Drumheads?

Gerpz

Junior Member
I have been playing for a little over 5 years now. Started when I was 9. I have gone through 2 drum sets and never changed any heads except for a bass head here and there.

I have since played on some of my friends drums and at private lessons I play on the exact same drum set as mine. The difference is, there's sound so much better. The only thing I could come up with is because I use the heads that originally came with the sets I got.

I have looked around and seen people saying no drum head is "best" however I know that every manufacturer makes a combination of good products and horrible products. Is there a certain line or brand I should look for when going shopping for new heads? My band usually plays hard/alt rock kind of stuff and I like to have the bass be really bold.

Thanks,
Brayden
 
Depending on the drums, sticks, tuning, etc you can get many sounds from drum heads. You will find many suggestions here if you tell us what type of drums, brand, and the sound you are looking for.
 
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Depending on the drums, sticks, tuning, etc you can get many sounds from drum heads. You find many suggestions here if you tell us what type of drums, brand, and the sound you are looking for.

I currently have a Sonor 3007 Special Edition set. The reason I'm asking here is because I don't know what sound I am looking for. As I said above, I am usually playing alt/hard rock songs.
 
I currently have a Sonor 3007 Special Edition set. The reason I'm asking here is because I don't know what sound I am looking for. As I said above, I am usually playing alt/hard rock songs.

I generally recommend a coated ambassador batter over a clear amb reso head to new players. Its pretty much a time tested and flexible combo that gives a good baseline to determine what you want more of and what you want less of. If you are a heavy hitter Maybe you should sub a coated emperor for the ambassador.
 
First thing I'd recommend is to stay away from any kind of pre-muffled heads, like Remo Pinstripes, Evans EC2, or Aquarian Performance 2. Especially with the good quality set you have, a nice, open head would sound great if you know (or learn) how to tune well. I suggest either Remo Emperors, Evans G2, or Aquarian Response 2. I would stick with clear to start. I'm sure the options are overwhelming in quantity, but you really can't go wrong with one of the above three. If you're wondering which brand is better in terms of a clear 2 ply head (Emperors, G2s, Response 2s), it's really just preference, because sound-wise, they are all very similar. I'd just go for whatever is cheaper at the time.

Edit: I forgot to mention that this is my advice for batter (top) tom heads. Good resonant (bottom) heads to complement would be Remo Ambassadors, Evans G1s, or Aquarian Classic Clears. These are just your typical clear, 1 ply heads.
 
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I have been playing for a little over 5 years now. Started when I was 9. I have gone through 2 drum sets and never changed any heads except for a bass head here and there.

I have since played on some of my friends drums and at private lessons I play on the exact same drum set as mine. The difference is, there's sound so much better. The only thing I could come up with is because I use the heads that originally came with the sets I got.

I have looked around and seen people saying no drum head is "best" however I know that every manufacturer makes a combination of good products and horrible products. Is there a certain line or brand I should look for when going shopping for new heads? My band usually plays hard/alt rock kind of stuff and I like to have the bass be really bold.

Thanks,
Brayden

I would try Remo Emperors for toms, maybe an Emperor X on the snare if you're a hard hitter, and a Powerstroke 3 on the bass. And all clear Ambassadors on the resonate sides of the toms.

If you're not that hard of a hitter, maybe try Ambassadors on everything instead of Emperors, unless you find you like the Emp sound.

But you can't go wrong with Remo, Evans, or Aquarian. I just stick with Remo.

Hope I've helped
 
Whatever drumheads you get (they all sound good, lol), you should be more focused on the tuning.
Things that make up a drum sound?
10% drum head
10% actual drum
80% tuning

Watch some videos, search through some threads here, find lots of info on tuning.
With tuning you can get a $10,000 kit to sound like crap, or a $300 set to sound fairly decent.
 
Since you like the sound of your friend's kit, just try using the same heads. If they don't sound the same on your set of drums, it's probably been the tuning all along. Your very lucky to have a common denominator playing the same types of drums.

Dennis
 
I have a 3007 also and it sounds really good with Evans EC2's over Evans G1's and a GMAD on the kick.


emad007.jpg



They work for all kinds of music IMO.
 
I have my drum teacher tune most of the time and I am getting to the point where I can almost tune them myself with the help of a keyboard.

I'm thinking of going with Aquarian, Super Kick 2 for the bass and Response 2 for the toms.

Thanks for the help,
Brayden
 
I have my drum teacher tune most of the time and I am getting to the point where I can almost tune them myself with the help of a keyboard.

I'm thinking of going with Aquarian, Super Kick 2 for the bass and Response 2 for the toms.

Thanks for the help,
Brayden
Sounds great! I'm an Aquarian fan myself...

I tune with a keyboard also.
 
I currently have a Sonor 3007 Special Edition set. The reason I'm asking here is because I don't know what sound I am looking for. As I said above, I am usually playing alt/hard rock songs.

All the suggestions in this thread are great, but you've identified the real problem here for yourself. I personally believe that although there is a big difference in the sound of fresh heads and worn ones... learning to tune the drums how you want them to sound is much more important.
 
Whatever drumheads you get (they all sound good, lol), you should be more focused on the tuning.
Things that make up a drum sound?
10% drum head
10% actual drum
80% tuning

Watch some videos, search through some threads here, find lots of info on tuning.
With tuning you can get a $10,000 kit to sound like crap, or a $300 set to sound fairly decent.

one question, if your using the same head and the same person is tuning, do you really think there is only a 10% difference in sound between a set of say pearl exports and a set of masters?
 
one question, if your using the same head and the same person is tuning, do you really think there is only a 10% difference in sound between a set of say pearl exports and a set of masters?
I would have to agree. An inexpensive kit will not have the resonate spectrum of a Pro kit but it will tune and sound fine. Technology has made it possible for inexpensive kits to sound real good. I would say that the difference is close to 10%.
A good tuner will get a good sound from any drum.
 
if thats the case why would someone pay 5000 for a set of shells if there is only 10% difference in sound from a set that only costs 500? it really does make much sense now does it?
 
if thats the case why would someone pay 5000 for a set of shells if there is only 10% difference in sound from a set that only costs 500? it really does make much sense now does it?
It makes sense to some.
If you are close mic-ing in a studio and recording then the 10% means a lot.
If you are sitting at the kit you can hear the difference and it sounds better.
If you are just playing in a club then it really does not matter as much.
It is hard to tell the quality of a drum kit in a live situation from 20 feet away when the drums are in a mix and/or going through a PA sys

It is also nice to be able to own real nice things that you enjoy.
I would love to have an SQ2 or a Delite.

I can't tell the difference between some mid level kits and some pro kits.
 
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The price difference COULDN'T POSSIBLY be part of the materials used that don't necessarily effect drum tone. But yeah, obviously science and wood type make a difference.

Maybe go with something simple, like a 1 ply coated set.
 
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