Drum Heads

Hello everyone this is my very first post and I am also happy to be a part of this forum. So here goes....I currently have a 7 piece Mapex Pro M kit and my toms are in the following sequence 8" 10" 12" 14" 16", I am looking for a deep punch sound with a little reso I dont like a completely muffled sound but nor do I want to hit my toms drink a cup of coffee and the reso finally ceases. The more I read online the more I get confused about what I should buy and experiment with. I have been experimenting with evans heads and I am trying to go with a combo that will accomodate a deeper tone with the 8" inch tom I know this is going to be very hard. Here are some of the combos that I have tried Evans G2 coated on batter and clear G1 on Reso...didnt like it all that much. What I do like as of today is Evans G2 on batter and Remo coated emporer on the Reso. The two single ply remo heads that were on my kit (just bought it and upgraded) sounded horrible.

I am looking for feedback and anyone who can give me advice on how to get a good deep punch with so reso, like I said the EG2 and emporer combo is much better. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you all!!

off_duty_drummer said:

I have tried Evans G2 coated on batter and clear G1 on Reso...didnt like it all that much. What I do like as of today is Evans G2 on batter and Remo coated emporer on the Reso. The two single ply remo heads that were on my kit (just bought it and upgraded) sounded horrible.

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Coated two ply reso is unusual. I am suprised you didn't like the G2/G1. Thats a very common combo. To my ear, clear EC2s are a good middle ground between wide open and dead. Try those with G1 reso and you may find what you are looking for.

Doug Masters said:

Coated two ply reso is unusual. I am suprised you didn't like the G2/G1. Thats a very common combo. To my ear, clear EC2s are a good middle ground between wide open and dead. Try those with G1 reso and you may find what you are looking for.

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I know thats what I thought too, but I was at the drum shop and some guy said try this combo and he swore by it??????

well i've only upgraded my heads once, so i dont have the best experience, but if you want deep, and quite a bit of attack, you might try some Remo Black Suede heads, i currently have Black Suede Emperors, i like them, but some people think its too dead, but i like them. i have Remo ambassador resos too.

A friend of mine put a Evans clear hydraulic head on his 8 in tom (Pearl Masters Birch) and I was surprised how deep and clear the tone for such a small tom. It sounded sweet and not muffled. It is fun trying different heads and brands but beware the abyss.

I also have the black suede emperors over clear amb, I like them, they dont sound dead to me, they sounded open and warm to me.

I have two of my 7 piece kits in the same sizes as you and they're equipped with Evans G2 clear batter over G1 clear resonant heads. I usually tune these kits pretty low, but they're tuned to the resonance of each individual shell. In other words I try to let the shells diameter influence the tone of the drum more than forcing its tone much higher or lower than it's capable of producing. This gives me great resonance and sustain and a very open sound to each drum. Before anything else, I would really give the tuning another shot. This is where 95% or more of the individuals have the problem in getting the sound they want out of their drums and not necessarily in the heads they're using. Tuning is an art form that some can readily grasp and others have a much more difficult time with it. There are a lot of videos on the Internet with helpful advice. Also I would suggest finding a qualified drum instructor if for nothing else, just to teach you one on one what to listen for and how to achieve the sound that you want. If you already know how to effectively tune your kit, then I'm out of line and there might be other factors involved.

Good luck,
Dennis

Great advice from Dennis. 8" toms can be a bitch to extract depth of tone and sustain. There simply isn't the resonant surface area on the heads, or shell surface area & volume. Done correctly though, you can get some real punch. Rule 1 with small toms, if you want sustain, tune both batter & reso heads to exactly the same pitch. Here's a clip I did recently showing 8, 10, 12 & 14 with Evans G plus over Evans G1's. Recorded with a Q3. No processing. Is this the sort of sound you want?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyWG-eCo2uc

audiotech said:

I have two of my 7 piece kits in the same sizes as you and they're equipped with Evans G2 clear batter over G1 clear resonant heads. I usually tune these kits pretty low, but they're tuned to the resonance of each individual shell. In other words I try to let the shells diameter influence the tone of the drum more than forcing its tone much higher or lower than it's capable of producing. This gives me great resonance and sustain and a very open sound to each drum. Before anything else, I would really give the tuning another shot. This is where 95% or more of the individuals have the problem in getting the sound they want out of their drums and not necessarily in the heads they're using. Tuning is an art form that some can readily grasp and others have a much more difficult time with it. There are a lot of videos on the Internet with helpful advice. Also I would suggest finding a qualified drum instructor if for nothing else, just to teach you one on one what to listen for and how to achieve the sound that you want. If you already know how to effectively tune your kit, then I'm out of line and there might be other factors involved.

Good luck,
Dennis

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Dennis great info and you've given me hope on the G2 G1 combo, I knew I was gonna have a hard task with getting the 8" tom lower but I will give it a shot!!!

keep it simple said:

Great advice from Dennis. 8" toms can be a bitch to extract depth of tone and sustain. There simply isn't the resonant surface area on the heads, or shell surface area & volume. Done correctly though, you can get some real punch. Rule 1 with small toms, if you want sustain, tune both batter & reso heads to exactly the same pitch. Here's a clip I did recently showing 8, 10, 12 & 14 with Evans G plus over Evans G1's. Recorded with a Q3. No processing. Is this the sort of sound you want?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyWG-eCo2uc

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Great sound you did a good job!!!!! Thanks for the advice!!

Just based on the heads you "do like": the g2 and the emperor on bottom I'd make this suggestion. Try either a g2 or an emperor on the top and then try a CS black dot on clear on the bottom. These are great for what it sounds your after. You might even try the Ludwig equivalent which is a "silver dot," and are MUCH cheaper BUT essentially the same thing. I personally would try a thinner head like a coated Vintage A (REMO) and then either an emperor or a CS black Dot on the bottom. I'd give that a whirl. If I was to try these combos I'd have no reso at all...but everyones different and the way they hit the drums has everything to do with what they need. So based on what you mentioned I think the above choices would probably come close to giving you exactly what ya need.