What are the sound differences in a 18x16 vs 20x14 kick?

Manningluck

Senior Member
How does the sound differ on length vs width? what about if the length and width are just swapping like 18x16 vs 20x14
 
One is bigger around, and the other is deeper. The deeper drum might be a bit "boomey-er" but won't cut as well as the louder but less boomy 20 inch drum. Most people end up preferring a 20 or 22 unless it's quiet music or jazz.
 
How does the sound differ on length vs width? what about if the length and width are just swapping like 18x16 vs 20x14
Diameter & tuning, all other things being equal, dictate pitch. So the 20" drum will deliver more low end, irrespective of depth of shell.

Shell depth is a more complexed mixture of things, but essentially, the deeper the drum, the more dissipated the fundamental becomes. This manifests itself as different frequencies at varying levels of amplitude. Typically, the lower frequencies you want (those that are lower than the fundamental), the higher frequencies you don't (overtones). Lots of different lower tones offer "fatness" to the sound. Think of it like chorus on a bass guitar. On a bass drum, overtones (the higher stuff) are usually controlled by dampening, either directly against the head, or the head itself.

So, with that context info, the 18" x 16" will be higher pitched than the 20", will have a less defined fundamental, will deliver a fatter sound, but with less articulation. The 20" will deliver a lower pitch (thus more bottom end), a clearer fundamental / more focussed sound, & be more articulate.

The caveats are: Changes to tuning can get each drum fairly close to the other in terms of pitch, but never quite there. Head choice & dampening can also change the game considerably, especially porting the reso head. Shell construction, bearing edges, & timber species, can augment the result considerably.

Hope this helps :)
 
I relate diameter to pitch. A larger diameter drum will sound like it's pitched lower than the next sized smaller diameter drum. I relate depth to length of note. A deeper drum's note will not die out as fast as a shallower drum's note.

Super low pitch with a long note would be a larger diameter drum (24,26) with a deep shell (18, 20, 22)


Medium pitch with a short note would be a medium diameter drum (20, 22) with a shorter shell length (14,16)

Higher pitched bass drum with a long note would be an 18 with an 18" depth.

You get the picture.
 
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Diameter & tuning, all other things being equal, dictate pitch. So the 20" drum will deliver more low end, irrespective of depth of shell.

Shell depth is a more complexed mixture of things, but essentially, the deeper the drum, the more dissipated the fundamental becomes. This manifests itself as different frequencies at varying levels of amplitude. Typically, the lower frequencies you want (those that are lower than the fundamental), the higher frequencies you don't (overtones). Lots of different lower tones offer "fatness" to the sound. Think of it like chorus on a bass guitar. On a bass drum, overtones (the higher stuff) are usually controlled by dampening, either directly against the head, or the head itself.

So, with that context info, the 18" x 16" will be higher pitched than the 20", will have a less defined fundamental, will deliver a fatter sound, but with less articulation. The 20" will deliver a lower pitch (thus more bottom end), a clearer fundamental / more focussed sound, & be more articulate.

The caveats are: Changes to tuning can get each drum fairly close to the other in terms of pitch, but never quite there. Head choice & dampening can also change the game considerably, especially porting the reso head. Shell construction, bearing edges, & timber species, can augment the result considerably.

Hope this helps :)

It does indeed. Thanks! :)
 
The pendulum of fashion has swung back to shallower bass drums.

There are two facets to the sound of a drum. The vibrations of the head, and the resonance of the airspace within the shell (with a smaller contribution from the vibrations of the physical drum itself, shell, hardware, etc).

All things being equal, a larger diameter with sustain a lower pitch. That is the same head tension will give a lower pitch (frequency) on a larger diameter. Or, for a given pitch, a larger drum will require a higher tension. Thus all the large drums when folks needed them to be louder to keep up with large amplifiers in the heydays of classic rock. Tuning a larger drum tighter is louder than a smaller drum tuned looser.

The depth affects the volume of air for a given diameter. More air means a higher compliance to the compressive nature of the air volume and a lower fundamental resonance. Basic physics. So a deeper drum will allow a resonance at a lower pitch than a shallower drum.

The trade offs are how much you rely on the actual vibration of the head and how much you rely on the resonance of the drum. With a marching drum where the beater is pulled right off the head (or for folks who spring the kick beater off the head all the time) the head predominates. If you press the beater into the head, the shell dominates.

Deep kicks earned the nickname of cannons as much for the resonant aftertone as much as their appearance.

Because a deep kick gets sustain from two sources, they are often more heavily damped with EMAD or SuperKick type heads. This puts more emphasis on the resonance of the air mass and shell. Sometimes mitigated by relieving the resonance with ported front heads. With an unported front head, I can feel my 22x18 Renown kick vibrating though the pedal. Shallow kick fans are more likely to leave the front head intact since the air volume resonance is less of a contributor and is probably multiples of the head frequency, and use less damping on the heads since the sustain of the head vibrations is more important.

Each sound has different characteristics. The damped deep kick is more of a two part thing. An initial attack with a separate sustain overtone. The open shallow kick is more of a one part boom where the sustain is simply the decay of the initial note.

Of course with tuning, head selection and damping, you can get all sorts of variations across the continuum of sounds.
 
The pendulum of fashion has swung back to shallower bass drums.

There are two facets to the sound of a drum. The vibrations of the head, and the resonance of the airspace within the shell (with a smaller contribution from the vibrations of the physical drum itself, shell, hardware, etc).

All things being equal, a larger diameter with sustain a lower pitch. That is the same head tension will give a lower pitch (frequency) on a larger diameter. Or, for a given pitch, a larger drum will require a higher tension. Thus all the large drums when folks needed them to be louder to keep up with large amplifiers in the heydays of classic rock. Tuning a larger drum tighter is louder than a smaller drum tuned looser.

The depth affects the volume of air for a given diameter. More air means a higher compliance to the compressive nature of the air volume and a lower fundamental resonance. Basic physics. So a deeper drum will allow a resonance at a lower pitch than a shallower drum.

The trade offs are how much you rely on the actual vibration of the head and how much you rely on the resonance of the drum. With a marching drum where the beater is pulled right off the head (or for folks who spring the kick beater off the head all the time) the head predominates. If you press the beater into the head, the shell dominates.

Deep kicks earned the nickname of cannons as much for the resonant aftertone as much as their appearance.

Because a deep kick gets sustain from two sources, they are often more heavily damped with EMAD or SuperKick type heads. This puts more emphasis on the resonance of the air mass and shell. Sometimes mitigated by relieving the resonance with ported front heads. With an unported front head, I can feel my 22x18 Renown kick vibrating though the pedal. Shallow kick fans are more likely to leave the front head intact since the air volume resonance is less of a contributor and is probably multiples of the head frequency, and use less damping on the heads since the sustain of the head vibrations is more important.

Each sound has different characteristics. The damped deep kick is more of a two part thing. An initial attack with a separate sustain overtone. The open shallow kick is more of a one part boom where the sustain is simply the decay of the initial note.

Of course with tuning, head selection and damping, you can get all sorts of variations across the continuum of sounds.
All good stuff :) :) :) :)
 
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