Bass Drum Size for custom Mapex Mydentity

W

WunderlichDrums

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I am looking into getting a custom Mapex Mydentity kit made after owning my Mapex Meridian Maple for about 4 years. AMAZING KIT! But I want a change yano? :) SO i'll be selling the Meridian after getting the Mydentity.

I love the lacquer finish on them and the wrap-only feature on the mydentity is a disappointment, but..i can get past that because it will look fantastic!

I'm going to be getting a separate snare, possibly the Black Panther Matt Halpern Sig Wraith, so this will be a custom order 3 piece shell pack.
I'm 5'7" with a 34" inseam, hip bones at 40" (i have more legs than anything else, so about 60% of my body is my legs)so the sizes of the rack and bass somewhat reflect that, I could never get my 12x9 to sit low enough over the bass to comfortably play it, so I find myself using the 10x8 instead which just gives me an odd octave mix between the single 10x8 rack and 16x16 floor tom, so I'll be going 12x8 rack.

Mydentity:
12x8" rack tom, 16x14 floor tom and the bass drum is undecided
I'm thinking 20x18, 20x16, 22x18, or 22x16

Can anyone explain the differences I'll experience with the different bass drum sizes?
All the way from the attack, resonance, articulation, and rebound(feel)
I know that some drummers swear by 20" bass drums, and others won't go below a 22" (i've also read it's a bit easier to do fast double bass work on a 20", but that could just be placebo.

As for the depth, I've been reading that anything over 16" is overkill in a lot of peoples opinions.

I play hard rock, metal, heavy metal, progressive rock., and some pop.
Of Mice & Men, A day to remember, Pantera, Avenged Sevenfold, Breaking Benjamin, Killswitch Engage, August Burns Red, Bullet for my Valentine, Disturbed, Five Finger Death Punch, Godsmack, Mudvayne to name a few.

I've NEVER owned a 20" bass drum, or even anything other than a 22x18 for that matter.

I love the SONIclear bearing edges so I don't think tuning will be an issue (haven't had a problem ever tuning my kit)

Current Meridian Maple:
22x18 bass
10x8 rack
12x9 rack (don't use right now)
16x16 floor tom
14x5.5 snare (might keep this, i don't know yet)

Thanks in advanced everyone 😁
 
I'm just a bit shorter than you, so I understand your tom placement issue.

I'm one of the ones that enjoys playing a 20" kick (20x17, but I would prefer a shallower kick around 14" deep). I also use a "classic" sized 12x8 rack tom.

I will say that when I sold off my Gretsch Renown kit with the 22x18 kick drum, my band mates remarked about how tight and punchy my 20" kick was. The singer/guitarist who was also our sound man said it was easier to mix a 20" kick for rock music.

When we started my current band, the guitarist also mentioned how good and punchy my kick drum was that too.

If you are interested in the 20" kicks, I would start with the 20x16" size.
 
I dunno this seems like a whole ordeal just to get basically the same kit you have now but with slightly different sizes, the main motivation seemingly being to get a 12x8" instead of a 12x9". Isn't it more tempting to save up and get a higher end kit in your preferred sizes?

I'm a fairly short dude as well, and it didn't take me long when I started out to find that mounting the toms center on the bass drum wasn't ideal. So I started mounting the 13x11" (early nineties Tama Swingstar) low on the left side using the bass drum mount, and the 12x10" on a cymbal stand adapter to the left of that. Which also brought the ride closer to center and the bell was easier to reach. Basically a one-up, one-down setup but with an extra tom on the left. Made my drumming life a whole lot more comfortable.
 
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I would do 16" deep on the BD. Its that "jack of all trades, master of none" depth that can give you lots of different sounds. I currently have (2) 20x16 bass drums and either tuned up high and open for a jazz sound or low and punchy for rock, it works well. Though, I think 22" is a better choice for the music you are wanting to play. I think it will give you more tuning options than the 20" as it can hit a lower pitch and be a bit "boomier" if you ever want that tone. Unless you ever want to tune in to a "bop" bass drum range, the 22x16 would be my recommendation.
 
BradGunnerSGT said:
I'm just a bit shorter than you, so I understand your tom placement issue.

I'm one of the ones that enjoys playing a 20" kick (20x17, but I would prefer a shallower kick around 14" deep). I also use a "classic" sized 12x8 rack tom.

I will say that when I sold off my Gretsch Renown kit with the 22x18 kick drum, my band mates remarked about how tight and punchy my 20" kick was. The singer/guitarist who was also our sound man said it was easier to mix a 20" kick for rock music.

When we started my current band, the guitarist also mentioned how good and punchy my kick drum was that too.

If you are interested in the 20" kicks, I would start with the 20x16" size.
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The struggle is real lol
Really? A 20x17 huh?
I hadn't considered that.
However, the mapex kydentity doesn't come in that size :/
It is between 16" & 18" if I go with 20" diameter. That seems like it will be my best bet to still get that low end but with more lunch that I crave.
Although I did jut measure the space between the bottom of my 10x8 rack and the bass and there seems to be some room so maybe I could go 22x18...hmmm
 
Tommy_D said:
I would do 16" deep on the BD. Its that "jack of all trades, master of none" depth that can give you lots of different sounds. I currently have (2) 20x16 bass drums and either tuned up high and open for a jazz sound or low and punchy for rock, it works well. Though, I think 22" is a better choice for the music you are wanting to play. I think it will give you more tuning options than the 20" as it can hit a lower pitch and be a bit "boomier" if you ever want that tone. Unless you ever want to tune in to a "bop" bass drum range, the 22x16 would be my recommendation.
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99% sure I will never tune to a boppy sound to be honest
And yes I was gonna ask if a 20" would be suitable for hard rock heavy metal. I think it might..might..if I do it right.
But would 20x16 be that "doing it right" size or would that be 20x18?
 
VitalTransformation said:
I dunno this seems like a whole ordeal just to get basically the same kit you have now but with slightly different sizes, the main motivation seemingly being to get a 12x8" instead of a 12x9". Isn't it more tempting to save up and get a higher end kit in your preferred sizes?

I'm a fairly short dude as well, and it didn't take me long when I started out to find that mounting the toms center on the bass drum wasn't ideal. So I started mounting the 13x11" (early nineties Tama Swingstar) low on the left side using the bass drum mount, and the 12x10" on a cymbal stand adapter to the left of that. Which also brought the ride closer to center and the bell was easier to reach. Basically a one-up, one-down setup but with an extra tom on the left. Made my drumming life a whole lot more comfortable.
Click to expand...

It may be..you may be right. However I'm honestly doing it mainly for the custom hardware color and shell finish combination :)) that's such a great custom feel to have. A kit in colors that nobody else has.
 
VitalTransformation said:
Finish is important, don't let anyone tell you otherwise. It's a big part of what makes you crave to play those drums!

I agree with Tommy D's sentiments. A 22x16" kick would be the ideal size for you.
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Yes! You understand. Lol.
So the difference between the 22x16 & 22x18 would mostly be just the volume right? Because there is less space for the air to move through the heads.
The 20x16 seems so appealing! Haha but you guys are probably right. A 22x16 might be my best bet.
 
Wdrums said:
The 20x16 seems so appealing! Haha but you guys are probably right. A 22x16 might be my best bet.
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Consider the lowest possible usable fundamental. With a 22" that's usually around ~45 hz or so (number just based on personal experience). With a 20" that goes up to around 52 hz which theoretically limits the mixing engineer's possibilities whenever a really room shaking bass drum is needed. Mostly though, both diameters would be usable on most real-world recordings.
 
Regarding bass drum depth, I feel that shallower kicks are rather more sensitive to the tuning relationship between the batter and the reso, but more satisfying once you hit the sweet spot!
 
@VitalTransformation
I usually tune my batter really low. Just enough to get the wrinkles out then tune the sound out of the reso.
So, taking the height factor into consideration, I could still get a 20" to have that low end of a 22" with the right tuning.
Do you mean that it is easier to go from a sweet spot tuning range to completely out of tune with the shallower depths?
Given all this info, maybe 20x18 is my best bet ...god..I just don't know lol
 
Both of my kits have 22 x 14 kicks---anything deeper than 16" is too muddy sounding for me---and my toms are 12 x 10, 13 x 11, 16 x 16. I am 5'9" tall with long legs and a short torso, and I have no problem playing them mounted on the bass drum.
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Wdrums said:
@VitalTransformation
I usually tune my batter really low. Just enough to get the wrinkles out then tune the sound out of the reso.
So, taking the height factor into consideration, I could still get a 20" to have that low end of a 22" with the right tuning.
Do you mean that it is easier to go from a sweet spot tuning range to completely out of tune with the shallower depths?
Given all this info, maybe 20x18 is my best bet ...god..I just don't know lol
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No, a 22" will always have a deeper fundamental when tuned JAW (just above wrinkles), just plain physics. 22x16 is your best bet IMO.
 

HippyChip, meaning no offense but 2003 called and they really want their phone camera back.. I saw your thread with the black suede remo heads and it's some really compressed and noisy stuff! Couldn't really see what the heads looked like.

Just a friendly tip, if you want to keep posting pics online, you should either get a new phone or a cheap compact camera!
 
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VitalTransformation said:
No, a 22" will always have a deeper fundamental when tuned JAW (just above wrinkles), just plain physics. 22x16 is your best bet IMO.
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You make a good point. I guess the "Faster" and "ease" of playing faster double bass on a 20" is just alluring to me.
But, you guys are probably right.
 
hippy chip said:
Both of my kits have 22 x 14 kicks---anything deeper than 16" is too muddy sounding for me---and my toms are 12 x 10, 13 x 11, 16 x 16. I am 5'9" tall with long legs and a short torso, and I have no problem playing them mounted on the bass drum.
0000000002_zps2vxpcqgh.jpg
Click to expand...

Yeah, I could never play that set up personally. The toms are way too spread apart and angled in a weird way for me.
But if it works for you great :)
 
VitalTransformation said:
HippyChip, meaning no offense but 2003 called and they really want their phone camera back.. I saw your thread with the black suede remo heads and it's some really compressed and noisy stuff! Couldn't really see what the heads looked like.

Just a friendly tip, if you want to keep posting pics online, you should either get a new phone or a cheap compact camera!
Click to expand...
I have a fairly expensive camera that decided to crap out on me a few weeks ago---been wanting to upgrade to a DSLR, but haven't decided whether my gear, or pictures of my gear are more important---so far getting my recording studio up and running is getting my vote! If you don't know what Black suede heads look like this is a better pic of another one of my kits with them on it! I put this little kit together for my grandson for his 8th birthday!
8-17-2014005_zps35789bc2.jpg
 
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