole, but there is a little bit of a split between either side of the tear.

This damage notwithstanding, the sound generally sounds boomy and hollow rather than thick and punchy as I'd like. I have tried different tunings and threw a pillow in there, but no real change.

I am not sure if this has entirely to do with the damage and hole in the reso head, but I welcome any general advice on getting the sound I want. Feel free to recommend replacement heads as I will probably be getting some regardless.

Thanks!
 
First off...

Can you identify the batter head? What kind of head is it?

Second - the reso head with the tear in it needs to be replaced - it certainly is not doing you any favors.

If you want a nice punchy sound from your drum, try running a Powerstroke 3 for both your reso and batter - and use a remo falam slam beater patch and run either a plastic or wood beater on your pedal. Port the new reso head with a 4 to 5 inch hole to allow for more attack and less boom. Keep the pillows out of the kick and learn how to properly tune the new heads to get the desired sound. Also - keep in mind that the drum sounds much different to you behind the kit than it will to your band mates or an audience... much of the boom / sustain will be lost once you get about 6 - 10 or more feet from the kick... and that extra sustain helps carry the sound of the kick to the audience and cut through the mix of other instruments.
 
Can you identify the batter head? What kind of head is it?

How did I forget to include that... It actually is a Remo PS3 w/ Falam Slam patch. The reso head is some kind of Aquarian with Tama logo, maybe a Regulator?

and run either a plastic or wood beater on your pedal. Port the new reso head with a 4 to 5 inch hole to allow for more attack and less boom.

My pedal is pretty junky with an old worn felt beater, so I'll look into some other plastic options.

As for porting the new reso head, how critical is that to achieving the desired sound? I'm still very much a beginner and can't see myself doing any recording or gigging for a while, but if the port hole contributes significantly to that kind of sound, then I'll go for it.

Thanks for the other helpful information, sqadan!
 
I love Evans EQ bass drum heads and I get the exact sound I'm looking for with an EQ2 batter (2-ply, overtone control ring and dry vents) and EQ1 reso (1-ply, no hole, dry vents).

I think if you like thick tone but shorter sustain a 2-ply batter and a ported reso is going to give you a sound like you area describing.
 
Thanks for the specific configuration tips, Winston.

Since I last posted, I took out the pillow and looked up some tips on bass tuning. Will try and get as close to the sound I want without buying anything right now, but I am still looking to replace the reso head at least because of the damage.

Thanks again for the tips guys.
 
FYI... The port in the reso will help you achieve a bit more beater attack / punch... the bass drum will have more "boom" with an un-ported head. Also - you will get a bit less bounce off the batter head with a ported reso - so you get a bit more beater control.
 
Keep in mind also that if you're trying to exactly match a sound you have in your head, and that sound is sourced from a recording, it might not be possible to match it. The sound of a drum on a record is the result of many factors, including a lot of variables in the various electronic steps involved in getting an acoustic sound "into" some consumer medium.
 
Resonance contributes to volume and lower frequencies. My suggestion is to try a non-ported, somewhat muffled (PS3 or the like) resonant head first. Play with it a bit (try tuning both heads higher than you think you ought to) & if you don't like it uncut, start with a SMALL port. You can always port more if you feel you need to. Once you get above 5" or so, it's like playing without any reso at all.
Luck - bo
 
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